Bosses at global manufacturer in Harborough district speak directly to Government trade minister during recent visit

Bosses at a global manufacturer and distributor in the Harborough district had the chance to speak directly to a Government trade minister during a recent visit.

Kemi Badenoch MP, Secretary of State for International Trade, visited COBA Group, which specialises in the manufacture of thermoplastic products, at its production facility in Fleckney where more than a million products are manufactured each day.

Ms Badenoch was joined by Neil O’Brien, MP for Harborough, Oadby and Wigston, for the visit, which included a tour of the complex where 266 of COBA Group’s 405 UK employees are based, and a discussion with Mark Cooke, CEO of COBA Group, regarding post-Brexit international trade opportunities.

The business has now been trading for 55 years, and runs 14 production facilities in Europe and Africa.

It featured in the London Stock Exchange’s 2020 list of ‘1000 Companies to Inspire Britain’ and is a staple of Leicestershire’s Top 200 Companies.

Mr Cooke said he was delighted to welcome Kemi Badenoch MP to Fleckney, adding: "International trade is an important part of our business operations, so it was beneficial to share our recent experiences with her and hope they guide her somewhat as she seeks to establish the UK on a sound global trading footing post-Brexit.

‘Managing the journey of our products, from their beginnings as individual components to the finished article that end up with our customers, whether that be in the UK or on mainland Europe, Africa or other parts of the world where we operate, is an ongoing challenge. We naturally always want to always improve in this area, so to relay our thoughts to Ms Badenoch and to see her so engaged and interested in supporting our efforts was great."