New motorbike business aims to create 75 jobs
If you like feel good stories about firms seeing the potential in Gloucestershire and wanting to move here lock stock and barrel to grow and create jobs, then here's one to put a smile on your face.
Dear reader,
Regular readers will know we usually run a single story on a Thursday, with the full editions being published on Monday and Friday - the latter often paywalled to help pay for what we do.
Today that single story is about a firm planning to relocate its entire business lock, stock and barrel to Gloucestershire, potentially creating scores of new jobs in the county.
We’ve done some relationship building with the business ourselves, and hope to bring you some more news with more detail soon - but we are able to run the words below because of our relationship with the BBC, which has made us the only independent news website in Gloucestershire to be able to use its local democracy reporter, Carmelo Garcia.
If you like stories about investment in Gloucestershire, about growth, about regeneration (and are interested in news from outside of Gloucester and Cheltenham too!) this should put a smile on your face.
Enjoy.
Best regards,
Andrew Merrell (editor).
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But we’re currently running this offer to make it even cheaper (just £1.60 a week for a year!!).
For every person you refer to The Raikes Journal’s email service you get points towards a free membership allowing you to see beyond our paywalls. Please do sign up (free or otherwise), send the referral link to a friend or colleague, and help us grow.
New motorbike business aims to create 75 jobs
If you like feel good stories about firms seeing the potential in Gloucestershire and wanting to move here lock stock and barrel to grow and create jobs, then here's one to put a smile on your face.
Plans for a firm from Malvern to open a motorbike showroom, workshop and cafe at a former factory in a Gloucestershire town, relocating its entire business to the site, have been revealed.
Motorbikes 4 All has won permission to change the use of the former LFI British Ladders manufacturing site in Newent, just off Ross Road (see image above).
LFI moved its manufacturing from the Horsefair Lane site to the Lyte Ladders site in Swansea after a merger in 2023.
Since then the site, which has around 5,180 square metres of floor space across several buildings, has been vacant.
Ben Fry, the general manager of Motorbikes 4 All, said the business would bring the empty site back into employment use and create scores of jobs.
“Our plan is to give it a new lease of life as a motorcycle showroom, a workshop, storage facility, and a small cafe for our customers,” Fry told the Forest of Dean District Council development committee.
“Importantly, we’re not changing the outside of the buildings or adding lighting, but simply reusing what’s already there in a way that makes sense.
“One of our biggest benefits here is jobs. We’ll be moving our whole operation from Malvern to Newent, bringing around 25 staff with us straight away, but we’re planning for growth, and based on our experience, we expect to reach around 75 jobs, potentially a few more, in the next three to five years.
“That means training, apprenticeships, skilled work, and more money being spent locally.
“The cafe is a very small part of the plans.
“It’s not a standalone business.
“It’s there to support people visiting the showroom, waiting for workshop jobs, and turning up for ride outs and so forth.”
He added that the site’s opening hours would be from 7am to 8pm and there would be small occasional gatherings like open days or charity rides, and always during normal hours.
“This is about reusing a large employment site in a sustainable way, bringing skilled jobs to Newent, boosting the local economy and doing it in a way that respects the site, its neighbors and the policies in your local plan.”
When asked what it thought of the news. spokesman for Newent Town Council referred The Raikes Journal to the comment its planning and environment committee had made.
“We are resolved to support the application in principle, due to the potential for increased employment opportunities and added benefit of increased footfall to to the town,” said the comment.
Officers at the Forest of Dean District Council this week recommended approving the scheme and councillors voted unanimously to do so.
By Carmelo Garcia, local democracy reporter for Gloucestershire. carmelo.garcia@reachplc.com
*The Raikes Journal is the only independent news outlet in Gloucestershire approved to use the copy of the BBC local government reporting service. Why? Only only independent, credible journalistically-led platforms that meet the BBC’s high standards win that permission.
* The Raikes Journal is a digital magazine and community interest company whose supporters believe, like us, that journalism about Gloucestershire is worth keeping alive. Everything you read here - original stories about our county - is made possible by our incredible Founding Partners: QuoLux, Willans LLP, Gloucestershire College, Merrell People and Randall & Payne; our sponsors, Founding Members and wonderful paying subscribers.
If you upgrade to paid you’ll be part of this CIC too. We’re dedicated to championing the county, its businesses, charities, education and training providers, and to creating an even stronger community. If you upgrade to paid you’ll be able to see past the paywalls often put on our 2cnd and 3rd email editions of the week, that lock our archive after two weeks and our Top 100 Businesses in Gloucestershire series. You’ll be able to comment on our stories too.
Usually you can sign up for just £2.30 a week - or £1.80 a week if two or more people sign up at once. Or go all in and become one of our Founding Partners or Founding Members!
But we’re currently running this offer to make it even cheaper (just £1.60 a week for a year!!).
For every person you refer to The Raikes Journal’s email service you get points towards a free membership allowing you to see beyond our paywalls. Please do sign up (free or otherwise), send the referral link to a friend or colleague, and help us grow.