Record year for bottling and canning group Thomas Hardy Holdings

Group that works with brewers and soft drink makers says it is on track for strong 2026

Bottling and packaging group Thomas Hardy has enjoyed a “record breaking year” with bosses predicting more growth this year.

The group, which is based at Burtonwood near Warrington and also has a base in Kendal, reported turnover of £27.5m for the year ending September 30, 2025 – up 39% on 2024. That helped drive pre-tax profits up 132%, from £1.8m to £4.1m.

In his statement to Thomas Hardy Holdings’ latest set of accounts filed at Companies House, managing director Chris Ward said: “This is the highest profit generated in a financial year for the group since incorporation in 1997. Overall packaged volumes were up 41% on 2024 and the directors forecast further growth in 2026.”

At its Burtonwood base, the group’s new canning line operated for its first full year, with what Mr Ward called “promising volume output”. Meanwhile, work on a warehouse extension at the Bold Lane site started later than expected but “should still offer its facilities to customers in the second half of 2026”.

Mr Ward said the group had also seen success with contract renewals. He said: “Two of the group’s existing customers renewed contracts during the year. 94% of forecast volumes for the next financial year are contracted beyond the next twelve months with a further 3% agreed in principle with contracts pending.”

He added: “The directors are in constant contact with all of the group’s customers and believe that demand will be in line with expectations over the next twelve months.”

The Thomas Hardy group was founded in 1997 by Peter Ward with the acquisition of businesses in Dorchester alongside Burtonwood brewery and Scottish Courage’s Kendal site.

Today the group’s 20-acre Burtonwood site includes two high-speed glass bottling lines and one high-speed canning line, meaning the site can fill up to 350m bottles and 225m cans per year. The group has invested £24.4m in the site over the past six years.

Its Kendal site includes a high-speed glass bottling line and other packaging machines for cartons, trays and shrink-wrapping. The plant has seen £5.9m of investment in the last six years. The group employs more than 120 people.

Mr Ward said: “The directors forecast that volumes in the coming year will continue to grow beyond the output achieved in 2025, with strong demand continuing to come from both bottling and canning customers.

“Operations in Burtonwood on the can line moved to a 24/7 continental shift pattern of working in October 2025 to take advantage of the increasing demand and this shift pattern is expected to run beyond the end of the next financial year.”