Why the North-East remains a breath of fresh air for thriving vape distribution firm
FEATURE
Target – Boss Chris Kelly is aiming to make his vape distribution firm Phoenix 2 Retail into a quarter of a million-dollar business .
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Why the North-East remains a breath of fresh air for thriving vape distribution firm
WORDS : DAVE ROBSON PICTURES : STUART BOULTON
Phoenix 2 Retail Growth
He has several European countries in his sights and has just made his first trip to China . But for vape distribution company boss Chris Kelly , home – Hartlepool – will always be where the heart is . And his business , come to that .
When he set up Phoenix 2 Retail during Covid , he was tapping into several years of experience within the tobacco and vaping industry – firstly looking after real estate for VIP Electronic Cigarettes , then working for US giant Juul .
Confident in his business knowledge and seeing a gap in the market , he began Phoenix 2 Retail with wife Rachael from a tiny room in the Innovation Centre at Hartlepool .
Three years on , the firm employs around 60 directly and 30 indirectly , and is on course for a staggering £ 200m turnover in 2024 – “ We want to be a quarter-of-a-billion-dollar-business , that ’ s the aim ,” says Chris .
Having set the UK market alight , Chris is targeting new business across Europe , with Spain , Germany and Poland first on the agenda .
Incorporation |
First year results |
Booker onboarding |
Key client wins |
Morrisons onboarding |
Re-brand |
OCT 2019 |
JAN 2021 |
OCT 2021 |
JAN 2022 |
JUN 2022 |
OCT 2022 |
In October 2019 , Chris Kelly set up Phoenix with the idea of building a business which would take products to market on behalf of brands . |
The business delivered 4.5m in revenue in the period to January 2021 ( FY22 ). This performance was only the start of the rapid growth of what was to follow . |
Phoenix onboards Booker as a client , helping to grow Booker ’ s vape sales by over sevenfold since the partnership began . |
The business enters agreements to supply One Stop and NISA . |
Phoenix enters a five-year agreement with Morrisons for product supply and roll out of fixture solutions across every UK store . |
Phoenix aquired the ‘ Vape Local ’ brand name . |
118 | Tees Business |
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