TWO companies in the north are coming together to manufacture 500 luxury glamping pods.
The five-year partnership between sustainable tourism company Further Space in Belfast and manufacturing firm Paragon in Campsie, near Derry, will see the pods deployed at 85 sites across Ireland and Scotland.
Launched in 2017 and co-founded by David Maxwell, Further Space already has 58 luxury glamping pods across the islands, with a series of openings planned in Scotland and the Republic of Ireland this year.
The business, which supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, aims to be net positive by 2030 and David Maxwell believes partnering with Paragon will help them take a significant step towards this.
He said: “We are delighted to be working with Paragon on such an exciting project which will help create amazing spaces and support people to actively make sustainable choices when deciding where to spend a short break.
“Paragon has an excellent reputation for maintaining the highest possible quality control on their projects and we will work closely with them to ensure these fully glazed ‘tiny homes’ remain handcrafted works of art, with luxury features that are built to last from sustainable materials.”
Further Space works hand-in-hand with landowners when selecting locations for their luxury pods ensuring guests get the opportunity to stay somewhere amazing.
Their sites include Glenarm Castle Estate, on a hillside with awe-inspiring views of the Atlantic Ocean, the tranquil Hillhead Farm in the heart of Dumfries and Galloway with sweeping vistas across Nithsdale Valley and Forth Mountain in Wexford, where the pods can be found on horse riding and hiking trails sets in acres of unspoilt countryside.
Operating in partnership with growing businesses, Paragon supports businesses in establishing the manufacturing processes needed to scale up.
Its founder Ryan Tierney said both companies are closely aligned on their drive to have sustainability at the heart of their operations, having met whilst attending the same Simple Scaling programme.
He said: “We have a reputation, built up over 15 years, for working collaboratively with our partners to provide them with the freedom and security to scale their businesses without the pressure of running a manufacturing operation.
“We are lean exemplars with thousands of companies visiting us from across the globe for our ‘Lean Made Simple’ tours to learn how we drive efficiencies into our processes.
“Further Space can now grow their business and be assured that the pods are being manufactured to the highest standard.
“Sustainable manufacturing is at the forefront of everything we do therefore we are particularly pleased to be partnering with a company which shares the same ethos.
“Paragon will create the accommodation units through economically-sound processes that minimise negative environmental impacts while conserving energy and natural resources.”
