Who we are Universal Display is a leading manufacturer of mannequins, bust forms and display products. Founded in 1951, it has remained in the same family ownership since. We are a truly global business with offices and showrooms in London and New York. Our UK factory, design/development department and warehousing/distribution centre is based in West London. We also have a joint venture modern factory facility, showrooms and offices in Zhangzhou, China as well a buying office in Taipei, Taiwan. We have been manufacturing in the Far East for over 30 years and have a wealth of experience in the field. The London based design and development department handles all development of our own ranges and all custom work for our clients. Using in-house sculptors, mould makers and technicians, we produce all our own master mannequins and moulds which can be used for UK production or more often for production in China. All of our mannequin development is handled in London, and we can boast that we are one of the only mannequin manufacturers in the world that offers a full custom service to our clients using our own in-house team. Our expert in-house development team allows us to offer custom service that has a quick turnaround and allows for constant control over the development process. Thus, the end result is a cohesive look across a range of mannequins, and ultimately a superior quality product. The China production facility is our main point of manufacture, and is able to produce up to 3,000 mannequins per month. It is an extension of the work that we do in the UK and is an integral part of our success. Thus, we also have skilled in-house sculptors and mould makers who are able to emulate any products such as decorative pieces, or to replicate the items moulded in the UK for production in China. We have extremely high standards of quality, and have controls in place to ensure the maintenance of these standards. Our track record with major retailers around the world and with other display companies for whom we produce is testament to the dedicated and highly skilled workforce we have in both the UK and in China.
How we do it We are a truly scalable business, allowing a reduced overhead and the ability to pass these savings on to our clients. We have a core of professionals who are the best at what they do and provide us with the expertise necessary in all fields to produce and deliver a quality item. When demand requires, we pull in subcontractors and freelancers who have worked with us for many years to work in our own premises and under our direct supervision. They fit directly into our team to create an extension of our services, thereby increasing our productivity while maintaining our high standard of quality. We have built long-standing relationships with shippers, both domestic and international. This extended network – we have hubs in several key cities throughout the world – allows for a greater ease of distribution while simultaneously ensuring that our finished product arrives in both a timely manner and in good condition. We have experience. We have for many years been a ‘roll-out’ company which knows how to deal with volume. We have a huge workforce in China and a huge amount of space which enables us to assemble and allocate goods at source, thus reducing the amount of time required in the UK for onward distribution. However, we also have a tremendous team in the UK that has been trained to handle volume and that has extensive experience in same-day movement of large volumes of goods for roll out situations. These are a regular occurrence for some of our clients, such as Monsoon, Dorothy Perkins, Jane Norman, Matalan and Cortefiel. We have our own manufacturing plant in China. This not only allows us cost effective production, but also control. Not only can we be sure that the product is manufactured to the correct specifications, as per our original masters, but to the highest quality. Further, we have the ability to move production around to meet the demands of our clients and ‘perform miracles’ when necessary.
Why us? With the infrastructure we have in place and the many years experience we have in design, production and roll-out of goods to major retailers, we have everything needed to implement your requirements in a trouble free and efficient manner and at a price that is below market value, thus giving you value and a superior product.
How we work We are a tight and well organised team. Each staff member has a specific role and in this way responsibility and accountability is departmentalised. Our clients have access to all senior management and a list of phone numbers, extensions and mobile phone numbers will be supplied in order for you to always be able to contact the relevant person. As previously mentioned, we are scalable, and therefore depending on the job that we are doing, we often bring in additional subcontractors/freelancers in order to deal with specific tasks.
Scope of services Services offered The following services relate to mannequins, bust forms and all other display related items,Conceptual Design, Prototyping Manufacture, Distribution, After Sales Service.
Conceptual Design From your brief we are able to work with you to design a range of mannequins that suits your brand’s individual needs. The initial concepts are often taken from existing mannequins which can be altered, or from sketches and tear sheets which can be emulated in the sculpting process.
Prototyping Once the concept has been agreed, we will either amend product that we currently have, or create new product to suit your individual needs. The process starts with the sculpting of a new mannequin or parts in clay and then goes to the plaster moulding and master stage. Approval of the mannequin is made at the clay stage although alterations can be made at a later stage. Once approved, we create production moulds to allow the piece to be manufactured.
Manufacture Goods will be manufactured in our China facility to enable cost efficiency and speed of manufacture. Goods will be quality controlled and packed ready for distribution. Goods will then be shipped to London for distribution to stores. Make-up and wigs can be provided where required, although we also offer this service in the UK.
Distribution Once goods arrive in the UK on a container from China, the container will be unpacked and split. We then perform further quality checks on the goods before distributing them through our reputable delivery partners throughout the UK and into foreign stores. At all stages the distribution is logged and your account manager is aware of the whereabouts of your deliveries. We of course are also able to store goods on a rolling basis depending on your requirements.
After Sales Service We offer renovation, respray, make-up and replacement wig services. We can arrange for goods to be collected from stores and returned after relevant services have been provided. Further, we can set up a specific help line number for your stores to call in case of questions or the requirement of further service.
Summary We are in a unique position to fulfil all your requirements with expedience, efficiency and economy. All the design requirements you have and may require going forward are easily achieved and we can do this in house, using a team of experts that have been through this process countless numbers of times before. We have a manufacturing facility which is second to none in China, thereby providing cost reductions and increased speed of manufacture whilst still producing the quality of product required. Our distribution network is strong and efficient and our support team is experienced and highly competent. We pride ourselves on being able to consistently meet our clients’ diverse needs, and on our reputation as a dependable, high quality brand and continually-growing business.