Few local chief executives face a trickier task in the months ahead than the one confronting the new man in charge of Harrogate Spring Water.
Richard Hall has to convince a sceptical public and councillors that they should support plans to fell trees in the Pinewoods so the company can expand its factory and produce more plastic bottles.
Trees, plastic and a climate crisis are a volatile mix, as shown last year when more than 400 people objected to a larger expansion scheme put forward by the company that was ultimately rejected.
The campaign attracted national media coverage and a high profile champion in TV presenter Julia Bradbury.
Mr Hall hopes the outcome will be different this time and is keen to strike a conciliatory tone as the company prepares to consult on its revised plans before submitting a planning application.
He says:
“Expansion plans can often be challenged by local communities and that’s something that is not unusual per se, but we could have handled it better and we could have consulted better with the local community so there’s definitely a lesson to learn for us.
“We’ve got an opportunity to be much more open. There is an opportunity for people to come and talk to us, look at the plan and give us feedback.”
Richard Hall, at the company’s Harrogate factory.
Mr Hall is also keen to frame the debate in a wider context than trees versus plastic.
“It’s not really a question of how water is packaged — it’s a question of how food and other beverages are packaged. So if we are asked what are we doing to reduce the impact of packaging, I’d be very happy to respond to that because we are doing significant things.”
He mentions several environmental initiatives Harrogate Spring Water supports and says the main issue is recycling rates. Harrogate Spring Water’s bottles are made using 50% recycled plastic and glass and Mr Hall says this would increase if more recycled products were available.
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Water, he says, is “the healthiest beverage” and the company’s national reputation should be a source of local pride, not to mention the fact that expansion would create 30 jobs.
Packaging, he adds, is a separate debate. But he knows the argument will be tough.
“I accept there will be some discussion around it. It’s a hot topic. People are passionate about the climate. I just hope we get a balanced debate.”
New era
Mr Hall’s appointment marks a new era at Harrogate Spring Water, which can produce 36,000 bottles of 500 millilitre water per hour at its factory.
The company was bought two years ago by French multinational Danone but former managing director James Cain, who had been in charge for 15 years, continued to lead the business until Mr Hall arrived. Mr Cain is now a minority shareholder.
The takeover and expansion plans haven’t been the only issues to contend with lately.
Covid hit hard. According to Harrogate Spring Water’s latest annual accounts, gross profit for the year ending March 31, 2020, was £8.3m but crashed to £1.9m for the nine months to December 31, 2020 due to the closure of many places that sell bottled water, such as convenience stores, hotels, airports and train stations.
Mr Hall says business is now “recovering to pre-covid levels”.
Brexit, he says, impacted the company “a little bit” but nowhere near as much as covid. Inflation is a major concern now.
The company has stopped exporting water to Russia since the Ukraine war started but overseas sales account for only a fraction of business.
Last year the business withdrew its sponsorship of Yorkshire County Cricket Club amid the club’s racism row and has not renewed it, but it continues to be the official water of Royal Ascot.
Despite its national reputation, Mr Hall describes Harrogate Spring Water, which employs 78 staff, as a “small, local brand” compared with international brands like Volvic, and he doesn’t see that changing.
“We will look at expansion plans in the UK and Ireland. There’s lots of space to grow.”
Harrogate, he says, should be proud of its spa heritage.
“There are not many towns in the UK that can talk about their spa heritage. Harrogate is the top one. The water you find here is delicious.”
Danone all his life
Mr Hall, a keen runner, joined Danone in Tokyo a month after finishing university in Japan. He has remained with the company since. He is fluent in Japanese, where he lived for 25 years and has a Japanese wife.
As vice-president of Danone’s UK and Ireland business, his remit extends far beyond Harrogate Spring Water’s factory on Harlow Moor Road (pictured below).
Mr Hall lives in Oxford and expects to visit Harrogate twice a month.
His credentials are impeccable, having worked on other Danone water brands Evian and Volvic, as well as Yakult.
Being part of Danone, he says, brings “access to expertise and knowledge” but he constantly stresses the importance of the company retaining the local feel nurtured by the Cains. A new strategic plan is being created.
“The Cain family did a great job in building the brand. I want to look after it and grow it further. We are talking about a premium brand; we are not talking about a mass market brand.”
But how much the company grows will depend largely on whether its planning application to expand by two acres in the Pinewoods is successful.
It plans to revive a 2017 application that was granted outline permission, which means the principle of development is already established but the final details are not.
A banner protest this month.
Having outline permission will make the process easier but little is likely to be straightforward in such emotional terrain. Last year, protestor Sarah Gibbs stood outside the council offices dressed as a tree, and she has been back putting up banners around the town, saying there can be no mitigation for the loss of woodland.
Mr Hall reiterates he welcomes debate and that the company will listen. Would he talk to Julia Bradbury? He looks at his PR adviser who says he can’t see why not.
There is likely to be plenty of talking and listening before councillors decide whether the plant can be extended. Mr Hall will have to call on all his skill, expertise and years of experience if the company is to secure the outcome it wants.
