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by Carryn Dewing - Friday, 7th March 2008

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Of the early days, Cookson says: “I’d just bought my first house, so money was tight. A £500 overdraft paid for that first tiny lock-up.”

Cookson’s business has seen growth of 250 per cent year-on-year since 2004 when the company first started. Such healthy growth couldn’t be contained in a 300 square foot room for long and when Myprotein.co.uk outgrew its first premises, Cookson took over the lock-up next door.

He explains: “We just kept taking another room until we had about four in a row. When we outgrew that, I knew it was time to get a stand-alone unit.”

But Cookson’s business continued to gro and it wasn’t long before the company needed even more space. “We were in the unit for about six months before things started getting cramped again. My next option was to buy a warehouse. So I did.”

Cookson now employs around 20 people working in the Myprotein.co.uk manufacturing facility and offices, and says he’s in the process of extending the company's office space.

“I’ve just bought the warehouse next door to us, actually. My plan for 2008 is to build up my management team, so we’re going to need more room for offices.”

You can’t help wondering where next for the start-up in a lock-up that just won’t stop growing.

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Tags: oliver cookson, myprotein.co.uk, internet business, sports nutrition, office space, warehouse, growing company, fast growth, lock-up, expansion, entrepreneur,