NEWS EXTRA CONFERENCE YOUNG HEAD ON
OLD SHOULDERS Bradford Building Supplies has been going since Australia was discovered. CEO David Young shared some of his insights into how a 250 year old business continues to grow and stay relevant.
WELCOME TO ONE INDUSTRY
Chris Hayward, CEO of NMBS, welcomed delegates to the 2024 Conference in Cyprus.
“WE ARE EXCITED to see so many of joining us at this superb venue, where we are confident that the event will be both informative and enjoyable,” Chris Hayward said in his conference opening speech. “The theme of this year’s conference is One Industry, emphasising the importance of collaboration in navigating the challenges facing building materials and the con construction sector, especially concerning the difficulties we faced in 2023, and the continued uncertainties in 2024 from political and economic to social and environmental hurdles business have had their fair share of obstacles, however thee challenges also represent opportunities for reflection adapting and growth.”
Hayward said that the focus at NMBS for 2024 had been on improving both services and building the pipeline of members for the future, with more prospecting, increased digitisation, greater focus on customer service,e and efficiency.
“This is driven by our commitment to supporting independent merchants; we’re dedicated to providing tools and insights needed to streamline their processes and drive success. we have declared 2024 the year of Independent Builders Merchants recognising their significant contribution to the trade,” he said. BMJ
8
BRADFORDS HAS BEEN going since 1770, the year Captain James Cook discovered Australia, land“Bradfords has been going since 1770, the year Captain James Cook discovered Australia, landing at Botany Bay just south of what is now Sydney. In the next 254 years we adapted and changed our business model to reflect the changes the customer was asking of us,” Bradfords CEO David Young, said. He added that the one
consistent thing throughout that time is change, and the need to adapt the business model in order to survive.
The last 10 years has seen the group grow from a turnover of £85m to £222m, and from 30
branches to 47, selling off the manufacturing businesses in order to focus solely on merchant distribution.
“To grow any business you need strong foundations,” Young said. “History is littered with businesses that grow too quickly without fully understanding the systems and processes needed to grow. “From our point of view at Bradfords, this growth has meant significant capital investment in the current estate to underpin it.” He added that a solid health and safety culture is absolutely key. “We have adopted the Opus software to help us navigate this, and oversee our health & safety requirements. In merchanting health & safety focuses a lot on the safety element, and not so much on the health side. So, we’re pleased to work with the BMF and their chosen charity this year Lighthouse which has resources available to help to just your staff but also your customers.”
Service to the customer is key to all merchanting and supplier businesses, Young continued, which means the ability to listen, engage and ask great questions. “This a cornerstone of what we do. However, the Covid pandemic changed us into order takers, and of the new starters joining our businesses, very few of them had learned the ability to sell. We want to get back to a selling culture and we do this via work with Cortexa, our apprenticeship programmes and our Fast Track programme to develop the managers of the future. I’m so pleased to say that we have 24 young people now on the journey to become managers.” Measurement is vital, Young added. “We mystery shop all the time - both us and our competitors, and then benchmark across the estate. It does just give you one moment in time, but it is absolutely invaluable to us in improving what we do and the way that we do it. We are also involved with Trustpilot, which can be brutal, but it is absolutely invaluable in gaining feedback.
cont on p10
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net July 2024
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
