Philbins Offices, Wigan
Working In The Borough - Case Studies - Pataks Food
Patak’s is a privately owned, family run business, headed by husband and wife team, Kirit and Meena Pathak. The business was first established in 1956 by Kirit’s father, who was an immigrant from East Africa. The Patak’s Group of companies comprises four businesses, which are all located in the UK and which produce Indian food products for the UK and International markets. In total, 650 staff are employed within the four businesses, with three being located in Scotland and one in Wigan Borough.
Patak’s first relocated to Wigan Borough in 1978 to a site in Abram. In 1999, Patak’s Foods relocated to Leigh, near Wigan which is approximately two miles from the A580, part of the national motorway and key trunk road network. The facility, which was purpose built in 2000, incorporates both food manufacturing and offices, on an eight acre site and covers about 190,000 sq ft. It employs 350 personnel and manufactures ambient, shelf stable grocery products, such as cooking sauces in jars and cans; chutneys; pickles; and snacks such as ready to eat pappadums. It supplies the UK food market and some 40 international markets. The Leigh site also accommodates staff responsible for marketing, sales, new product development, procurement, supply chain, MIS and accounting functions.
When the new site was acquired in 1999, the prime reason for relocating within the Wigan and Leigh area was to retain the key skills of employees who were based at a site in Abram, Wigan. This was some six miles from the site in Leigh and the new site was about 20 minutes travel to work time for existing employees. It was essential to be in close proximity to the national motorway / truck road network and also to acquire land at “reasonable cost” per acre.
When Patak’s decided to relocate their factory, they found that Wigan Council were very helpful in identifying potential sites for relocation and assisted them in “assembling” relevant sites by helping with attaining planning permission and completing grant / financial assistance applications.
David Page, Managing Director would recommend enlisting the support of Wigan Council and other relevant organisations who can help identify potential sites and assist in financial / non-financial aid.