IN THE HOT SEAT
growth of these brands will be slow. I don’t know if they can sustain that – it depends how much the manufacturers can afford to invest. Is legislation doing enough of the right things? I think so. Sometimes it’s a bit too much – we go before the whole of Europe and want to meet every piece of legislation under the sun. It comes at a cost, someone has to pay for the re- manufacturing and the retraining. And sometimes we drive too fast. We’re doing the right things but we take it all on at once.
Is legislation forcing manufacturers to stand still, rather than developing products for the future? I think that’s true. I think they’re angling to make sure they’ve got legislation covered in the countries that are relevant to them, rather than thinking about the way in which they could best serve those markets with new styles. But what’s hurting them most is the euro exchange rate and the fact that they can’t afford the investment at the moment.
They’re trying to meet emissions rules with hands tied on growth margin to reinvest in new product. We are going to see a price increase based on the fact that we’re trying to meet legislation.
Replace the Fan
How can we best encourage young people? Apprenticeships and training – but apprenticeships that matter and something that gives them a career opportunity. They need to know that there’s future growth in this industry. A small percentage of buildings have air conditioning, so there’s a huge market still remaining. This is an area that can grow if managed professionally by all the people in it. You need to train and offer apprenticeships. But the Government needs to help.
I went on a YTS scheme when I was 16 years of age on £27 a week, but I went to college, took that £27 home and didn’t have a debt. Now, university education is for everyone that wants to pay £9,000, soon to be £12,500 per annum. That doesn’t make sense. Not everyone is academic. We need apprenticeships and true training schemes where the Government puts that money towards putting people into work, so that a company like mine can take two apprentices for three years. We can work with them and grow them so they can either stay or move into another job within the industry. We’re all about academics now, not action. And it doesn’t teach people commercialism. Apprenticeships need to be more rounded.
What advice would you give?
Believe in your choices. You never make a choice that’s wrong – it was right at the time and you need to try and make it work. But if you need to change or you need to u-turn, be brave enough to do so. Maximum effort in generally provides benefits out.
Remember that whatever you’re looking for out of this, you’ll need to put into it. If you look at those two things – your belief and your goal – you’ll find it. Aspire to something, or it will pass you by and you’ll regret it. Ownership of responsibility is lacking in our industry. You need to take ownership of your choices and where you want to be.
Sport/Team/Player
I’m an avid Watford fan; I’ve been a box holder for 10 years. I love Troy Deeney today and Luther Blissett back in the day.
Everybody needs an outlet – mine is watching football on a Saturday afternoon, and motor racing. My son is called Jordan because of Jordan Racing back in the day.
Everyone should have something outside of work to enjoy, and most people are doing it for their family, just like me.
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November 2017 35
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