Having worked his whole career since 1985 in the Capital Equipment Sales Field for various manufacturers and distributors of Construction Equipment and Specialist Transport Products, in 2006 Jim decided to follow his dream (or is it a nightmare) of owning and running a business.

He had run a division for his previous company, this gave him a valuable insight into what it took to be a manager, to control, plan and run a business and he’d experienced first-hand the issues relating to cash-flow, personnel management, budgeting, work-in-progress, customer care… the list goes on…

After a protracted process of detailed planning and investigation, he approached one of his customers; Coventry-based Clements Plant & Tool Hire Ltd.

Clements was a none-core division of The Deeley Group, a major regional Construction and Development business. By chance, Deeley were looking to divest themselves of none-core businesses and his timing was right.

In March 2006, the initial approach was made, a newco was formed and the process of creating a meaningful business plan to present to Banks, Insurers, Finance Providers and Accountants was started. It was tough, with numerous knock-backs and ridiculous offers (one offering £1m immediately against a 16% interest rate!). The process was tortuous and stressful, but eventually the right partners were engaged and in January 2007 Clements was purchased. The business was acquired as a full going concern with continuation of employment guaranteed to the staff, the longest-serving of which had 33-years continuous service.

This is when the real hard work started!

The learning curve was vertical. All of a sudden the realisation of what was in front of him came into very clear focus, not least that he quickly realised that the business he had just re-mortgaged the family home to purchase, had three facets which were not conducive to a strong foundation; The Oldest Equipment, The Highest Prices and the Poorest Customer Service Attitude.

Jim attacked these head-on and a culture change was introduced. Customer focus became the key and those who did not want to embrace change left the business to be replaced with the right fit for the company. Significant investment needed to be made and immediately turnover improved.

However, no-one saw the Global Financial Crisis and Jim’s company was not immune. Business dropped 60%, some clients failed leaving bad debts and most crucially, the Bank walked away leaving the company in a perilous position.

Through sheer hard work, determination and focus, the company survived and in fact thrived and grew. Adding products and services and quadrupling the original turnover and returning a healthy post tax margin of almost 25%, which resulted in an unsolicited approach and sale of the business for in excess of five times EBITDA.

During Jim’s business ownership naturally there were numerous difficulties, however the company grew and strengthened and the experiences of the Financial Crisis provided an invaluable experience which he is keen to share.