Funding backs growth from cottage industry to global brand
Published: 10 July 2025
A Solihull-based manufacturer specialising in innovative mobility aids is going from strength to strength after Mayor Richard Parker backed the company as part of his wider plans to fire up the regional economy.
The Active Hands Company was founded by Rob Smith, 49, after a life-changing spinal cord injury while on holiday left him partially paralysed in all four limbs.
Unable to use his hands for many everyday tasks, Rob and his mum, Marion, developed a gripping aid to help him get back into the gym as part of his rehabilitation.
The homemade solution they built at their kitchen table turned into a fast-growing business that now employs eight staff with an annual turnover of more than £700,000. Around 80 per cent of its sales are exports to 60 countries including the US and Australia.
And the products designed and manufactured by his company are helping thousands more people with reduced hand function live more independently.
Video above: The Active Hands Company founder and CEO, Rob Smith, (centre), joins Jon Lander and Christine Hancock from the Business Growth West Midlands team at Solihull Council.
Funding and expert advice from Business Growth West Midlands (BGWM), means Rob has been able to keep up with booming demand.
The support has enabled him to invest in a specialist sewing machine and a 3D printer to boost production and develop five new products. He has also been able to grow exports to the US by securing FDA quality and safety accreditation.
The new machinery has changed the way we do things and that’s made a real difference to the productivity of the business. We’re developing new products and making more of them here in Solihull. That means I’m looking to increase the hours of the team and grow our workforce.
Business Growth West Midlands’ support has helped us as we look to keep growing with a pipeline of new products and new markets overseas.
The West Midlands is full of innovative, purpose-driven enterprises like Rob and Active Hands, and I’ll keep backing them with the tools and funding they need to grow, compete, and create good jobs for local people.
Rob has tapped into a niche market and shown what innovation and ambition can achieve, no matter what your circumstances are. He has shown an inspirational determination to not let his own disability hold him back from building a business with a global reputation.
My forthcoming Regional Growth Plan will harness the entrepreneurial spirit of even more people like Rob, from all walks of life and backgrounds. We’re firing up the local economy and I will make sure that everyone benefits.
The Active Hands Company is one of thousands of businesses across the West Midlands supported through BGWM’s SME Grant and the Export Support Programme. Both programmes are delivered in partnership with the WMCA’s local authority members.
Active Hands is a powerful example of the entrepreneurial drive we’re so proud to support here in Solihull. Through Business Growth West Midlands, we’re helping innovators like Rob turn exciting ideas into globally competitive businesses.
From humble beginnings at the kitchen table to exporting across continents, this is exactly the kind of scale-up journey we’re committed to enabling, where local talent meets strategic support to deliver real economic and social impact.
BGWM is also supporting the bold ambition for the West Midlands to be an exemplar region for disabled people. It will run a free online session in September to help businesses create more inclusive customer experiences and boost their growth.
Register to join the session, titled The Economic Benefits of Inclusivity: Unlocking New Customers and New Suppliers and find out about other business support and funding opportunities available to all SMEs on the BGWM website.
