West Midlands law firm FBC Manby Bowdler has advised on a major expansion at an international supplier of camera accessories.

The firm, which has five offices across the region, advised DayMen International on a new lease on its present Wolverhampton premises, following a £200,000 investment aimed at increasing warehouse capacity by 20 per cent.

DayMen, which has its headquarters in the US, signed a new five-year lease on the industrial property at Merryhills Enterprise Park in Park Lane.

The company supplies camera accessories to UK retailers as well as managing exports to distributors in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

It employs 30 people at its Wolverhampton office which has an annual turnover of around £15 million.

DayMen had considered moving to new premises on the outskirts of Wolverhampton, but the recession led to a change of plan. After detailed negotiations, it opted to renew the lease on its three buildings at Merryhills Enterprise Park.

Nigel Fielden, managing director of DayMen International, said: “Building a new loading bay, to which our landlord agreed to contribute to as part of the lease negotiations, re-engineering our warehouse racking system and investing in some new forklift equipment gave us in excess of 20 per cent more productivity in the same space.

“We also avoided the disruption and cost to our business which a move would have caused.

“We have got a great team of people here, so we were keen to stay in Wolverhampton.

“The city is also very central for distribution, but it was hard to find the right premises to meet our needs, so in the end our solution to stay put and increase capacity was the right one, especially in light of the recession.”

Mr Fielden said he is optimistic about the future despite difficult trading conditions.

“Although photographic equipment is a discretionary purchase, our business has been quite resilient, as even when faced by a recession our consumers are reluctant to give up spending on their cherished hobbies.

“2008 was a challenging year, but sales improved in 2009 and are looking very good for the present year.

He added: “FBC Manby Bowdler has advised us on a full range of legal matters since we started business in Wolverhampton.

“The advice we received on negotiating the new lease and protecting our position was invaluable.”

Gavin Southall, senior partner at Wolverhampton-based FBC Manby Bowdler, which has 38 partners in five offices, said: “It is a pleasure to help a company which had positively chosen Wolverhampton as its base, and which continues to thrive here.

“We need more modern entrepreneurial companies, such as DayMen International, in the city.”