THERE is an increasingly global dimension to Lord Willie Haughey’s City Facilities Management. As revealed in The Herald in July, Lord Haughey has added mainland Europe to his company’s burgeoning presence overseas, following previous moves into Australia, Asia and the US. That international expansion has paid rich dividends, with City highlighting growth throughout Australia and South East Asia in its latest accounts, as well as a stellar start for its US division which launched last year. And it has high hopes for its prospects in the European mainland, following its acquisition of French firm Lesprit earlier this year.

While continuing overseas expansion will no doubt be pleasing to Lord Haughey and his team, the strength of City in its home market will surely bring its own particular satisfaction. The company, through activities such as refrigeration maintenance, has long had a big exposure to the UK retail sector, which has not had its trouble to seek in recent years.

The supermarket market in particular has come under pressure as consumer confidence has been tested by economic and political uncertainty, with the historic dominance of the four biggest grocers seriously disrupted by the rapid growth of the discounters.

However Lord Haughey, the Glasgow-born entrepreneur and philanthropist, signalled that a degree of confidence has returned. Following two or three years of retrenchment, he said, the big players are looking again at their expansion plans. That can only augur well for City as it seeks to grow at home and abroad.