A £1 million deal with a major retailer is just part of the ingredients helping drive double digit growth at a Gloucestershire business.

Fifteen years ago it started like many other firms - as 'two people, one desk' - but today WCD Group is looking at a turnover circa £7 million and employs 58 staff, as well as field engineers across the UK and Ireland.

Supplying 'hydration solutions' to businesses, large and small across the UK, and now homeowners it has established itself as a go-to company for firm's concerned with 'energy efficiency and environmental sustainability'.

With organisations such as Refill.org and other anti-plastic bodies fast emerging in 2019, the Brockworth-based WCD Group has seen a 12 per cent annual growth, which is looking to improve further at the end of its current financial year.

There has been a swell in businesses and retailers investing in plumbed in refill stations for their customers and the public to refill reusable bottles with fresh water, reducing pollution waste and landfill.

Freddie Cairns Palmer, chief executive officer at WCD Group, said: "We refer to this as the Attenborough Affect; following Sir David's Blue Planet plastic awareness.

"The crusade against single-use plastic pollution has resulted in a meteoric rise in the refill sector, and sees us working with Gloucester Rugby, Creed Foodservice, and high street brands such as Sainsbury's, M&S and Greggs to name but a few."

Growth this year has also been driven by investment and finance from long-standing banking partner, Barclays.

According to WCD the bank has been there at every stage of the business's journey, including the expansion into new premises on the Gloucester Business Park, increasing staff, and investing in new e-commerce web technology and product lines.

Mr Cairns Palmer said: "Today they (Barclays) continue to support us as we enter our next investment and growth phase, increasing our new product development brands and implementing an exciting launch into the domestic market with our KettleTap hot taps.

"This goes hand in hand with a recruitment drive to take on more resources in sales, operations, and field engineering, alongside our growing apprentice scheme."

He added: "We have developed our own exclusive range of instant boiling hot taps, the multi-function KettleTap range - boiling, cold, hot, ambient - replaces kettles delivering gains in energy efficiency and environmental sustainability."

Simon Beard, relationship director at Barclays, said: "The WCD Group is a great example of a company being prepared to diversify into other areas as its business evolves, spotting threats and opportunities and adapting to meet or seize them.

"They have recently won a contract with a leading online retailer worth £1million-plus to install and service a range of sustainable employee hydration solutions."

The name of the retailer is not being released at this stage.