A 200-year old building in which the table used by US Presidents was made is now home to 40 businesses and 80 jobs.

The Joiners Shop in Chatham Historic Dockyard has celebrated its first anniversary as a centre for creative enterprise.

The Grade II Listed Building was given a £3.3m facelift funded by the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA).

It is now run by Basepoint Centres and after just a year is already 80 per cent full. Bill Ferris, chief executive of Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust, said it was a good example of giving new life to an old building. "It is a brilliant example of re-use," he said.

Lee Amor, SEEDA's development director, said: "The creative sector has an important role to play in leading regeneration at Chatham Maritime. It contributes £60bn to the UK economy and has grown at twice the rate as the average sector in the last year. 3.5 per cent of Medway's jobs are currently from the creative sector, compared to 13 per cent of jobs elsewhere in the South East, which explains why The Joiners Shop has attracted so much interest in its first year."

Mark Gynn, co-founder of Liquid Blue Designs, a laser engraving company, said it was an ideal location for setting up a new business.

Sany Huttler, co-founder of lab10, a computer animation business, moved its main production hub from London to The Joiners Shop. He said: "It's been absolutely fantastic. I can't fault it. Everything from management to the interior is really top-notch. There's a real team interest in nurturing and developing creativity."