What CREATIVE RETAIL SOLUTIONS LIMITED does

Creative Retail Solutions Limited (CRS) is a UK-based design, supply, and installation company specialising in refrigeration and shopfitting for premium food retail environments. Founded in 2000 by Andrew Drake and headquartered in Poole, Dorset, the company operates from a single office with nationwide service coverage across England, Scotland, and Wales. Its offering is structured around four service pillars: spatial design, equipment supply, installation, and eco-friendly solutions.

CRS serves a diverse customer base spanning butchers, farm shops and food halls, delis and cheese shops, fishmongers and sushi counters, patisseries and chocolate retailers, cafés and bistros, garden centre food retail, and luxury department stores. Documented clients include Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, Eataly London, H G Walter, The Ginger Pig, Chadwicks Butchers, Taylors Farm Shop, Flourish Foodhall & Kitchen, Crimple Hall, Peggy Porschen, William Curley, and Gloucester Gateway Services. Equipment is sourced from a network of European manufacturers including Criocabin, Imoon, Oscartielle, Mondel, World Italia, Counterline, Cisaplast, and Zoin, with product modules covering serve-over counters, multidecks, cold rooms, dry aging displays, and heat recovery refrigeration systems.

The business operates as a founder-owned private limited company under a consultative, project-based sales model. CRS generates revenue through professional design services, hardware sales of refrigeration and display equipment, and installation services, with project economics varying from single-equipment supply to full multi-department fit-outs. The company differentiates through eco-friendly refrigeration and lighting technology, supplier breadth across European manufacturers, and end-to-end project capability. With a headcount of 1-10, CRS appears to operate a lean model that leans on supplier relationships and project-based subcontractors for installation execution, with no disclosed external funding, acquisitions, or ownership changes across its 25-year operating history.

Name

CREATIVE RETAIL SOLUTIONS LIMITED

Legal name

Creative Retail Solutions Ltd

Website

https://creativeretailsolutions.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Creative Retail Solutions Limited is a UK-based shopfitting firm that designs, supplies, and installs refrigeration and display equipment for premium food retailers, serving butchers, farm shops, food halls, delis, patisseries, luxury department stores, and garden centre food retail.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Retail Refrigeration & Shopfitting Services

NAICS

Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing (33341)

SIC

Air-Cond & Warm Air Heatg Equip & Comm & Indl Refrig Equip (3585)

akta.pro primary industry

Kitchen & Bath Installation & Project Services (Retail + Install) (CRAIAFAH)

Keywords

• Refrigeration equipment supply
• Food retail design
• Shopfitting installation services
• Refrigerated display solutions
• Commercial refrigeration systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Poole

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Retail Environment Design Services: Complete design service for food retail spaces from spatial planning to final finish.
2. Refrigeration and Display Equipment Supply: Supply of refrigeration and display equipment sourced from European manufacturers including serve-over counters, multidecks, dry aging displays, and cold rooms.
3. Installation Services: Experienced installation teams to turn design concepts into finished functional retail environments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Creative Retail Solutions designs, supplies, and installs refrigeration and shopfitting solutions for fine food retail environments in the UK. The offering spans complete retail space design from spatial planning to final finish, supply of refrigeration and display equipment sourced from European manufacturers, and on-site installation by experienced fitters. Projects range from single equipment supply (e.g. a chiller) to full design, project management, and installation collaborations for butchers, farm shops, food halls, delis, patisseries, fishmongers, and cafés.

Product overview

Creative Retail Solutions Limited offers a full-service, end-to-end solution for creating fine food retail stores, encompassing design, supply of equipment, and installation. The core offering is structured around four service pillars: Design (spatial planning through to final finish), Supply (refrigeration and display equipment from European manufacturers), Installation (experienced fitters and project managers), and Eco-Friendly Solutions (latest refrigeration and lighting technology). The product portfolio centres on refrigerated display equipment including serve-over counters in various configurations (S-shaped, L-shaped, curved), multidecks, cold rooms, dry aging displays, and ambient display furniture. The company specialises in sector-specific fit-outs for butchers, farm shops and food halls, delis and cheese shops, fishmongers and sushi counters, patisserie and chocolate shops, and cafés and bistros. CRS works with leading European manufacturers including Criocabin, iMoon, Oscartielle, Mondel, World Italia, Counterline, Cisaplast, Zoin, and HK Interiors. The business was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Poole, Dorset.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Design Services

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CriocabincoreTechnology or IntegrationEuropean manufacturer of premium refrigeration and display equipment. CRS works with Criocabin for serve-over counters, multidecks, and specialized display solutions including the Enixe, Genesis, Elfin, and Encore product lines.
• ImooncoreTechnology or IntegrationLighting manufacturer providing LED and specialized lighting solutions for retail refrigeration displays. Imoon lighting is used to highlight display equipment in CRS installations.
• OscartiellecoreTechnology or IntegrationItalian manufacturer of refrigeration equipment including freezers and cold storage solutions. CRS supplies Oscartielle Brioni freezers as part of their product range.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• True Manufacturing: US-headquartered global manufacturer of commercial refrigeration sold through distributors to UK food retail and foodservice. Comparable product category; CRS's Criocabin/Oscartielle supply relationship is in the same competitive set.
• Gram Commercial: European (Danish) commercial refrigeration manufacturer with broad UK distribution. Wider product range and scale than CRS, but supplies overlapping categories (display refrigeration, cold rooms) used by CRS's customer base.
• Hoshizaki Europe: Global manufacturer of commercial refrigeration and ice machines widely used in UK food retail and hospitality. Larger scale and broader portfolio, but supplies the same end-user segments as CRS.
• EPTA Group: European group of commercial refrigeration brands (Costan, Bonnet, Esa, Polaris) supplying food retail. Overlaps with CRS on refrigeration display equipment for grocery and food retail, at much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Williams Refrigeration: Long-established UK commercial refrigeration brand (now part of Electrolux Professional) supplying food retail and hospitality. Overlaps with CRS's product categories and end customers.
• Adande Refrigeration: UK-based manufacturer of refrigerated drawer and display solutions widely used in food retail and catering. Comparable end-customer base and refrigeration focus.
• Precision Refrigeration: UK commercial refrigeration manufacturer serving food retail, hospitality, and foodservice. Directly comparable in product category and customer segment to CRS, though CRS is an integrator while Precision manufactures.
• Carter Retail Equipment: UK shopfitting and retail equipment supplier serving food, grocery, and convenience retail. Directly comparable business model to CRS — design, supply, and install — for grocery and food retail.
• Frilixa Vega: UK-based manufacturer and supplier of commercial refrigeration and food display equipment for butchers, delis, and food retailers. Closely overlaps CRS's product lines (multidecks, serve-over counters) and target customer profile.

Emerging players

• RH Group (Retail & Hospitality): UK shopfitting and interior fit-out firm with food retail and hospitality clients. Same design-supply-install model as CRS, with broader sector reach but overlapping customer types.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CREATIVE RETAIL SOLUTIONS LIMITED