Having made eight acquisitions in two years under a buy and build strategy with the help of iCON Infrastructure LLP, CIRQLR is said to have an £150 million turnover, 600,000 tonnes of materials and 19 recycling facilities across England. The integrated network of regional recycling operators covers the East of England from the South-Coast to the Humber.
Palmer-Jones tells me that the ‘Q’ in CIRQLR is a nod to the element of questioning what we do with waste, and the company’s slogan – giving waste a second life – is a phrase he has used often in his career, one he says is made more amusing now as he jokes he has been given a second life too, with this latest move.
‘Accelerating development’
The regional brands acquired make up an impressive, combined age of 200 years, with Surrey-based Chambers Group being the latest recycling firm to join CIRQLR. This further strengthens its presence in the South-East and Home Counties, with Southern regional customers now able to turn to CIRQLR’s sister recycling brands Wilrose and Cox Skips/The Recycling Partnership.
The company also has coverage from the Humber down across East of England and East Anglia via Ellgia, north and central London via KP Waste and Eco Waste, with all subsidiaries able to benefit from the national reach of CIRQLR’s Castle Environmental.
Palmer-Jones says he chose each firm for their individual ethos. Kevin Hill, founder and managing director at KP Waste, adds: “Being part of a larger group of likeminded regional waste companies, whilst maintaining the unique nature and brand of KP Waste, was central to my decision to join.”
Jack Lavington, managing director of Ellgia, shares the vision, keeping true to his company’s roots while understanding the need for growth: “Becoming part of the CIRQLR group gives Ellgia not only the best opportunity to accelerate its development but also to keep delivering the service levels and solutions for which it is renowned.”
And one might wonder, how did this massive project and collaboration come to be? “After retiring for one day, I went into consultancy, and decided I could build something else, especially at a time where regulation was very interesting,” Palmer-Jones continues.
“I decided I wanted to get involved in commercial and industrial waste management, what with two thirds of volumes of material in the UK being C&I. Which is why I feel Digital Waste Tracking is important, because if you don’t know what’s happening to two thirds of waste flows, how do you regulate that?”
He says: “We have rapidly built CIRQLR Group into a significant player in the commercial recycling market and our growth journey has only just begun. A generational step change in how we manage business waste is underway, supported by the implementation of positive regulatory changes over the next five years.
“With a government now willing to put into action the clarity and stability of regulation needed to stimulate investment and growth in recycling, there is scope to further develop CIRQLR as a significant shaper of the commercial and industrial markets.”
Future-gazing
So, with what I guess you could say is technically 200 years of trading under its belt before it has even officially started, CIRQLR says it is ready to help businesses of all sizes, across all industry sectors, adapt to the regulatory reforms that will alter the way waste materials are handled.
Palmer-Jones reflects: “In my career, I’ve been very lucky to future-gaze, if you like, with regulation being so important and driving everything. So, reading the room, I could see this shift coming, and thought ‘well, I’ll come back and build something really interesting’.”
And if he could future-gaze once more, what might he see for CIRQLR long-term? Palmer-Jones says he hopes to double its revenue, invest in new and existing facilities and develop its 600 employees, as well as expand the company’s geographical coverage, all while remaining true to a unifying culture made up of some weighty local brands.
It is clear to see that Palmer-Jones not only wants but needs to be part of the change, having retired from his already very successful career for a single day, before he was itching to share his wisdom once again. Over the period of us talking, the well-known phrase ‘unfinished business’ cropped up again and again, so I have a strong feeling Palmer-Jones will not rest until the recycling and waste sector is truly circular forevermore.
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