Home   News   Article

Forsyths at 181 in Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200


By Chris Saunderson

Easier access to your trusted, local news. Subscribe to a digital package and support local news publishing.



Click here to sign up to our free newsletters!

A MORAY company is among the top 200 private companies in the UK for fastest-growing international sales.

Metal fabricator Forsyths, of Rothes, is listed at 181 in the Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200 league table, published this weekend.

Richard Forsyth snr (right) with his son, also Richard, who is managing director of the business now.
Richard Forsyth snr (right) with his son, also Richard, who is managing director of the business now.

The company has seen an average international sales growth of 32 per cent over a two year period.

An order book with £12.4 million in international sales has been due to operations in Japan and Hong Kong to meet Asian demand for whisky stills.

The company has total sales of £46.8 million and employs 386 staff.

Forsyths is one of eight Scottish companies on the league table.

The firm has its origins back to 1890 in Rothes and the company A Forsyth and Son was created in 1933 by Alexander Forsyth.

His son was Ernest (known as Toot) and after returning from service in the Second World War he took over the running of the business. Toot quickly introduced new welding techniques to replace the traditional riveting process which helped keep the business moving with times.

In the late 60’s, third generation Richard and William became involved in the business. Richard took over the management of the business in the mid 70’s and oversaw the subsequent diversification and expansion of the company into the group it is today.

The company went through rebranding during this time and the company name was reduced to Forsyths.

Today fourth generation Richard Ernest carries on the mantle as managing director.

Among the others on the Sunday Times list are Vegware, based in Edinburgh, which manufactures compostable packaging. It has international sales of £11.4 million and has seen growth of 81 per cent. It comes in at number 37 in the table and is the highest ranked Scottish firm.

The BrewDog brewery in Ellon, Aberdeenshire is ranked 47 with international sales of £39.3 million and growth of 71 per cent over a two year period.

Amanda Murphy, head of commercial banking with HSBC UK, said: "The Sunday Times International Track 200 shows the strength, ambition and resilience of companies across the UK and we are delighted to be sponsoring again this year.

"At HSBC UK we take great pride in recognising the contribution these businesses are making to driving growth across the UK."


Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.



This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies - Learn More