Some like it hot (From The Northern Echo)

Some like it hot

7:52am Monday 16th March 2009 in Search By Owen McAteer

Hollywood director picks local firm for fire feature.

HOLLYWOOD film director has chosen a County Durham fireplace manufacturer to heat his dream home.

The unnamed director picked a fireplace created by CVO Fire, based in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, for his £10.5m hilltop retreat.

The bronze circular fire bowl will be in the spa lounge area of the house in San Diego, California.

It is the latest success for the designer fireplace company, which was only established in June 2007.

It has seen a rise in sales, plans to expand its European distribution and will open a showroom in London this summer, its first outside the North-East.

CVO Fire designs and man-ufactures by hand all of its fires and fireplaces, including components, in Newton Aycliffe.

Managing director Andrew Munro said: “It is my understanding that a movie director has bought this land on the top of a hill in San Diego and he has an architect designing the house for him.

“This particular fire is going to be in the spa lounge area. We do quite a lot of exhibitions and the director had seen us at one, gone back to his architect and said that is what I want.”

The US-bound fire has been designed to order by CVO.

Mr Munro said: “We have provided for quite a few football players but, as far as I know, it is the first time we have provided for a movie director.

“We send quite a few to Texas, but this is the first to go to California.”

The firm will display five new fireplaces at the Grand designs Live show, in London, next month. Mr Munro, who plans to take on eight more staff in the next 18 months, believed being positive is the best way to tackle the recession.

He said: “What you have to do is present yourself to the market. We are doing new stuff and doing something different, and that attracts people out there looking for these products.

“Our sales are up on last year and the number of leads since Christmas has doubled.

“There is a lot of good, positive stuff happening if you look for it.”

Increased exports, which account for one-in-five fires sold, has meant overall sales have grown by about 35 per cent in recent months.

CVO, which employs 14 people at Newton Aycliffe, also hopes to open other showrooms.

Mr Munro said: “If you look at it as a long-term plan, we want to have them in London, the Midlands, Edinburgh and Newcastle.

The company, which distributes in Spain, Cyprus, Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Norway, has recently added Denmark and Sweden to its list.