Pavers boss unhappy as expansion plans are rejected

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Nov 7, 2022

In a blow to York shoe company Pavers, city councillors have rejected its £19 million plan to expand a warehouse and add offices.

That means the Yorkshire-based company is having to re-evaluate expansion plans with joint managing director Stuart Paver telling TheBusinessDesk he now needs to “reassess” the company’s relationship with the city.

Paver said the company “desperately needed” expansion along with a separate extension for new office space. The major investment would bring 130 jobs to the city, he noted.

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The company, which currently sells five million pairs of shoes a year, said the extension would allow it to sell 16-18 million pairs annually.

Recent growth has seen Pavers’ retail portfolio grow to more than 180 stores and boosted online sales by 700% in the last three years. However, growth will be dependent on additional warehousing and storage requirements that are expected to double over the next five years, the MD said.

“As a York-based family business we are proud of our association with York and how we’ve managed to grow from a £200 loan my mother took out in the 1970s to the company we are today, but we need to keep growing,” he said.

He added: “We really want to continue to build our business and relationships within York. We don’t want to become one of the long list of successful companies that have had to find another home.”