Case Study: The Unsung Heroes of the UK Vaccine Rollout

CoolMed, the medical refrigeration specialist, has expanded to new premises in order to accommodate for accelerated efforts in the UK’s Covid-19 vaccination programme. Its new premises in Trafford Park is 1600m², four times the size of its previous Manchester headquarters.

Originally founded in the early 2000s, the organisation has been advised by Slater Heelis since the CoolMed brand was launched in 2017.

CoolMed attributes its rapid growth to meeting current demand for support in the UK’s vaccine roll-out, and forecasts future growth to supply refrigeration for a booster jab programme in autumn as the UK battles new variants and strains of Covid-19.

Read on to find out more about the relationship between Slater Heelis and CoolMed.

Keeping their cool through rapid growth

Demand for CoolMed products is reflected in the organisation’s revenue figures, now on track to achieve £2.5m turnover in 2021, up by 110% on 2020’s figures.

In the past year, CoolMed has supplied 1900 medical refrigerators, won a three-year contract to exclusively supply all Lloyds Pharmacy and Lloyds Pharmacy Clinical Homecare medical-grade refrigerators, and signed a deal with McKesson – the billion-dollar American pharmaceutical distributor.

A word from the Managing Director

“Since we started trading in 2017, we’ve had to scale-up rapidly to keep pace with the Government’s fast-tracking of the vaccination programme. Medical refrigeration is understandably high on the national agenda at the moment, but will also be for months to come – especially given the recent announcement on proposals for a booster jab programme.

“The vaccine provides us with hope for the future, and it’s a privilege to play a role in upholding public safety and to work with the NHS in tackling one of the biggest challenges in recent history. I’m grateful for the invaluable legal advice from Hannah and the Slater Heelis team which enabled us to not only devote ourselves to meeting the demands of our clients, but also to grow our business rapidly and sustainably.”

– Stephen Johnson, Managing Director at CoolMed

Finding the right premises

“CoolMed is one of the unsung heroes of the UK’s vaccine roll-out and its cost-effective refrigeration products are vital to the medical industry. As with any rapidly growing organisation, it is imperative that all legal issues – from reviewing the title and obtaining searches to finalising the lease and completing the transaction – are dealt with as efficiently as possible to allow it to focus on what it does best.

“I’m pleased we have had the opportunity to work with an organisation that is making such a positive contribution to the health of the nation.”

– Hannah Al-Shaghana, Commercial Property Partner at Slater Heelis