Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry Ambition Magazine

FEATURE

F rom loading canopies and warehouses to full sports facilities such as Padel courts, LauraLu delivers solutions that are fast to deploy and tailored to need. Andy Gates, sales director UK, and Chris Jarvis, area sales manager for NI, explain how their model is built on rapid deployment, rental flexibility and complete end-to-end delivery. “We are a French manufacturer with a base in Toulouse. We design, manufacture and install temporary, semi-permanent and permanent structures,” Andy Gates, sales director UK and Ireland begins. Lauralu has two product ranges: aluminium and steel. It sells or rents structures to customers, which allows them the flexibility to grow without tying up capital in what is a tax-efficient setup. The company has been established in the UK for almost 12 years, and growth has accelerated given rising demand in specific sectors. “We have had just over 300% growth since 2019,” Andy continues. “And we are on track to

exceed £10 million turnover in 2025, which is a record year for us and a big jump up from last year as well.” As part of the wider French group, Lauralu is turning over €85 million.

On the ground in Northern Ireland, Chris Jarvis is the dedicated point of contact for companies seeking to expand their footprint without the commitment of a permanent structure, or for those constrained by leases. “We are the go-to for temporary buildings,” he says. “When we say a temporary building, that is not a tent nor is it a marquee. It is something that does offer flexibility with

the rental, but equally it is something that can be up for a very, very long time

as well.” Lauralu has been operating and selling structures in Ireland and Northern Ireland for three years and recently opened an office in Belfast City Centre. When discussing the firm’s USPs, speed and turnkey

delivery are the hook. “Our lead times are six to eight weeks and we can install and hand over the building in nine weeks from time of order,” Andy explains. The process is intentionally simple and fast. Lauralu aims to be “on site as soon as we can within 48 hours” and to “provide proposals and quotes within 24 hours of being on site.” From there, the team runs a transfer meeting with manufacturing in France, receives a delivery date, installs, hands over and completes any snags via a project or site manager. “We have certain aspects of our building which make us more of a premium product compared to our competitors,” Andy says. “We have full control over every aspect of the design phase, the manufacturing phase and the installation, whereas some of our competitors do not. The level of support that we offer is far greater. We have presence in every part of the UK and Ireland, we are always accessible immediately and we are a can-do company.” Sectors driving demand reflect where speed and flexibility matter most. “Our bread and butter would normally be transport and logistics. We work with companies like DPD, DHL and Montgomery Transport,” Andy says. “There is always another requirement, and they are always coming back to us to help them solve the next problem that they have.” Sport is another bright spot. “Padel facilities. The solutions that we offer are much more premium, but still cost-effective and offer a rental.” In Northern Ireland, Chris points to two upcoming flagship schemes. “One of them is going to be a large warehouse. We will have just shy of 4,000 square metres of

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