We've just accepted a job — and one we're genuinely excited about.
200 custom-built wooden pallets, sized at 800mm x 600mm, ordered by a chemical company that needed a specific size to fit their operation. Not a standard Euro. Not a UK standard. A bespoke, made-to-measure pallet built exactly to their specification.
This is a another string to our bow, and it's a meaningful step forward on the road to £1M.
Why Custom Pallets?
Most businesses get by on the two standard formats — the Euro pallet (1200×800mm) and the UK standard (1200×1000mm). They cover the vast majority of applications and they're what we carry in stock day to day.
But not every operation fits the standard mould.
Chemical companies are a good example. They often handle products in smaller containers — drums, IBCs, jerricans — that don't fill a full Euro pallet efficiently. A smaller pallet reduces wasted space, improves stability, and fits more neatly into their storage and transport setup.
In this case, 800mm x 600mm is exactly half a Euro pallet. It's sometimes called a half pallet or a display pallet, and it's a format that works well for products that are dense, hazardous, or need to be handled in controlled quantities.
The customer knew exactly what they needed. Our job is to build it.
What Goes Into a Custom Pallet Build
Building to a non-standard size isn't complicated — but it does require a different approach to our standard repair and resale work.
For this order we're working from scratch: sourcing the right timber, cutting to the correct dimensions, and building 200 pallets to a consistent specification. Every pallet needs to be structurally sound, dimensionally accurate, and capable of handling the loads the customer will put on them.
For a chemical company, there are additional considerations. Chemical loads can be corrosive, heavy, and subject to strict handling requirements. The pallets need to be robust enough to hold safely, and consistent enough that they can be handled reliably across the customer's operation.
200 units is a solid production run for a custom job. It's enough to be worthwhile, and it gives us a real opportunity to prove that our custom build capability is something businesses can rely on.
What This Means for the Business
Up until now, our model has been straightforward: collect pallets, repair them, sell them. Buy, fix, move. That model works and it's what's getting us towards £1M.
But this order opens up a different revenue stream — bespoke manufacturing. Businesses that can't get what they need off the shelf have to go somewhere. If we can be that somewhere, we grow our market significantly beyond the standard pallet trade.
Custom orders also tend to carry better margins than standard used stock. You're not competing with every other pallet supplier in the region — you're competing on capability and reliability, which is a much more defensible position.
This job is a proof of concept. We build 200 pallets to spec, deliver them on time, and the customer has a reason to come back — and a reason to recommend us to others in their industry.
We Can Build Custom Pallets for Your Business
If your operation needs pallets in a size or specification that isn't standard, we want to hear from you.
We can build to your dimensions, your load requirements, and your timber specification. Whether you need a small run of 50 or a larger production batch, we'll give you a straight quote with a clear lead time.
Common custom pallet requests we can help with:
- Half pallets (800×600mm)
- Quarter pallets and display pallets
- Oversized pallets for heavy or awkward loads
- Specific deck configurations for specialist products
- Chemical and industrial-grade builds
Get in touch via the contact form or give us a call — we'll talk through what you need and come back with a quote.
Follow the Journey
This is Day by day, order by order — that's how a family business gets to £1M. This custom order is one more piece of the puzzle.
If you're following along on social media, we'll be showing the build progress as we work through this order. Watch to see how many we can get done, how the finished pallets look, and what it actually takes to produce 200 bespoke pallets from scratch.