A BOLTON company is planning to turn a former Westhoughton pub into its new state-of-the art headquarters.

Technology provider Eventura, which currently has premises at St Georges Square close to Bolton town centre, has submitted plans to Bolton Council to level the former Cross Guns pub in Bolton Road and create a modern three-storey building.

The pub, formerly owned by Admiral Taverns, was de-licensed and could never have been another licensed premises due to contract covenants.

It is the latest Westhoughton pub to close and follows the Commercial in Church Street, Red Lion in Wigan Road and The Windmill in Chorley Road to shut in the last 18 months.

Eventura’s plan, if approved, will be another successful chapter in a company started almost 11 years ago by Bolton-born Chris Houghton.

He had a stellar career with some of the world’s best-known technology names before starting his own business with a staff of six.

Eventura now has a varied portfolio and its client list has ranged from Umbro, BP, Ping, Ashworth, United Utilities, Shell, Baxi, Callaway Golf and Pringle of Scotland to shoe guru Jimmy Choo.

There is now a staff of 20 but larger headquarters would allow for immediate recruit-ment, and for the company to increase that number in three to five years.


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“We urgently need more space to cope with the way the business is expanding and for future plans,” said Mr Houghton.

“We were offered premises in both Blackburn and Chorley, but I’m a local lad and I wanted to stay in the Bolton area.”

Mr Houghton also wanted the location to be convenient for his staff — for some, new premises in Westhoughton could mean a commute by bike or even walking to work.

He hopes to install cycle racks, which will be available for public use and not just by staff.

The proposed building also has a large reception area, offices, a conference room, two demonstration rooms, various meeting rooms, a specialised cloud server room, a canteen and a multi-gym for the staff along with shower and changing facilities.

“I also think it’s really important that we consider the environment with any new-build,” added Mr Houghton. “So we want to power the building with sustainable energy source methods.”

There will also be solar-powered lighting on the building’s exterior and the company has had a bat survey carried out to help protect local wildlife.

The move would create yet another link in Mr Houghton’s promotion of the town. He is life-long supporter of Bolton Wanderers. He is also actively involved in the BWFC Trust and local groups including Bolton County football team and Bolton Lads and Girls Club as well as being a founder member of the NSPCC Business Board for Bolton, Bury and North Manchester. He said: “We believe in Bolton and Westhoughton as business towns.”