Andrew Dwerryhouse, Managing Director of Wild Thang, talks about how the company he founded has grown over the past 29 years and his passion for sustainability.
Wild Thang was established with a small loan from the Prince’s Trust in 1996 when the internet was still in its infancy and the Yellow Pages was the key resource for businesses. Since then, Wild Thang has weathered everything from recessions to Brexit and grown from a micro business to a major player with global reach. Speaking to Andrew, his enthusiasm and ambition for the company shines through and shows that, in the words of the song, Wild Thang still makes his “heart sing”.
Industry Leader
Today, Wild Thang is one of the UK’s leading creative branded clothing, merchandise and print companies. It is a real family business, with Andrew’s sister Sarah working as Commercial Director, Chris overseeing the world class in-house production facilities as Operations Director and his brother-in-law John supervising the supply chain. These family values have helped Wild Thang to grow and thrive.
The company’s unusual name has played a key role in making it stand out from its competitors in a traditional industry, but the name came about purely by chance.
“We were just singing the song one day and we thought it would make a great name,” Andrew explains. “We wanted to be different and to stand out from the crowd. In the same way that Virgin created a brand to be remembered.”
Over the past three decades Wild Thang has delivered branded uniforms, merchandise and print to almost every sector and industry not only in the UK but across the world. The highly skilled team has more than 400 years of combined industry experience between them. Customers can choose from a huge selection of branded goods ranging from t-shirts, polo-shirts, awards, bags and workwear to pens, tech-products, mugs and umbrellas.
Sustainability
Everything Wild Thang does is guided by the “Wild Thang Way” which means delivering the very best customer experience while keeping true to its values. Sustainability is a key part of the Wild Thang Way, and the company prioritises environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles. Wild Thang integrates sustainability into its operations through initiatives such as carbon offsetting, planting trees with every order received and eco-friendly product options. So far it has planted over 60,000 trees and offset over 3,000 tons of carbon.
Andrew says: “The world is changing. It’s not something that’s in the future – it’s here! We focus on sustainability because it’s the right thing to do. It’s central to our culture and it helps the business. Being sustainable is an expense but it’s not just about profit, it’s about making a difference.”
Wild Thang measures progress against its own eight-point sustainability pledge, which was officially launched in March 2023. The first point on the long-term pledge is the aim to be carbon net zero by 2030. Another point on the sustainability pledge is to become B Corp certified this year, which Andrew describes as “being the best of the best” when it comes to sustainability. To be awarded B Corp Certification a business must meet “a high standard of social and environmental performance” on everything from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices. Other points on the pledge include offering as many sustainable product alternatives as possible and making Wild Thang’s own building and environment as sustainable as possible.
Wild Thang is already one of the most certified businesses in the country having earned ISO 9001, ISO 1400, ISO 9001 and Sedex-Smeta certification, not to mention several awards including Sustainable Business of the Year, Sourcing City Distributor of the Year and Liverpool Chamber Business of the Year.
Andrew’s guiding principle on business and sustainability is “progress not perfection” which is reflected through Wild Thang’s partnership with The Good Small Business Awards, which highlight the most innovative and sustainable SMEs.
International Success
Wild Thang has a world-class production facility in Liverpool, a warehouse and offices in Dublin and now has global reach with a base in New Jersey, USA. Once again, Wild Thang’s unique name has helped it stand out in the US market just as it did back home.
Andrew says: “We’ve had a very warm welcome in the States. They’re very receptive to what we’re doing. They love our name and it’s a great talking point.”
Regional Pride
With a HQ in Liverpool and many major clients in Manchester, Wild Thang links two of the North’s major cities. Clients in Manchester include such famous names as Vimto and the Co-Op along with local sporting giants Salford Red Devils, Salford City FC and Lancashire County Cricket Club. It was these business interests in Manchester that led Wild Thang to join Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce and Andrew is keen that both cities cooperate more for the benefit of the whole region and can see having a dedicated office in Manchester at some point in the not too distant future.
He says: “Manchester and Liverpool should be working together to build a better future for the North.”
For more information about Wild Thang and the services it provides, visit www.wildthang.co.uk.