A BLACKBURN business is bringing the bright lights to the city through its expansion plans.

Tyson Lighting, which is Walpole Street, has chosen Manchester for its first dedicated lighting design practice and contract showroom.

Bosses are opening a third-floor, 1,770sq ft facility in Manchester’s Old Granada Studios on Atherton Road in the city centre.

Andrew Gibson, managing director, said: “The new Manchester showroom opening is the next phase in the company’s expansion and also the logical step in our holistic approach to lighting.

“We chose the iconic Granada Studios building because it’s synonymous with creativity and giving individuals an opportunity to express themselves and we believe we, as a company, do the same .”

Tyson Lighting, which has a turnover of £3.5 million, specialises in the design, manufacture, supply and project management of traditional, bespoke and contemporary lighting.

The Manchester design office and showroom will open this summer and the company says it will provide a hub for designers, architects and specifiers to explore the ranges of Tyson’s two international brand partners, VISO and Luceplan, as well as Tyson’s own bespoke lighting design.

The Manchester showroom and design office will be open plan to encourage collaboration and the sharing of ideas.

Mr Gibson said: “We want to provide the design and lighting industries with a truly interactive office space that will cater for some of the most pioneering opinion formers to host talks, seminars and cultivate the creative process .”

The opening of the showroom follows the expansion of the company’s Blackburn manufacturing facility in the past six months, which has seen the size of its combined works area more than double.

The firm has also invested in three welders, a state-of-the-art bending machine and de-greasing and metal finishing equipment.

The expansion has resulted in the appointment of five new staff, including two bespoke lighting manufacturers, a specialist painter and two trainees.