The Big Interview The new kids on the block Scott Annetts “T
he hardest part about this project was learning how to pronounce the name,”
exclaims Scott.
And he’s not wrong. For those who want to practice it’s pronounced HOLLY-O-MA. Anyone choosing to start a new business at a time when the world and the UK is still in the midst of a global pandemic is surely braver than most.
But that is just what Martin and Scott have done with the launch of Holiauma UK. The pair have spent the past 18 months working to bring to the UK a range of embroidery machines intended to rival the current market leaders.
The origins
This story begins four years ago, when the two men met at an exhibition. Since meeting they have become fi rm friends and helped each other out from time to time – their embroidery businesses being far enough apart in the country to not consider the other as competition. It was not until last year when Martin needed a new embroidery machine that the two men got talking about the poor-quality service and lack of aftercare from suppliers that they have both experienced. And so, believing they could do better and provide a much-needed change to service levels in the industry, they decided to embark on this business venture together. The only thing missing was a brand to bring to market. This was not a decision taken on a whim. Both men come from good embroidery stock and have been around embroidery machinery long enough to know what to expect from a good machine. When Scott was a child, his parents ran a very successful sewing factory in Yorkshire. Scott helped out on the sewing
| 46 | September 2021
Scott Annetts and Martin Smith may be relative newcomers to supplying and distributing embroidery machinery, but not when it comes to how long they have worked in the industry. Between the two men they have more than five decades of embroidery experience and now they are embarking on a new phase in their careers. P&P editor Melanie Attlesey meets the faces behind Holiauma UK.
machines during the school holidays from around the age of 15. “My dad was a fi rm believer that if you wanted to get ahead in life you had to graft. And if you wanted your pocket money, you had to get out of bed and work for it,” says Scott. Scott trained to become a sewing machine mechanic at college and upon leaving began working for a factory that made underwear for British Home Stores and Marks & Spencer. As the world began to change and manufacturing began to head overseas, Scott went to back to college to retrain as a tailor, the idea being that he could use these skills to help the family business offer something different to customers. However, with his dad’s reluctance to stop manufacturing in the UK, the doors shut for good in 1998, leaving Scott very skilled in an industry that was declining.
“My dad had a little Toyota single-head that I used to run for him when he wanted to do little bits in-house for speed. And I thought if everyone is buying offshore that maybe the future lies in embroidery,” explains Scott.
Running with this idea, in 1999 he formed S&S Clothing with his wife Sharron, specialising in made to order chef’s uniforms for a company in Rotherham. A small part of the business was manufacturing, the other part was embroidery. The business eventually moved into schoolwear, moving away from manufacturing and focusing solely on embroidery. After a few years, Scott fancied a break and became an embroidery
Martin Smith
machine technician. He spent time out on the road, installing, repairing and training customers. However, after seeing the industry from the other side, Scott began to recognise the importance of good quality service and training. He stepped away from this role just before COVID-19 struck in March last year to rejoin the family business. “I probably should have done this years ago. Life’s great the moment,” Scott adds.
Martin’s story is a whole different kettle of
fi sh. His career started life in London working for big name banks and fi nancial institutions, focusing on customer relations and training in his latter years. After being made redundant a few times in the 80s and 90s, the fi nal time came as Martin was approaching his 40s. This got him thinking that perhaps it was time to do something different with his career. At the time his father-in-law David Baynham ran a very successful knitwear business, but was looking to retire and had already sold off half his business. Martin not only bought out his father-in-law, but bought back the half that had been sold. Over the last 12 or 13 years, Martin has built up the business from a one-man band to now employing a small team of seven under the name School Uniform Direct. During those years, Martin realised that subbing out embroidery work was not benefi cial and so brought this in-house with the investment of a few machines. “One thing that my father-in-law taught me is that your business is only as good as the service you give your customers. If you provide a good service to the schools and the parents they won’t leave,” adds Martin.
Where we are today
This brings us right up to speed with where we are today. The two men have formed the business Holiauma UK, having been appointed the sole UK distributor for the Holiauma range of embroidery machines.
www.printwearandpromotion.co.uk
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