There is an English figurative expression “when needs must” and in 1994 this term was exactly what Jim Lawrence had to do as the realisation that rearing pigs and cows on a small-scale farm in east Anglia was not going to be profitable. Being of a resourceful nature, Jim set up a forge in one of his farm buildings and began to manufacture items for friends and neighbours before embarking on setting up what has become the go to company for lighting and home furnishings.
From those humble beginnings in the barn creating candlesticks and chandeliers, Jim Lawrence Traditional Ironwork Ltd now resides in a facility in the market town of Hadleigh, Suffolk. This move away from the farm was mainly due to the company’s growth but, it was also driven by the fact the staff didn’t enjoy driving down a bumpy farm track to work every day. This relocation in 2000 to its current premises, allowed for the growth of the workshops, warehouse, offices and the creation of an impressive showroom to take place. Now with a headcount of over 150 people which include engineers, welders, painters, seamstresses, designers and lampshade makers, Jim stipulates that the classic, high quality products they produce wherever possible are made in the UK.
Capacity in the workshop is mainly taken up with production of parts used on the range of lighting products manufactured by the company. With the growth that the company have had to embark on, particularly during the covid epidemic when they virtually ran out of stock, Jim’s focus is firmly on making investments to ensure that productivity remains high and efficiency gains can be had to keep up with demand. That is one of the reasons that they recently approached XYZ Machine Tools to look at ways of manufacturing the housing of their popular Harbour outdoor lights more effectively.
