Leasehold School Wear Work Wear Uniform Clothes Embroidery Business Longridge Lancashire For Sale

AJF Commercial Business Sales are delighted to bring to the market Mary Frances, a long-established and highly respected school wear, workwear, personalised clothing and embroidery business occupying a prominent and highly visible position within the popular market town of Longridge, Lancashire.

Having been established by our client in February 2003, the business has been successfully developed over more than 23 years and has evolved considerably from its original format as a small mixed haberdashery and school wear shop.

Today, Mary Frances represents a genuinely diverse commercial operation, combining an established retail customer base with school uniform, workwear, sportswear, embroidery, garment printing and personalisation.

The business has also developed an established online web presence, providing an exciting opportunity for a new owner to expand the geographical reach of the company well beyond its traditional local market.

The business is now being offered for sale due to the owner’s retirement, following more than two decades of building and developing the brand and the company.

This is an excellent opportunity for an existing operator within the clothing, school wear or workwear sectors, an entrepreneurial purchaser looking for an established business, or an individual seeking a business with a strong foundation and significant potential for further development.

A Successful Business Built Over More Than Two Decades:

When our client purchased the business in 2003, it was a much smaller operation, essentially comprising a house with a corner shop attached.

At the time, the business traded primarily as a small mixed haberdashery shop, with school uniform supplied to just two local schools.

The retirement of another local retailer selling school uniform created an important opportunity. Our client purchased their remaining school uniform stock and began concentrating more heavily on this side of the market.

The haberdashery operation was subsequently phased out and replaced with an increasingly comprehensive range of school uniforms, children’s clothing, workwear, sportswear and personalised garments.

The business also began offering embroidery and printing services, initially to support its existing school wear operation but subsequently developing into a significant standalone revenue stream.

Over the years, the company has established strong relationships with schools, businesses, sports clubs and individuals throughout the local area and increasingly further afield.

Exceptional School Wear Customer Base:

One of the major attractions of the business is the strength of its established school wear customer base.

Through years of building relationships and providing a reliable, personal service, Mary Frances has become the sole supplier of school uniform to 13 local primary schools and 12 nursery schools.

The business also supplies the two local high schools, as well as undertaking bulk orders for a number of additional schools.

These relationships provide an excellent foundation for the continued operation of the business and demonstrate the level of trust and reputation that has been developed over many years.

The school wear side of the operation also creates significant opportunities to introduce additional products and services to an already established customer base.

For an incoming owner, there is further potential to approach schools throughout Lancashire and the wider North West, building upon the systems, experience and reputation already established by the business.

From School Uniform To A Year-Round Work Wear Business:

A significant stage in the company’s development came in 2010, when our client invested in a single-head embroidery machine.

Originally purchased to improve efficiency during the particularly busy back-to-school period, the machine quickly opened up new commercial opportunities.

The ability to personalise garments in-house enabled Mary Frances to begin supplying embroidered clothing to businesses, clubs and organisations, gradually developing the workwear side of the operation.

This has continued to grow substantially.

The business now supplies a wide variety of workwear and personalised clothing, including polo shirts, hi-visibility clothing, teamwear, corporate clothing and bespoke garments, alongside more specialist products such as horse blankets and clothing for stag and hen parties.

This diversification has been particularly important because it provides the business with a year-round customer base, helping to reduce its reliance upon the traditional school wear season.

Today, the business has well over 100 businesses, sports clubs and other organisations placing regular orders.

This established B2B customer base provides an excellent opportunity for a new owner to develop a dedicated sales strategy and increase the frequency and value of repeat orders.

Purpose Built Workshop & In House Production:

In 2016, further investment was made in the premises, with the shop being extended to create a dedicated rear workshop and storeroom.

This now houses the business’s impressive range of embroidery and printing equipment and provides the ability to undertake a significant proportion of production work in-house.

The machinery includes:

• Happy HCR3-504-45 4-Head Embroidery Machine – 2020
• Brother PR1050X Entrepreneur ProX Single-Head Embroidery Machine
• Roland TruVIS SG-300 Printer
• Graphtec CE5000-60 Cutter Plotter – 2012
• IT930N Swing Heat Press – 2025

The business also benefits from:

• CCTV with four cameras
• Two computers
• Four computer monitors
• Steam iron and board – 2021

All machinery is reported to be in excellent condition and regularly serviced.

The investment in this equipment provides a considerable advantage to the business, allowing garments to be printed, embroidered and personalised internally rather than relying entirely on external suppliers.

For an incoming purchaser, the existing machinery and workshop provide the infrastructure to immediately continue and potentially expand this side of the operation.

Products and Services:

The diversity of Mary Frances is one of its key strengths.

The business currently operates across several complementary sectors, including:

School Uniform – supplying a large number of local schools and nurseries.

Workwear – supplying businesses and trades across the local area.

Sportswear & Teamwear – supporting sports clubs and teams with personalised clothing.

Embroidery – in-house embroidery for businesses, clubs, schools and individuals.

Printing & Vinyl – garment printing, logos, slogans and bespoke designs.

Children’s Clothing – complementing the core school wear operation.

Corporate Clothing – providing branded clothing for businesses and organisations.

Event Clothing – including stag and hen parties and other bespoke requirements.

Specialist Products – including items such as personalised blankets.

This broad product offering creates multiple opportunities to cross-sell between different customer groups.

Established Website & Online Potential:

Mary Frances also benefits from a professional website containing a comprehensive range of products and information about the business.

The website has already demonstrated its ability to attract customers from outside the immediate trading area.

Indeed, the business is now receiving enquiries from customers as far afield as London, despite having generated the vast majority of its existing business through reputation and word of mouth rather than a comprehensive digital marketing campaign.

This is a particularly exciting opportunity for a new owner.

The foundations for a national online operation are already in place, but there is considerable scope to invest further in search engine optimisation, Google advertising, social media, email marketing and online sales.

A purchaser with the appropriate digital skills could potentially transform the website into a much larger sales channel, marketing school wear, workwear, sportswear and personalised garments to customers throughout the UK.

Strong Reputation With Little Advertising:

Perhaps one of the most impressive aspects of the business is the fact that its existing customer base has been built with virtually no traditional advertising.

The business has grown predominantly through word of mouth, repeat custom, reputation and long-standing customer relationships.

This is a strong indication of the level of service provided and the trust established within the local community.

It also means that an incoming owner has the opportunity to introduce a completely new marketing strategy without having to replace an existing expensive advertising model.

Social media is already active and could be developed considerably further through regular content, customer photographs, school wear updates, new product launches, promotional campaigns and examples of recent embroidery and printing work.

Scope For Future Growth:

The business is well positioned for continued growth under new ownership.

The current owner has concentrated heavily on providing a quality service and maintaining relationships with customers rather than aggressively pursuing new business.

There are therefore numerous avenues available to an ambitious purchaser.

These could include:

• Making the website e-commerce
• Approaching additional schools across Lancashire and the wider North West
• Expanding the existing B2B workwear customer base
• Employing a dedicated sales representative
• Increasing online sales nationally
• Developing social media marketing
• Investing in SEO and Google advertising
• Targeting additional sports clubs and organisations
• Developing corporate clothing packages
• Expanding personalised event clothing
• Increasing email marketing to existing customers
• Introducing new product lines
• Developing online-only sales channels

The existing customer base, premises, machinery and website provide the infrastructure required to pursue these opportunities.

Premises:

The business occupies a double-fronted ground-floor lock-up terraced property, offering excellent visibility and a prominent trading position.

There is car parking to the front of the premises, together with good frontal signage.

The entrance leads into a good-sized, open-plan showroom with a practical layout suitable for displaying school wear, children’s clothing, workwear and sportswear.

The premises comprise:

• Double-fronted retail frontage
• Open-plan showroom
• Serving counter
• Cash till and card machine
• Customer changing rooms
• WC
• Kitchen area
• Rear office
• Extensive storage
• Dedicated embroidery workshop
• Printing and personalisation area

The rear workshop is particularly valuable, providing a dedicated production environment separate from the main retail showroom.

Recent Improvements To The Property:

The premises have also benefited from a number of improvements and upgrades, including:

• Electrical rewire
• Suspended ceiling
• Modern lighting panels
• Replacement UPVC double-glazed shop windows
• Replacement UPVC double-glazed entrance door
• Internal CCTV system

The property therefore provides a well-presented and practical environment from which to continue operating and develop the business.

Location:

Longridge is an attractive and well-established market town situated in the Ribble Valley area of Lancashire, approximately eight miles north-east of Preston.

The town serves as an important commercial centre for a substantial surrounding catchment, with customers travelling into Longridge from neighbouring villages and communities.

Longridge benefits from a strong local community and a varied mix of independent retailers, professional services, cafés, restaurants and other businesses.

The surrounding area is particularly attractive, with the Ribble Valley renowned for its countryside, villages and affluent residential communities.

The location is also strategically positioned for access to Preston, Blackburn, Clitheroe and the wider Lancashire area, while excellent road links provide access towards the M6 motorway and the wider North West.

For Mary Frances, the location provides an excellent base for serving local schools, businesses and residents, while the established website and e-commerce operation allow the company to extend its reach nationally.

Staff & Opening Hours:

The business is currently operated by the owner with assistance from two part-time members of staff.

Current opening hours are:

Monday – Friday: 9.00am – 5.00pm

Saturday: 9.00am – 4.00pm

Sunday: Closed

The owner and staff are currently kept extremely busy throughout the year, reflecting the established customer base and breadth of services offered.

A new owner may wish to review the existing staffing structure and consider whether additional production, administrative or sales support could create further capacity for growth.

Reason For Sale:

After more than 23 years of ownership and development, our client has made the decision to retire.

The business has been built from a small local shop into a well-established operation with an impressive portfolio of school customers, more than 100 regular business and club customers, substantial in-house production facilities and an established online presence.

The owner feels that the business is now at an excellent stage for a new operator to take over and continue its development.

The Opportunity:

Mary Frances represents a rare opportunity to acquire an established and highly diversified clothing business with a 23-year trading history, strong local reputation and multiple established revenue streams.

The business combines the security of an established school wear customer base with the growth potential of workwear, sportswear, embroidery, printing and e-commerce.

The extensive machinery and workshop facilities provide an additional barrier to entry for competitors, while the established relationships with schools, businesses and sports clubs offer an incoming purchaser an immediate customer base.

Most importantly, the business has achieved its current position with very little advertising, meaning there is considerable potential for a new owner to accelerate growth through modern sales and marketing techniques.

Whether the purchaser wishes to continue operating the business on its current successful model or invest in developing the online, B2B and school wear markets, Mary Frances offers a strong platform from which to build.

Turnover and further financial information are available to genuinely interested parties upon request.

Contact Details:

If you would like to contact us to discuss the business in further detail or to arrange a viewing, you can by the following methods:

Telephone – 01204 325 101

Email – [email protected]

Website – www.ajfcommercial.co.uk

You can also find us on:

Facebook – AJF Commercial Business Sales

X – @ajfcommercial

Instagram – @ajf_commercial

LinkedIn – AJF Commercial Business Sales

Threads – @ajf_commercial