Datesand Group
Datesand Group is a UK-based, family-owned manufacturer and distributor of research grade wood bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet and PPE products for laboratory animal care, supplying 900+ customers across 45+ countries and the NHS via its SafetyGel line.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1980
- HeadquartersBredbury, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Datesand Group does
Datesand Group, trading as Datesand Ltd, is a UK-headquartered, family-owned manufacturer and distributor of research grade wood bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet and hydration, and personal protective equipment products for laboratory animal care. The company is self-described as the UK's leading supplier of research grade wood bedding, operating from a single site in Bredbury, Stockport, since 1980, and serving 900+ customers across more than 45 countries with an annual throughput of approximately 11,000 pallets. Customer bases span academic research (Imperial College London, UCL, King's College London), pharmaceutical R&D (Pfizer, AstraZeneca), contract research (Charles River), government-funded research (Medical Research Council), and healthcare (NHS via the SafetyGel infection control line since 2007). Since December 2020, Datesand is also the exclusive UK distributor of Innovive IVC rack systems.
The business operates a sales-led, direct-to-customer model supported by an account-registration e-commerce portal, a global distributor network of 27 partners, and participation in industry events such as ScandLAS 2026. Products are sold on a list price basis with 30-day payment terms; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The product portfolio is organised into five owned categories (Bedding, Nesting, Enrichment, Diet and Hydration, PPE) plus two partner or trademark lines (Innovive IVC racks and SafetyGel infection control), with an additional Eco Pure Bedding range positioned around sustainability. Manufacturing is supported by a set of formal accreditations including ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001:2018, ISO 45003:2021, Investors in People, and PAS2060:2014 carbon neutral certification, alongside a net zero by 2040 commitment underwritten by a Tree Nation offsetting partnership.
There is no disclosed external funding, no parent company, and no public listing; the firm is independently owned and operated. Management is led by a small team including a Sustainability Lead (Stephen Barlow) and an Operations Director, with the broader leadership detail not disclosed in the available material. Headcount sits in the 11-50 range, consistent with a mid-sized specialty supplier rather than a scaled industrial manufacturer, and the revenue model is exclusively product sales with no software, subscription, or licensing component. The dominant operating geographies are Europe (headquartered in the UK with active presence across Western, Northern and parts of Central Europe), North America (USA), Asia Pacific (Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand), South America (Brazil, Chile) and the Middle East (Israel).
Datesand Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Datesand Group
- Legal name
- Datesand Ltd
- Website
- https://datesand.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1980
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Datesand Group is a UK-based, family-owned manufacturer and distributor of research grade wood bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet and PPE products for laboratory animal care, supplying 900+ customers across 45+ countries and the NHS via its SafetyGel line.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Datesand Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Laboratory Animal Research Supplies
- NAICS
- Wood Product Manufacturing (321)
- SIC
- Lumber & Wood Products (No Furniture) (2400)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Practice Consumables & General Medical Supplies (Needles, Syringes, Gloves, Swabs) (HLAMAFAO)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Sterilization, Infection Control & PPE (Autoclaves, Disinfectants, Barriers) (HLAMAFAH), Hospital Equipment & Clinical Furniture (Tables, Cages, Lighting, Warmers) (HLAMAFAJ)
Keywords
Where Datesand Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bredbury
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Datesand Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Product Sales: Sale of research grade wood bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet & hydration, and PPE products to biotechnology and research facilities. Revenue is generated through direct sales with 30-day payment terms. The company maintains a List Price system for product pricing.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Monthly | Standard product pricing based on List Price |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Datesand Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Datesand Group manufactures and supplies research-grade wood-based bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet and hydration products, and PPE for laboratory animal care. The company also produces SafetyGel infection control products supplied to the NHS. It serves 900+ clients across 45+ countries with an annual production capacity of 11,000 pallets.
Product overview
Datesand Group is a UK-based supplier of research grade wood bedding and laboratory animal care products. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio organized into five main product categories: Bedding (Eco Pure Bedding, Other Bedding), Nesting (Portion Controlled Nesting, Traditional Nesting), Enrichment (Reusable, Disposable, Aquatic, Large Animal, and Aspen Enrichment), Diet & Hydration (Diet Gel, Animal Diet), and PPE (Cleaning Supplies, Respiratory Protection, Protective Clothing). Additionally, through an exclusive UK partnership since December 2020, Datesand distributes Innovive products. The company also provides SafetyGel infection control solutions to the NHS since 2007. This is a single-brand product portfolio focused on serving the biotechnology and bioscience research sector with laboratory animal welfare products.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- SafetyGel: Trademarked Infection Control solutions supplied to the NHS since 2007
Quantifiable outcome
- Serving 900+ clients across 45+ countries with 11,000 pallets per year
Companies that use Datesand Group
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Datesand Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Datesand Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- InnovivecoreSince December 2020, Datesand has been the exclusive UK partner of Innovive. The partnership combines the quality, ingenuity and value of the Innovive IVC rack system with Datesand's market-leading customer service, logistics and vast experience within the UK bioscience sector. Datesand serves as the official Innovive UK Partners, providing an unbeatable proposition for customers requiring research-grade IVC rack systems.
- Tree NationcoreDatesand has teamed up with Tree Nation as their carbon offsetting partner as part of their environmental sustainability efforts. The partnership supports Datesand's commitment to achieving net zero status by 2040, 10 years ahead of the national target. Tree Nation helps offset the environmental effects of operations through tree planting initiatives (1611 trees planted, 1027 tons CO2 offset).
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Datesand Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lab Products Inc: Lab Products Inc manufactures IVC cages, housing systems, and laboratory animal care equipment — directly comparable to Datesand's Innovive-distributed IVC rack offering and adjacent bedding/enrichment product lines. Both serve pharma, biotech, and academic research customers with research-grade animal care solutions.
- Tecniplast: Tecniplast is a leading global manufacturer of IVC rack systems and laboratory animal housing equipment — a direct competitor to Innovive (Datesand's exclusive UK partner) with overlapping product lines targeting bioscience research customers worldwide.
- Allentown Inc: Allentown Inc designs and manufactures IVC cages and laboratory animal housing solutions for biomedical research — competing head-to-head with both Innovive (Datesand's partner) and Tecniplast, serving the same pharmaceutical and academic research customer base.
- Bio-Serv: Bio-Serv manufactures laboratory animal diets, dietary supplements, and enrichment products — directly overlapping with Datesand's Diet & Hydration (Diet Gel) and Enrichment product categories for biomedical and academic research customers.
- Plexx BV: Plexx BV manufactures individually ventilated cage systems and laboratory animal research equipment — a direct competitor to Innovive (Datesand's partner) and similar in product category, customer base, and bioscience research focus.
- Innovive: Innovive is Datesand's exclusive UK partner for IVC rack systems, and a direct peer in the IVC market — its rack products are functionally comparable to Tecniplast and Allentown offerings, serving the same biomedical research customer segment.
- Braintree Scientific: Braintree Scientific supplies laboratory animal research equipment, surgical supplies, and husbandry products — comparable to Datesand's broader lab animal care portfolio with overlapping product categories and a shared target customer base in academic and pharma research.
Broad incumbents
- Inotiv: Inotiv (formerly Envigo) is a larger, publicly-listed contract research organization offering research models, lab animal supplies, and preclinical services — a broader incumbent whose lab animal supplies portfolio overlaps with Datesand's core offerings but with significantly wider service scope.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific: Thermo Fisher Scientific is a global life sciences tools incumbent whose lab consumables and animal research portfolios overlap thematically with Datesand's offerings — operating at vastly greater scale and serving similar pharma, biotech, and academic customers.
Regional players
- CLEA Japan: CLEA Japan is a Japanese laboratory animal supplier offering research models and related supplies — a comparable regional player whose product categories and customer base mirror Datesand's, but with primary geographic focus on Japan rather than the UK and Europe.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Datesand Group social profiles
Digital presenceDatesand Group compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance6 records
Datesand Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Datesand Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Datesand Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Datesand Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Datesand Group
What does Datesand Group do?
Datesand Group manufactures and supplies research-grade wood-based bedding, nesting, enrichment, diet and hydration products, and PPE for laboratory animal care. The company also produces SafetyGel infection control products supplied to the NHS. It serves 900+ clients across 45+ countries with an annual production capacity of 11,000 pallets.
Is Datesand Group a public or private company?
Datesand Group is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Datesand Group founded?
Datesand Group was founded in 1980. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Datesand Group based?
Datesand Group is headquartered in Bredbury, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Datesand Group make money?
One revenue line is on record: product Sales.
Who are Datesand Group's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lab Products Inc, Tecniplast, Allentown Inc, Bio-Serv, Plexx BV, Innovive and Braintree Scientific. Broad incumbents are Inotiv and Thermo Fisher Scientific. CLEA Japan is listed as a regional player.
Does Datesand Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for Datesand Group.
What industry is Datesand Group in?
Datesand Group's product category is Laboratory Animal Research Supplies. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAMAFAO, Practice Consumables & General Medical Supplies (Needles, Syringes, Gloves, Swabs), with a secondary code of HLAMAFAH, Sterilization, Infection Control & PPE (Autoclaves, Disinfectants, Barriers). Its NAICS code is 321 and its SIC code is 2400.