Under new Managing Director Rob Irwin and even newer Sales & Marketing Director Nick Williams, Cumbrian slate and stone company Burlington have re-branded, opened a new stone studio at their headquarters in Kirkby in Furness and created distinct product categories and geographical regions for their sales team.

Nearly 100 guests attended the opening of the new £500,000 Lake District stone studio this month when Lord Cavendish, who owns Burlington, explained how the company are facing the threat of Far Eastern imports by “investing in the future”.

The new studio will be overseen by Mike Gough, who has been with Burlington for 2¹/₂ years and now takes on a newly created business development role with responsibility for creating a UK-wide network of Burlington Stone stockists.

The focus of the company that are calling themselves ‘stone engineers’ will be on introducing products into high-end retail, interior design and consumer market sectors, starting with bathroom and kitchen retailers.

They will continue to offer bespoke products for major projects but are also introducing a range of standard products, including wall and floor tiles, paving and hard landscaping.

Nick Williams says: “Burlington are entering a new, dynamic and exciting phase of development that will see far greater emphasis placed on product and market diversification. To support such a move, we have invested significant time and resources in developing a more effective sales operating structure.”

He says the new studio, with its creative yet functional interior and exterior natural stone solutions, will provide inspiration for designers, specifiers and discerning home owners.

Burlington say they will increase their workforce of about 130 in Cumbria by a further 10% this year, having already taken on an extra eight people.