Wayne Spriggs was born and bred in Middlesbrough and has gone from living in a council house, doing a milk round and paper round before school, to growing his business to a value of £100million in just six years with a projected turnover of £30million this year alone.
He founded Lusso Stone, the leading manufacturer of luxury hand-finished bathroom products, in 2014. And his success has been arguably one of the most impressive of any entrepreneur of his generation – especially considering Lusso Stone remains a small business with just 18 staff members.
In the past three years Lusso Stone has seen 400% growth in terms of revenue, has accrued a customer base of over 54,000 and attracts 80 new customers a day on average. In February 2021 Lusso reported their best ever, record-breaking month with £3million in sales. Each week, 2,500 products are sold to customers around the globe including Sydney, the Middle East, New York City, LA and here in the UK.
Lusso Stone has also supplied some of the most luxurious hotels globally including The Connaught Group (Claridges & Connaught Hotels), Zedwell Hotel Group (Trocadero building London) and The Equinox Group (The Equinox New York City). The brand has also featured many times on interiors TV shows such as Grand Designs; all attracted by the contemporary and timeless designs.
Always having a drive to be independent and make his own money, at the age of 12 when most boys his age were struggling to get out of bed in time for school Wayne was up at 5am for his milk round, followed by his paper round, all before starting his school day.
Still living a five minute drive from where he was raised and a self-confessed workaholic, it’s this gritty drive that has seen Wayne achieve his proudest career moment to date; seeing Lusso Stone featured in the Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 league table of private growing companies three years running and is currently ranked 56th.
Prior to launching Lusso Stone, Wayne was a property developer – not necessarily by plan but by his ability to know a good opportunity when he sees one. In 2000, when there was a property market crash, it opened up the door for investors to enter the market. Wayne started by buying a couple of properties which he renovated and sold on – something he kept repeating and has seen him buy over 40 properties over the past 20 years.
It was during his time as a property developer that he continually struggled to find high-end, luxurious bathroom products that stood out and weren’t astronomically expensive. There just wasn’t a company out there that did it; so he decided to do it himself.
He travelled the world visiting various trade shows, learning about products and building relationships, which all helped him build the vision for what he wanted the Lusso product ranges to look like. He set out to create a brand that allowed people to create luxury living at an affordable price, cutting absolutely no corners on the quality and design of the products.
Manufacturing the products in-house meant they could offer products that would ordinarily be approximately 60% more expensive to consumers, via their online shop. He started the business with a £10k overdraft – with no loans and no help from investors. That remains true to this day and despite receiving investment offers almost on a weekly basis Wayne has 100% shareholding in the business.
Wayne’s main focus has always been on the design of the products and he is still very hands-on with this side of things. Originally starting out with a product offering in just stone resin products, they have gradually grown to also incorporate Brassware & Bathroom furniture. The key components used within the manufacturing process are also unique, with German-manufactured hinges and bracketry and Swiss moving parts within the body of their taps and showers.
In recognition of the continued success, Lusso Stone has featured in the Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100 league table of private growing companies three years running, ranked 18th in 2018, 27th in 2019 and is currently ranked 56th on the 2020 table. Alongside this, Lusso Stone is ranked sixth in the Fast Track Exports League and Wayne Spriggs is currently included in the Lloyds Banking Group Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders.
Despite his extraordinary success, Wayne’s ambition is as strong as it was from the first day he founded Lusso Stone. Having clearly established the business well in the UK, Wayne’s sights are firmly set on international expansion with a US launch likely for later this year. There will also be the roll-out of two further brands, Lusso Pietra (marble only) and Lusso Deco (art decor/traditional) this year. The roll-out of these two new businesses will also see the Lusso Group move into home furnishings, which will fall under Lusso Luxury Living. This is in addition to new product development, team expansion and continued revenue growth.
The eldest of three children, Wayne has gone on to have two children of his own. Clearly instilling his sense of business acumen in his family his son works with him at Lusso Stone, his daughter runs her own beauty business and his two siblings also have been inspired to start their own businesses. Always encouraging his children to find their own path in life saw Wayne not afraid to home school them and help them see beyond the ‘traditional’ path of exams, university and a typical job.
Still living locally to where he grew up Wayne has supported hard hit charitable causes and individuals in the area, believing you should help others if you can. A keen hiker Wayne spends his free time walking with friends in the lakes and enjoys trips to London, experiencing new restaurants on father and son weekends away.
