PANDA Plumbing & Heating in Tyldesley is celebrating after winning several large contracts with local organisations.
Paul Lloyd set up PANDA Plumbing and Heating four years ago and, since then, the business has grown from being a part-time operation to having a small team of engineers serving both domestic and commercial customers.
Paul’s business has gone from strength to strength – despite having to navigate a difficult trading period when the pandemic hit.
Paul said: “PANDA Plumbing and Heating was founded in 2017 and launched as a full-time enterprise in January 2018.
“Our customers range from domestic home owners to hotel managers. We work with housing associations and landlords to ensure rented properties are safe and repairs are done quickly.
“We also help other property managers who look after buildings such as colleges, care homes and churches, with their commercial heating needs. We carry out plumbing jobs in Greater Manchester and the wider North West area.
“Our focus when fitting new boilers is to make sure they are energy efficient, to save the customer on their energy bills in the long-run and help cut down CO2 production.”
The team is made up of Paul Lloyd (the director and a commercial heating engineer) and two domestic engineers plus an apprentice.
Paul added the company’s charity work has helped boost morale and forge community links, saying: “We support a couple of charities including Liv’s Trust – which helps help under-25s in Greater Manchester receive an education in music and dance – and Bury Hospice for whom we have recently sponsored a golf competition.
“We also sponsored a local disability football team, Dynamite, who train with Leigh Genesis FC.”
PANDA is a growing company and Paul said: “We would like to increase our workforce by one or two more engineers and a full-time administrator in the next few months.”
When it come to advice for people setting up and growing their businesses in the current climate, Paul said: “My advice for any start-up business would be to understand your market. Then work on building relationships and networks.
“All of our work comes from recommendations and referrals. In fact, 30%+ of our turnover currently comes from the BNI business network. I have been member of BNI for two years. I am also part of the Mancheshare network and have found its support really useful.”