WORKPLACE furniture procurement specialist the Bureau Group has acquired assets from used furniture business 2NDHND Ltd.
The move brings furniture remanufacture in-house for the first time at Edinburgh-based Bureau Group, which helps companies from start-ups to blue chips refit and redesign office spaces by procuring and removing furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FF&E) sustainably.
Bureau said it plans to create a "large-scale circular marketplace".
The acquisition secures five jobs at Dundonald-based 2NDHND Ltd, which entered administration on October 17, with 13 made redundant at the time, and with new appointments, including apprenticeships, also expected.
The new roles will include design-focused positions as part of plans to ramp up the standard and expectation of refurbished FF&E.
The remanufacture facility will see furniture from large corporates, SMEs, and the public sector completely refurbished to Category 1 condition – almost new – and ready to be commercially resold or redistributed to charities, schools and other not-for-profits, avoiding the need for furniture to go to landfill.
Co-founders Andy and Jennifer Russell say the acquisition is a "pivotal moment in supporting large scale decarbonisation of the commercial furniture industry".
READ MORE: Scottish office furniture retailer falls into administration
Mr Russell, managing director at Bureau Group, said: “Our purpose is to help support companies to be as sustainable as possible, by embedding circularity within every business decision.
“This acquisition means we can create a genuine opportunity for firms to make a different decision on the way they buy furniture that is more cost effective and also helps to save the planet."
Ms Russell, co-founder and group operations director at Bureau Group, said: “We see huge value in this market, and are pleased to rescue the industry-leading skills and experience here in Scotland and add it to our offering as part of our plans to build a stable market."
Shona Campbell, partner at administrator Henderson Loggie LLP, said: “Bureau Group presented an ambitious, exciting and most importantly viable plan for the future of the business, and Henderson Loggie LLP is delighted the ongoing employment of five people has been secured.
“We wish Bureau Group and its employees the best of luck with the venture.”
Bureau Group, which also has branches in Glasgow, London and US tech hub Seattle, is on course to turnover £10 million plus next year, delivering projects for UK-based companies around the world from Shenzhen and Miami to Singapore and Barcelona.
Bureau’s clients include flight comparison site Skyscanner and asset manager abrdn for whom renovation of its HQ resulted in massive carbon savings, 6,000 computers wiped and recycled and unwanted furniture donated to charity.
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