A Penryn manufacturing company is creating up to 20 new jobs, having secured a £380,000 Government grant to support export growth and strengthen its competitive edge.

Kernow Coatings, which has been established for more than 40 years, designs and manufactures specialist materials primarily for the retail graphics market, with the largest proportion exported to Europe and North America.

The Grant for Business Investment (GBI) funding is part of a £960,000 expansion that will increase the manufacturing capacity at Kernow Coatings and support the development of new products.

The company, which employs 90 staff, is taking on up to 20 more people across the business to support its growth plans.

Kernow Coatings is the latest South West company to be advised by the grants team at accountants Francis Clark.

Kevin Boyes, operations director at Kernow Coatings, said: “Securing this grant has been a real boost because it’s a vote of confidence in our achievements to date and our plans for future growth. This significant investment will support our ambition to expand our overseas trading and harness the technology and staff skills we need to fulfil our long term ambitions.”

The business said it initially had reservations about applying for grant funding and welcomed the support of the Francis Clark team.

Kevin said: “Your heart can sink a bit at the prospect of having to fill out paperwork and put together a case for funding because when you are busy it is challenging to dedicate resource to an application with no indication of whether you will get a return for your efforts. Dave Armstrong, Corporate Finance Director at Francis Clark and his colleague Aimee Jones, navigated us smoothly through the process while understanding our daily operational demands and priorities.”

Aimee Jones, Corporate Finance Associate at Francis Clark said: “We are delighted that Kernow Coatings has been successful with its GBI funding bid. The prospect of grant applications can be daunting for busy successful companies so we support them by making best use of their resources and guiding them through the process.”

Francis Clark holds regular events to update local businesses on funding opportunities. For more information visit www.francisclark.co.uk.