Inspecs
Queen’s Award-winning INSPECS is in the business of making people look good in glasses, supplying retailers and brands around the globe with innovative, stylish eyewear products.
Eyewear maker
Group $61.25m (2019)
40 Bath employees
Founded 1988
Unlimited ambition
Did you know there’s a global, Queen’s award-winning fashion eyewear company based right here in Bath? INSPECS Group plc makes eyewear for a global portfolio of fashion, sports and lifestyle brands including big names like Superdry, O’Neill, Radley, CATERPILLAR and HYPE. We supply 30k points of sale with sunglasses, optical frames and safety eyewear in over 80 countries including retail chains represented here in Bath – Specsavers, Vision Express, Superdry, Boots and Radley to name a few. INSPECS has a global presence with its HQ in Bath UK, offices in Lisbon, Hong Kong and the USA, and 4 manufacturing sites. INSPECS vertically-integrated business model covers eyewear design, manufacturing and distribution which makes it one of only a few companies capable of offering a ‘one-stop shop’ solution to global retail chains.
Unlimited innovation
Innovation is at the heart of INSPECS’ expertise. INSPECS believes that everyone deserves access to good design – and this means finding new ways of bringing stylish design at the right price. INSPECS has four manufacturing sites in Vietnam, China, UK and Italy, and holds the patents for many original and useful eyewear innovations. In-house prototyping and tool-making facilities allow the Group to deliver solutions for the future of eyewear, today.
We make eyewear for global brands including Superdry, O’Neill, Radley, HYPE. and Caterpillar.
We won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise twice in 2007 and again in 2020
We own the oldest eyewear maker in England, Savile Row and recently acquired the oldest lens maker in Britain, NORVILLE (1 hour from Bath) preventing the loss of 122 years of eyewear heritage and many jobs locally.
We supply big names in retail including Specsavers, World Duty Free, Walmart, and Boots.
Unlimited potential
4.5 billion people need vision correction and currently don’t have corrective eyewear. Every person on the planet needs eye protection from the sun. INSPECS is looking good for growth – we’re well-positioned to take further market share in the globally-expanding eyewear market. In 2019 INSPECS was the Sunday Times Profit Track 100 ‘One’s To Watch’ winner.
Unlimited talent
Product Design and Development; Marketing; Commercial; Operations; Finance. Talented people are always welcome to make contact. Number of people: 1200+ globally (40 in Bath).
INSPECS vertically-integrated business model covers eyewear design, manufacturing and distribution which makes it one of only a few companies capable of offering a ‘one-stop shop’ solution to global retail chains.
Did you know…
Bath Community
Supporting local business we partner with local independent businesses including boutique hotels. opticians, tradespeople, sampling workshops, local eateries and event venues.
Charity we support Julian House locally, and more widely we support vision charities with global impact
Young People we’ve engaged with local schools and Bath Spa university to share knowledge and promote good design practices. Our CEO got involved in in a ‘Dragon’s Den’ for local secondary school entrepeneurs.
NHS During the Covid crisis we supported our local and national NHS effort supplying protective eyewear to hospitals, surgeries and clinics including the Bath RUH.
Founded
INSPECS was founded in 1988 and moved to Bath in 2001, first taking on and renovating Farleigh House near Bath as our offices (which is now home to Bath Rugby) and following that regenerating a derelict building in Bath’s city centre. The company added offices in Florida USA, Hong Kong, Lisbon and Scandinavia, and became a plc in 2020 – but we still kept the heart of our business and its HQ based in Bath.
How does Bath influence your work?
INSPECS’ visitors from the UK and overseas find that our proximity to London and the airport at Bristol makes getting to us easy and convenient. We often hear that a visit to INSPECS means a welcome pleasant day out in Bath, quite regularly tagging on a shopping trip afterwards!
Bath is a fantastic pool for talent. Skill sets we look for across our business are strong in Bath - but it’s not hard to attract good talent to move to the area either.
We don’t do boring! The Bath buildings that we occupy bring the right mix of individual character, style and function that we need as a global design and business hub. We won the Happiest Workplace Award in 2018 judged by interior architects firm Wylde IA and Bristol MIND.
Bath is a part of our company fabric – our global achievements have been marked with boat parties on the River Avon and dinners at The Ivy, our staff raise money running in the Bath Half or baking for Julian House, our lunch breaks are spent walking in Victoria Park and our socials after work happen in the city’s bars and restaurants.
Where are you based?
Our global HQ is based in Kelso Place Bath, in the impressive Victorian Gas Light and Coke building that used to supply Bath’s streetlights and homes with power. Four floors of stylish open plan and collaborative office spaces have views across the city and ample car parking for all staff. Positioned just over the road from Royal Victoria Park we are a level ten minute walk into the city centre.
Global
We distribute to over 80 countries globally from 12 office, distribution centre and manufacturing faciliity locations.
Contact details
Steve Tulba, Chief Commercial Officer
info@inspecs.com