Astonish cleans up with ethical value-for-money range

As a manufacturer in a commodity sector, Astonish knows it needs to stand out from the crowd.

And that it does - literally - at its Bradford-based factory, with a bold Union Jack-crowned logo announcing its presence on the approach to the 65,000 sq ft site.

It’s a far cry from the business’ humble beginnings 40 years ago, when product demonstrator Alan Moss began hand-producing oven cleaning paste at a garage in Leeds.

Four decades later, Alan’s son Howard Moss helms the business, which has grown to an £18.5m turnover company that exports to 50 countries globally.

After the business celebrated its 40th anniversary in December, Howard says staying true to its principles is the key to its success.

“Essentially it’s no different to what it’s been like for years: we stand for high quality, ethical principles and value for money,” he says.

The business came about in the early ‘70s as Alan began working for a demonstrator who was pulling in the crowds with an oven cleaner.

“My father wasn’t a chemist or someone who had any history in cleaning products,” Howard says.

“But as time went on and he struggled to get hold of supplies of the cleaner, he thought, ‘how hard can it be to make it myself?’”

After obtaining a recipe, Alan began producing the cleaner himself. “It was very much a sole-trader operation, in a garage with a second-hand mixing pot,” Howard says.

Originally called Klin, Alan took the product to the US, where a kitchen store group agreed to distribute it under its own brand. The firm christened it Astonish, adding a Union Jack to the logo for the American market.

After the US importer entered administration, Alan brought the brand name back to the UK, and Astonish was born.

Through the ‘80s, Astonish widened its product range and distrubtion channels. The mail order market and teleshopping networks provided useful outlets, while a deal with Woolworths saw it break into the high street. High-end department stores such as John Lewis, Harrods and Selfridges also brought the products on board.

By the time Howard joined the business in the early ‘90s, Astonish was thriving, but faced challenges familiar to many fast-growing small businesses.

“Our manufacturing process was so laboursome, and at the same time, our distribution was a mix I couldn’t get my head around,” Howard says. “Often I was seeing orders shipped where they were maybe fifty per cent, sixty per cent fulfilled.”

As Howard focused on improving manufacturing and logistics processes, a new sector began to emerge in retail - the discounters.

“It was the opposite of where we were retailing,” Howard says.

“But there was a gap there and that’s how we got Astonish distributed nationally.”

In 1999, Astonish had outgrown its original premises, moving to a site in Pudsey. The next 11 years saw Astonish grow from around £4m annual turnover to £11m, as its 10-strong product range expanded to 50, all under the Astonish brand.

Astonish’s 70-plus products have been developed in line with environmentally-friendly credentials, certified by the Vegan Society as containing no animal derivatives and are also cruelty free.

“We were ahead of our time with products that were environmentally friendly, they didn’t contain any corrosives or acids or toxic fumes,” Howard says.

“One of our major export clients had to have kosher-certified products; by virtue of that took our product and had it vegan certified.

“We also banned animal testing on any products we make, and any materials we source have a signed disclaimer to say they’ve not been tested on animals.”

After becoming an animal-friendly manufacturer 15 years ago, Astonish is reaping the benefits of an increasingly discerning consumer market.

“Even people who may not be vegan or vegetarian take comfort in it,” Howard says.

Six years ago, as Alan retired and Howard became managing director, the business moved to its current location.

Provided with a blank canvas for the factory, the business invested a total of £5m on the project.

“It was a massive investment, it was around £500,000 to buy the site and then we kitted it out to what we wanted it to do,” Howard says.

“We’ve invested in manufacturing, I like to think it’s as efficient as anywhere.

“We’ve developed new products and we’ve been able to attract the best talent around.

“Like any business, you’re as good as the people you’ve got working for you and we’ve got a great team here.”

From that initial paste cleaner, Astonish has branched out to develop everyting from handwashes to laundry detergents to car care products.

Its UK sales, which make up 65 per cent of takeover, come from a broad array of distributors, with supermarkets, discount stores and even DIY chains stocking the products. But Howard is particularly proud of the 50 export markets Astonish serves.

“To have a brand that’s manufctured in Bradford that ends up in China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, African nations, a lot of Eastern European countries - we’re very proud of what we do,” he says.

Astonish doesn’t pay for billboard or TV advertising, instead putting money into eye-catching packaging and a social media strategy.

The best advert for the business is the products themselves, Howard says.

“The biggest thing we need to do is get people to try our products,” he says.

“Once they’ve tried it, I don’t think they’ll switch back. After 40 years, people are still using our product.”

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Fact file - Howard Moss:

Title – Managing director, Astonish Cleaning Products

Date of birth – 23rd August, 1974

Education – Morris Silman Middle School, Leeds Grammar High School

First job – Astonish

Favourite holiday destination – US (love the place – anything from New York to Miami!)

Favourite film – Public Enemies

Favourite song – anything by Stevie Wonder

Last book read – KP (Kevin Pietersen Autobiography)

Car driven – Jaguar XJ

Most proud of – all the export markets the ‘Astonish’ brand ships to