ta king trade talkingl Flying the flag WhatMore UK director Tony Grimshaw OBE Tony Grimshaw OBE explains why the housewares


company is committed to supporting and promoting Britishmanufacturing products and service adopt the logo, themore


Tomake Britain amanufacturing country again, we strongly believe that this approach should be used by all UK companies, retail included. The product has to conformto, or exceed, foreign competitors’ standards and be a cost effective option.


We can replenish in days, allowing our customers to capitalise on a product’s sales success. If a product comes fromChina, for example, it’s on the water that long, particular season could well be ove it arrives.


r before that


Another plus p io nt of ordering fromUK manufacturers is that you don’t need to order 40ft


r, saving on all sorts of charges.


November 1999.Well done to observant readers: we are 20 years old this year! Our head office and four showrooms are at Padihamin Burnley. Ourmanufacturing and distribution facilities are in Altham near Accrington, about amile fromour head offices.


W


Wemanufacture all things in housewares plastic. In the last five years, we have invested £25million on completely equipping our factory with brand new state-of-the-art plastic injection mouldingmachinery.We have built and improved our estate.We have purchased companies to allow us to expand our offer. Through acquisition, we have been involved in themanufacture of bakeware and cookware here in the UK for nearly four years. We invest in people, infrastructure and


product. It’s a continuous ongoing exercise.We also have 247motivated colleagues who are all pulling in exactly the same direction.


So why did we decide tomake in Britain? It was a fairly simple decision really. The boss is British. The expertise and skills required are available in abundance in Lancashire. The people of Lancashire have an unequalled work ethic and would comparemore than favourably with anywhere in the world.


Initially ourmarketplace was the UK, so it was a no-brainer. The other reason is that when we started, we could barely afford the bus fare to work, nevermind flying all over the place to check things out!


As a company, we start our purchasing at our factory gate. If it cannot be found in Lancashire for whatever reason - it’s not there or it’s not competitively priced - then our buyersmove the search out.


36 | housewaresl livive.net


hatMore UK has beenmanufacturing housewares products in Lancashire since the company was born in


,


ft high cubes. Products also come on pallets, so there’s no need to destuff [unload] a container,


Also, take a look at your customers. How many live in Beijing and howmany live in say, Burnley? Think of the circle of life: work,make stuff, earnmoney, spend it in-store. If you stop the first elements of this cycle, then the last one - spend in-store - won’t happen. Unless you lay on a free shuttle bus fromBeijing.


Made In Britain campaign


thro star


Made In Britain campaign


WhatMore UK is a foundermember of the Made In Britain campaign. Themovement was ted by a Liverpoolmanufacturer who, ugh an article in a national newspaper sounded out like-minded UKmanufacturing companies. I’mtold we were the third to respond (note to self:must improve on response time). A logo was designed and the first few companies attached it to their products and stationery.


r,, Since those humble beginnings, the


movement has built and built. It has a great leader in ceo John Pearce. There’s a board and some really effective staff. The campaign’s aims are very simple: to expose British


manufactured goods and services around the world, give British exporters the knowledge they require to be exporters, and allow UK exporters to exchange ideas and experiences with other UK exporters.


Then there’s the aforementioned logo. It’s now an accepted sign, worldwide, of UK manufacturing and services at their very best. It’s recognised and is becoming a b itself. A brand that screams quality


and blasts rand in


out themessage that products granted the privilege of using the logo are of the finest quality to be found anywhere in the world. Made In Britain proudly announced that it had 1,000members last year. So themovement is growing fast. I would advise any company who fits the required criteria to join. Themore


• HousewaresLive.net HousewaresLive.net twitter • /H


recognisable it becomes. There is a small cost, depending on turnover. It ismoney very well spent.


Can I also direct any companies thinking of exporting to three other organisations? The Department of International Trade. For absolutely NOTHING they will appoint an International Trade Advisor (ITA) to your


company. I’ma very proud Lancastrian, but owt for nowt, I’ll have a barrowload. The ITA is a source of all sorts of free stuff: courses, advice, information. Get the company barrow out and fill it!


Then there’s BHETA (British Home


Enhancement Trade Association). Amore dedicated bunch of people you will not find. And all with one thought inmind - themembers. BHETA has an export committeemade up of very experienced exportmembers and BHETA personnel who working tirelessly formembers thinking of, or actually, exporting. It runs seminars and even trademissions. If you’re already a BHETAmember, getmore out of your membershipmoney and ask the questions! If you’re not amember, then you should be. Last but by nomeans least: the Chamber of Commerce. It’s brimful of advisors that have been very successful exporters,manufacturers and service providers. They can set up specific courses for you, by department, such as sales, distribution andmanufacturing. They even sort out the required paperwork for exports to certain countries.


r,


Treat export as a customer. Howmuch effort would you put into having Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Lakeland, Home Bargains or B&Mon your active customer list?Well, export can be a lot bigger than any of those.


My final point is this. Every company in the UK should look at its offer and should attempt to export. The effort will cost asmuch as you want to spend, froma 250sqmexhibition stand at [trade shows in] Frankfurt or Chicago to a junior in the office spending a couple of hours on the internet a week looking for potential customers and sending out emails and e-brochures.


In the ‘good old days’ there were figures


it was called. T released every


month: the Balance of Payments he Government and themedia


have long since stoppedmentioning these figures. It was the difference between what we imported as a country, and what we exported as a country. They should use this again as a driver. The gap of the deficit wouldmake your eyes water.


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