A tobacco and food wholesaler has been named the number one independent company in the South.

Hove-based Palmer & Harvey McLane has topped a list of 100 privately-owned firms outside London based on annual sales.

The company, which employs about 300 staff at its headquarters in Davigdor Road, also sells confectionery, household and health and beauty items.

It has ten branches nationwide and a network of 4,000 staff.

Sales of more than £3.5 billion last year put Palmer & Harvey McLane first in the Decision business magazine list, which was published yesterday.

Marketing manager Justin Denyer said: "Palmer & Harvey McLane is delighted to be named the number one independent company in the south of England.

"Although a national company, being based in Hove provides an ideal location for looking after and supporting our varied customer base."

The company was founded in 1925 and currently has 61,000 customers.

Other Sussex businesses to make the Top 100 include Chichester building firm Geoffrey Osborne at number 12, Eastbourne gardening books company The Little Group at 18 and Portslade-based Hamsard 2353 at 22.

Hamsard owns high street clothes store QS.

Eastbourne builders Merchants Brewer and motor dealerships Yeomans, in Worthing, Birchwood, in Eastbourne and Harwoods, in Lewes, are also among the top-performing companies in the region.

British Bookshops and Stationers, based in Hollingbury, Brighton, finished 103rd with sales of £39.7 million.

The survey paints a healthy picture of independent companies in the South.

About 90 per cent of those in the list reported sales increases on the previous year, 68 per cent have hired more staff and 70 per cent have increased their average salary for employees.

Mark O'Halloran, commercial partner at law firm stevensdrake, which commissioned the study, said: "The South's key strengths can be found in its established network of support for entrepreneurs.

"The population density is above the national average and it boasts the largest and most academically qualified workforce.

"With excellent transport links - including 12 motorways, 16 airports, 11 seaports, the Channel Tunnel and close proximity to London - it's easy to see what makes the South stand out from the rest of the UK when it comes to sourcing a prime location for new businesses."

Last year the Government provided a £10 million start-up fund for new businesses, with a view to making the South-East one of the top 15 regional economies in the world by 2012.

April 26, 2005