Reply No. 208
THS – PVR Direct – Ten Years and Counting
If ever there was a company that bore the individual stamp of “The Boss”, then PVR Direct is it. Paul Rooker is unashamedly in charge of all key decisions and it is very hard, if not impossible, to argue that he is wrong. Even in hard times, PVR’s turnover is increasing at a very good rate and the company has just celebrated ten years of successful business as well as being THS “Business of the Year” in 2009. So, apart from drive, enthusiasm, a good staff team, canny buying and selling decisions, good customer service and lean organization, how does PVR Direct explain its success? Paul follows his 80/20 rule of business –namely that 20% of the business usually makes 80% of the turnover. So a simple philosophy of focusing on your key business and ensuring that you deliver to your customers is vital. Several times in the interview Paul came back to his point that valuing customers and delivering on promises is a simple, common sense tenet of good business. Paul started the PVR venture 10 years ago. Having spent formative years working in the fixings business, he did a Masters Degree in Management Studies at the University of Western England. This seems to have been the catalyst for him to set up a completely new business based in Bristol. This business was to be modern, innovative and to use all the newest IT and the internet in order to succeed in a 21st Century business environment. Ironically, setting up the new business entailed buying a long established local company whose owner was retiring. With premises and lots of good ideas Paul forged ahead. The new staff that Paul hired needed to be young and “hungry”. They needed to understand the notion that customers buying on the internet want the personal touch just as much as those who come to the trade counter. Paul explained that he could train people who had the right attitude to selling and customer service in the basics of the tool and fixings business, but that it was much more difficult to change the habits of knowledgeable people who didn’t treat customers as important. Paul is very much hands on in the everyday running of the company. When I met him he was at the trade counter checking stock on display and bantering with the counter staff. It is clear that the staff have a very clear understanding of what is required of them and although their numbers are few, about seven in all, their job is made efficient and “do-able” by the investment in IT systems and training.
When it comes to stocking decisions, Paul is once again the main reference point. While he does have an eye on trends and new products, he thinks that doing very keen deals is the key for an internet based business. He will spend a lot of time and effort trying to build very good deals from suppliers of all kinds. The
12 ToolBUSINESS+HIRE
www.toolbusiness.co.uk
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