It’s two decades since Prologis UK was founded so it’s fitting that the move to our new office on Blythe Valley Park in Solihull coincided with our twentieth anniversary and marked the start of another chapter in our history. It’s also fitting that the interior of our new office gives a nod to our West Midland’s heritage and brings a sense of fun and nostalgia to our employee meeting rooms.
Whilst our old office served us well and we made some great memories (and business decisions) there, we couldn’t be more excited about our new space. Although our new office is only a couple of miles down the road from our old office, the working environments are worlds apart.
Over the coming weeks, we’d like to take you on a tour of our new space, beginning with our employee meeting rooms. These spaces are fun, creative and celebrate the brands that made Birmingham great. They certainly provide us with lots of inspiration.
The Sauce Room
Okay, so the original recipe for HP Sauce was created in Nottingham; however the recipe was sold to Edwin Samson Moore in 1903 and he subsequently launched HP in Birmingham. HP actually stands for Houses of Parliament as the condiment was named after the iconic London buildings. HP Sauce quickly became a firm favourite on British dinner tables and has become an icon of British culture.
The Custard Room
Whilst it may feature birds in its logo, this iconic British custard powder actually contains no eggs and was created by chemist, Alfred Bird in 1837 because his wife was allergic to eggs. The egg-free custard powder was born in Birmingham and although the company no longer manufacturer the powder in the area, their former factory in Digbeth has gone on to find a new life as The Custard Factory – an arts and media production centre which is shaping the next generation of brands.
The Cadbury Room
We certainly weren’t going to pass-up the opportunity to have a meeting room with a picture of a giant chocolate bar on the wall and nor could we pay homage to famous Birmingham brands without including Cadbury. Its story began in 1824 when John Cadbury opened a grocer’s shop in Ball Street, Birmingham selling tea, coffee and drinking chocolate. From there it grew and became one of the world’s most popular chocolate brands and even created a village for its workforce. It’s certainly one of our most popular meeting rooms …. we can’t imagine why.
The Dunlop Room
Dunlop Rubber was founded in Birmingham by John Boyd Dunlop – a Scotsman who developed the first pneumatic tyre. Dunlop has provided racing tyres for as long as cars and motorcycles have been in high-speed competition and has been based in Birmingham for 125 years. If you’ve travelled up and down the M6 motorway, past junction 5, you may well have noticed Fort Dunlop – the original home of the tyre factory and main office of Dunlop Rubber. Now a shopping centre and offices, it stands as a reminder of the importance of Dunlop in Birmingham.
The Jaguar Room
Not many people know that Jaguar’s business was founded as the Swallow Sidecar Company in 1922, originally making motorcycle sidecars before developing bodies for passenger cars. Perhaps the most famous of the Jaguar models, the iconic E-type was recently re-invented as an electric car and driven by Prince Harry on his wedding day. In the Jaguar meeting room at Prologis UK, the leaping Jaguar logo graces an entire wall and is a great place to meet when you’re looking for inspiration.