Celebrating 45 Years In Style! Team YPS Raise Over £3,000 for Local Hospices Through Anniversary Event

On September 2nd we celebrated our 45th anniversary in style whilst raising over £3,000 in charitable donations for hospices in the West Yorkshire area. Around 30 members of team YPS were amongst a 75 strong group of ‘YPS VIPs’ attending the afternoon event at our HQ on Armytage Road, Brighouse, which went on into the evening at the Holiday Inn Leeds-Brighouse hotel.

From 1977 to 2022…

Founded 45 years ago by lifelong Halifax resident David Johnson, we've grown into the UK’s leading supplier of flexible wrapping and bagging machinery and materials. From humble beginnings, we're proud to now be the supplier of choice for thousands of businesses across the UK, including blue-chip brands like BT, Hammonds Furniture, Ideal Standard and Black Sheep Brewery. Overseen by David’s son-daughter team Glyn and Rachel Johnson, we've gone from strength to strength in recent years, culminating in not only a successful rebrand but also a relocation from Dewsbury to Brighouse in 2021. Opening a second distribution centre later last year in Heckmondwike to accommodate our continued explosive growth, we have also seen our numbers swell from 20 to 30 employees within just an 18 month period. Thwarted from planning a ribbon-cutting ceremony in 2021 by COVID, we pledged to combine the momentous occasion with marking 45 years in business this summer.

A community celebration

Attendees from scores of businesses (each of whom have played a part in our four-decades-long journey) came together to celebrate the milestone, including those who have helped to build our HQ, overhaul our branding and construct our new website, as well as our international manufacturing partners who supply our outstanding product range. Guests from tech giant Zoho, marketing agency ‘The Bigger Boat’, Barclays Bank, PIB Insurance and The Business Exposure Group were all present, to name but a few. Technical delegates from TOSA Group in Italy and from Bollore Films in France were also welcome visitors, as was a representative from our industry governing body, the Packaging and Processing Machinery Association (PPMA), headquartered in Surrey.  For our most loyal customers and friends that couldn’t make the date, luxury hampers and bottles of champagne were shipped across the UK and Ireland to thank them for their long-term support. 

Guests were treated to a fantastic line-up of entertainment, including Huddersfield-based magician Luke Lenihan who wowed with his captivating card tricks and sleight of hand, and local legend Pete Emmett who delighted the evening party-goers with his side-splitting stand up comedy. The refreshments did not disappoint either, with Julie Emberton from Jules Cakes in Halifax creating a magnificent two-tiered, branded sponge cake bedecked with ‘45’ toppers and a tasty buffet selection laid on by Thyme for Food, Elland.

FUN-draising!

Having supported Forget-Me-Not Children’s Hospice for several years (raising a huge £20,157 for the charity up until September 2022) as well as Overgate Hospice more recently, we decided to launch a fundraising campaign alongside our anniversary event to support both charities. By running competitions, raffles and games throughout the day, we collected £1,504.41 in generous donations, which we then match-funded to total £3008.82 and split equally between each worthy cause. Representatives from both charities were in person at the party to speak with revellers, promote their work and raise awareness.

Recognising a lifetime of service

During the afternoon event our chairman David Johnson was poignantly presented with a custom-made trophy by his son Glyn and daughter Rachel in front of our gathered guests. As the afternoon’s ultimate VIP, David was recognised for his unfaltering years of dedication, inspired leadership, astute business-mindedness and ever-constant stability he has afforded us in a touching speech delivered by Glyn. Cutting the inauguration ribbon with a flourish, David then had the honours of declaring the our state-of-the-art Brighouse HQ officially open before unveiling a commemorative plaque to mark the date, which is now pride of place in our reception!

With special thanks...

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all the guests, colleagues and businesses who contributed to, attended or sent messages of congratulations, cards and flowers in honour of the anniversary party, as well as those who have supported our business in any way - big or small - over the last four and a half decades. Furthermore, we'd like to express our sincere gratitude for all of the generous donations gifted in the name of our chosen charities, Overgate Hospice and Forget-Me-Not Hospice, upon which these fantastic organisations rely heavily.

We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day to celebrate this happy occasion. It was a joy to share it with our suppliers, partners and friends of our family - old and new - without all of whom we couldn’t have reached this milestone. Our successes, including our recent relocation to Brighouse, the expansion of our workforce and the consistent growth of our market share over the last five years. are down to the solid leadership of my father, a strong network of business connections and our committed ‘YPS family’, all of which we are toasting today. So here’s to the next 45 years of YPS!

Glyn Johnson, YPS M.D.