Whyte Group is a privately owned company established in 1976 with a turnover in the region of £100 million.

We are one of the largest privately owned distributors of chemicals in the UK. We also manufacture pharmaceuticals: both formulation and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).

In the area of distribution we now plan to expand our operations into mainland Europe. Our goal is to build a business on the continent that will be as big as our UK business within four to five years, in the three main businesses of: Surface Coatings, Acrylates and organics.

Already we have a broad geographic reach with companies in Spain, France, Holland, Czech republic, Brazil and Dubai. We also have sourcing and representative offices in India, Korea, Taiwan, China and Japan.

In pharmaceutical production, our plan is to grow the formulation business in Europe, while pursuing backward integration into pharmaceuticals in India and China.

We have recently established a new venture in Shanghai called Shanghai Whyte Asia Pioneer Pharmaceuticals Ltd. The Whyte Group holds a 32% stake in this US$ 16m project, producing Cephalorsporins, raw materials for antibiotics.

The role of a distributor in today’s competitive market place is all about relationships, relationships with our principals and suppliers, and relationships with our customers.

We want to help our customers to be successful by providing the best products, the most efficient logistics and the highest service levels. We also want to help our principals by providing them with the most effective route to market via a sales team that are empowered, responsive, reliable and professional.

But above all we like to think that we are people with whom other people enjoy doing business. It’s not a matter of how large our distribution centres are or how many vehicles we have on the road, it’s more about intangibles like transparency, honesty, trust, affinity, friendliness and openness that differentiate the Whyte Group from its competitors. As the saying goes: ‘All things being equal, people prefer to do business with friends. All things not being equal, people still prefer doing business with friends.

These values are reflected in the products we sell. The very word ‘chemicals’ can have some negative connotations but our products all play a role in enhancing our everyday lives, pharmaceuticals for a happy and healthier life style or agrochemicals for higher yield crops.

The style of this, our new corporate website, reflects these values and gives information on our principle business areas. So happy reading!