Hartlepool firm Made For Trade celebrates after winning King's Award For Enterprise

Made For Trade, who manufactures and supplies aluminium bi-folding doors and conservatory systems to the UK fenestration industry, won a King’s Award for Innovation thanks to its revolutionary Korniche Aluminium Lantern Roof product, a patented solution to bringing light into a single story extension.

The company, who celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, has its headquarters in Wynyard with manufacturing sites at Portrack Lane, in Stockton, and Brenda Road, in Hartlepool.

The King’s Awards for Enterprise, previously known as The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, is now in its 58th year and is the most prestigious business award in the country, with successful businesses able to use the esteemed King’s Awards Emblem for the next five years.

Managing director, Bradley Gaunt, son of company founder Richard Gaunt, was delighted with the award, adding: “Winning this award validates our team’s hard work and dedication. It boosts our reputation and opens up new opportunities for growth and collaboration. Thanks to everyone at Made For Trade for their passion and commitment. Together, we’ll keep innovating and achieving success.”

Bradley took over the family business from his father at the age of just 23, with a degree in engineering and just 18 months industry experience.

The company had been reduced to just 11 employees due to tough economic times when Bradley set to work.

He said: “I was only 23 and so I went round and got to understand everybody’s jobs and how the whole operation worked. Then I looked at what was working and how we could do things better.

“Forty years ago when we started, my father was manufacturing and installing pvc windows on Teesside. We had a good name for ourselves, but the domestic market was getting tough and I wanted us to innovate.

“We began focussing more on the trade manufacturing side and making great quality products that were easy to assemble, at a really good price.

"From there we designed the Korniche Aluminium Lantern Roof. Structurally its stronger, aesthetically it’s so much better, it’s solar controlled and is easier to install.”

Helping with the design of this revolutionary product was brother Ashley, who was previously working as a chassis designer for a car company in Italy.

Sister Lois has also joined the company in customer services.

Bradley added: “We have a really good team, a really good ethic and we are constantly looking to innovate, this award is the cherry on the cake for a lot of hard work.”