Roach Bridge Tissues, a specialised printer and converter of wrapping tissue paper, serves the retail POS and e-commerce markets with a diverse clientele that includes designer apparel, footwear, cut glass, pottery, wine bottle wrapping, interleaving for sheet metals, optical lenses, and home removals packaging.
Approximately 70% of the company’s sales are bespoke printed tissue paper, with the remainder comprising plain white or coloured reams and rolls. Roach Bridge Tissues prides itself on being a design-led company, transforming customers’ design concepts into tangible products that enhance brand presentation. Their expertise lies in offering design support and technical assistance to clients who have a vision but lack the knowledge to realise it.
As an SME manufacturer based in the picturesque countryside of Lancashire, the ten-member team at Roach Bridge Tissues boasts over 120 years of combined experience in the tissue paper industry. Their printed and finished tissue paper adds the perfect finishing touch, providing luxury and brand awareness to customers’ unboxing experiences.
For the past eight years, Roach Bridge Tissues has been a proud member of Made in Britain, using the official registered trademark on all ream wrappers. This trademark symbolises low product miles, quality, rapid production, support for the UK economy and workforce, and British manufacturing excellence.
Since its inception 25 years ago, Roach Bridge Tissues has been committed to ethical and environmental responsibility. One of the company’s ongoing goals is to minimise the environmental impact of its processes. Striving towards net zero involves integrating impact reduction into decision-making, ensuring both economic viability and environmental considerations guide their outcomes.
What is the main problem you solve for your customers?
Versatility. Given that the majority of our work is bespoke, each order comes with a unique set of requirements. Our extensive knowledge, accumulated over the years, allows us to support our customers from the initial design phase. We maintain a substantial stock of paper in various weights and sizes, enabling us to meet most design briefs. Being a British manufacturer, we can respond swiftly, delivering from brief to finished product in less than two weeks for minimum order quantities.
What inspired you to start your business – did you aim to disrupt the status quo, or was it a market gap you sought to fill?
Tissue paper feels like it’s in my blood; my grandfather owned Roach Bridge Paper Mill and produced tissue paper until his passing in the late 70s. When my husband and I learned that some of the Mill’s machinery was for sale, we saw an opportunity to fill a market gap for bespoke branded tissue paper.
In the early 2000s, printed tissue paper wasn’t particularly popular, but with the shift in laws regarding plastic bags and the rise of e-commerce, branded tissue paper has become highly sought after.
What are your brand values?
Service and quality are at the heart of Roach Bridge’s values. Our entire team is dedicated to ensuring that every ream of tissue paper we dispatch exceeds expectations.
While the Roach Bridge Tissues brand may not be widely recognised, our business focuses on enhancing our customers’ brand visibility. Our values are integral to how we manage the business and produce our products.
Do your values influence your decision-making process?
Absolutely. Our values guide everything we do, from sourcing the finest raw materials and maintaining our machinery to planning production schedules efficiently and valuing our team and environment.
Is team culture crucial to your business?
Yes, team culture is vital. As a small team, collaboration is essential. We ensure that all team members are trained on different machines and rotate through various processes. This approach not only provides coverage for holidays and illnesses but also promotes better wellbeing and problem-solving through a shared pool of expertise. I understand the importance of flexibility, especially when unexpected personal issues arise, and we all work together to support each other.
How do you show your team that you appreciate them?
While we don’t have team-building days or reward schemes, we value and respect each other’s opinions. I am actively involved in all aspects of the process, maintaining an open-door policy for questions, ideas, and issues. When quoting for unconventional jobs, we make collective decisions, leveraging the specific expertise of team members.
Seven years ago, we transitioned to a four-day week for economic reasons, and when business picked up, the team preferred this arrangement. We now have a condensed workweek with an optional plus four hours on Fridays during peak seasons.
Do you communicate directly and clearly with your customers?
Yes, clear communication with customers is paramount. I always provide honest feedback on what is possible within our capabilities and find solutions to deliver what our customers need. Transparency avoids hidden costs and disappointments, ensuring customer satisfaction.
How are you handling inflation and interest rates – are you passing costs onto customers or absorbing them?
The paper industry faced significant price rises at the onset of the Ukraine war due to its high energy consumption. We experienced a period where prices soared, but customers rarely questioned the increases. Now, most prices have stabilised, and we can mostly absorb the costs. Interest rates haven’t impacted us as we operate on a pay-as-you-go basis. To support my team during the cost-of-living crisis, I decided to give a substantial wage increase, prioritising their wellbeing over profitability.
How do you assess your data and KPIs?
Our primary data comes from satisfied customers, with key performance indicators being returning customers and reaching new ones. While monitoring figures is important, I focus on the broader picture: providing excellent service at competitive rates, maintaining team enthusiasm, and achieving year-on-year turnover growth. As long as these goals are met, I am not overly concerned with monthly targets.
Is technology playing a larger role in your company’s operations?
Our printing machines are traditional, as tissue paper is too delicate for digital printing. Our team’s skills, such as colour matching hand-mixed inks, set us apart. The office, however, embraces modern technology, though we are unlikely to go paperless.
What is your attitude towards your competitors?
As long as our competitors maintain their standards, I am content as we strive to do better.
What advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?
Always do your best, value your team and customers, and focus on long-term outcomes rather than immediate gains. Include environmental impact in all decisions; it may be more expensive initially but is worthwhile in the long run.
How do you relax and recharge?
I excel at leaving work behind at the end of the day. Beekeeping and serving as a referee and judge for Artistic Swimming keep me busy and focused on weekends, providing a great way to relax. Family, though wonderful, doesn’t fall under the category of restful!
Do you follow the 12-week work method or longer planning strategies?
I do not adhere to a specific planning method. Most customer orders are on a just-in-time basis, so while I maintain an overview of about six weeks, the production schedule is planned weekly and can change. We prioritise urgent requests, ensuring no impact on other customers. Stock paper takes approximately 12 weeks to manufacture, while other consumables are ordered as needed. Maintenance is planned, with our team of engineers, including my husband, ready to assist when necessary.
What is your company’s eco strategy?
We strive to reduce our environmental impact and provide the best working environment. Many certification standards are costly for an SME, so we adopt their criteria without the audits. We are FSC registered, and much of our paper stock is 100% recycled.
Our factory runs on electricity from an on-site hydroelectric turbine, and we plan to install solar panels. We utilise natural light, LED lighting, and efficient heating systems. Our team lives locally, minimising travel impact. We have a de-inking plant for waste management, and all manufacturing waste is recycled. Our rural location, with free-range chickens and bee hives, enhances our environment.
What are your goals for the next 12 months?
Our primary goal is to install a new, better-insulated roof with solar panels, enhancing our sustainability efforts.
