Business

Luxury bed linen company secures £400,000 investment

Paul Nesbitt (left) and Thomas Glackin, directors at Linen Bundle, with Jenna Mairs, senior investment manager at Whiterock Finance
Paul Nesbitt (left) and Thomas Glackin, directors at Linen Bundle, with Jenna Mairs, senior investment manager at Whiterock Finance Paul Nesbitt (left) and Thomas Glackin, directors at Linen Bundle, with Jenna Mairs, senior investment manager at Whiterock Finance

A LUXURY bed linen company based in Lisburn is to create four new jobs over the next 12 months thanks to a £400,000 investment.

Linen Bundle, which sells bed linen through its website, secured the money from Invest Northern Ireland's Growth Loan Fund II.

The company's bedding is 100 per cent cotton spun from a single-ply.

Linen Bundle ships to the UK and Republic and will be launching in France this month.

Thomas Glackin, director at Linen Bundle, said he and his business partner Paul Nesbitt have more than 10 years' experience in the industry and noticed a gap in the market for affordable luxury bedding.

"Consumers were either paying a high price for good quality or sacrificing quality in favour of lower prices," he said.

"There was no middle ground and that is why Linen Bundle was created.

"We spent a lot of time sampling products and visiting different factories. For us, getting the right people to create our products was as important as the fabric used. Since we launched sales have consistently exceeded expectations."

He added: "Having enough inventory is always a challenge for any ecommerce business but the loan from the Growth Loan Fund means the business is in a healthy position for future growth. By the end of the year, we’re going to expand our range to include duvets, pillows and all other ancillary bedding products."

Jenna Mairs, senior investment manager at Whiterock Finance said: "Linen Bundle is a company with high growth potential which has been demonstrated by the level of demand seen so far. We look forward to supporting the business as it continues to expand into Europe."

Growth Loan Fund II is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the EU Investment for Growth and Jobs Programme 2014-2020.

Companies seeking funding from the Growth Loan Fund must be based in Northern Ireland, demonstrating growth and generally be in the manufacturing, engineering or tradable services sectors.