entrepreneurs 19


Pictures by Angus Thomas had to draw down any additional money.


I


spent the first 10 years earning a pittance but I didn’t have an expensive lifestyle and I was very happy. Today it’s great that many of my team have been here in the long term. Steven Huzzey, who’s my right hand man, joined as an apprentice at 15, as did several of the others. The nature of being a craftsman means it’s a long-term career and now it’s great that my son Joe has just started as an apprentice and is showing a real passion for the craft.


You have an amazing client list. Is there one commission that stands out for you and why?


It’s very difficult to pick one. Bibendum will always be special to me because that was my entrée into commercial furniture, I call it


my jewel because I made everything with my own hands. More recently, I loved 30 St Mary Axe because it’s such a fantastic building. We did the reception desk, libraries, meeting tables – effectively everything which wasn’t a standard desk and chair. When I’m in London, I still go in there today to look at it. We also did the lounges for the International Olympic Committee at London 2012, which was brilliant.


Much of our work is in London and overseas, for example we supply furniture for all of Burberry’s stores worldwide, but it’s always nice to do local projects too. Vodafone’s World Headquarters at Newbury was a super job and we’ve also worked for The Forbury Hotel in Reading, The Quince Tree near Henley, Runnymede Borough Council and the Kindersley Biodiversity Centre at Lambourn, among many others in the Thames Valley.


What makes your work so exciting?


Every job is different, it has to be interesting and challenging, both technically and spiritually. I loved doing commissions such as the Eden Project and the Woodland Trust headquarters because of the ecological aspects. And in London we can boast some of the best architects in the world, their level of creativity is just amazing and I love working with them.


You have to keep doing something new all the time. We’ve been exhibiting at designjunction and Decorex as part of the London Design Festival and I’m really excited about a new research project which we’re involved in with the Royal College of Art, among others.


It’s looking at life


cycle analysis in furniture manufacturing, real cutting edge stuff which involves proper scientific analysis of sustainable manufacturing, so this is more than just an


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – OCTOBER 2012


interest, it’s a real passion and we’re at the sharp end of it.


For me, it’s about finding a way of making things which are good for the business and good for the world.


You have a passion – and have won awards – for sustainability. Why is it so important to you?


I’ve always been a bit of an “old hippie”. When I was younger I met Jonathon Porritt and I was really quite influenced by him, I always say he put the environment on my agenda. It was long before anyone was talking about climate change or global warming, but what he said had a real resonance with me and sustainability has always been at the heart of everything we do.


Do you still spend much time designing and creating?


I’m in the workshop every day and I get involved in the design side, but I don’t get my chisels out these days.


Do you have any unfulfilled ambitions or a dream design you would love to create?


I’ve always had a passion for bridges, so I would love to design and build a really nice wooden bridge.


The real pinnacle of my career however, would be if I was commissioned to do some work in Kyoto.


It’s the spiritual home


of woodworkers, the Japanese have an amazing and extraordinary resonance with the wood and to work with them would be something very special – an absolute thrill.


Details: www.benchmarkfurniture.com www.businessmag.co.uk


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