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Executive Report: Starting from scratch An eagerness to offer a better quality of service has led an entrepreneurial hireman to establish his own hire business. EHN’s Editor at Large, Nigel Strickland, reports. The last decade has seen considerable consolidation within the UK hire industry. Nevertheless, as EHN continually highlights, it is clear that, throughout the country, many local and regional companies thrive and expand, confronting the challenges posed by the larger nationals and providing high levels of service and responsiveness to customers’ needs. For this state of healthy competition to continue, our industry will need new ideas, attitudes and, most importantly, entrepreneurs who constantly challenge the existing order of things. For some hire professionals, this means starting a new hire business from scratch, which is undoubtedly a massive test of character, energy and ability. One such person who was prepared to meet that challenge is Matt Rowe, whose recently formed Hire Standards operation is serving a growing customer base from its location in Westbury, Wiltshire. His first taste of tool hire came 15 years ago, working in the hire division of a builders merchant. Like many in our industry, he progressed through the ranks to the role of a supervisor and eventually ran his own depot. In 1996, a local independent hirer offered Matt the opportunity to broaden his experience, and he joined it as a Hire Negotiator. A sequence of rapid progression led to him becoming Hire Desk Manager, where he gained experience of stock control, logistics, customer relations and sales. After 11 years in hire, the frustration of not being able to provide the level of service he wanted to give his customers began to grow. Following a period of soul-searching, Matt handed in his notice, planning to join a local builder as Contracts Manager, with responsibility for looking after a selection of plant and equipment. However, two weeks into his notice period, several customers were surprised by his imminent departure and suggested that he should establish his own hire business. With his wife’s support and backing, Hire Standards was formulated and just six weeks later, in July 2007, it opened for business on a local trading estate. Matt initially saw his main market as supplying DIY customers with tools and equipment, and set out his stall by offering “professional, friendly advice without the daunting experience encountered in many trade-based hire companies.” However, it was the building industry that rapidly made a beeline for Hire Standards, and the new business had to adapt quickly by adding three Takeuchi mini excavators to its fledgling hire fleet to meet demand. Support from other suppliers, including Birchwood Products and Avon Trailers of Midsomer Norton, was essential to meet this unexpected, but welcome, demand and Matt says he has been pleasantly surprised by the degree of assistance he still receives. After approximately six months, the business has grown quickly and Matt’s recently retired father has now joined Hire Standards. Plans are in hand to move to larger premises later this year, and Matt has no doubts about the career decision he has made. Customers and suppliers have willingly followed him to his new venture, and have a genuine will for him to succeed. So, with limited resources in comparison to local competitors, what makes customers choose Hire Standards? Matt says it is a matter of “pulling out all the stops and taking every opportunity that others might pass by.” He tells the story of how he solved a customer’s problem in the aftermath of the severe flooding that affected the Gloucester region last summer. First, Matt cross-hired the necessary kit from one supplier, had it delivered by a second, and serviced by a third. The result was an extremely satisfied customer, the winning of his subsequent account and Matt’s reputation further enhanced. Many challenges will doubtless lie ahead, but the Hire Standards story is a fine example to any hirer who believes they could do better than their current job allows them to. • T 01373 858001 Executive Hire News › Archives › January/February 2008 › Executive Report › Starting from scratch
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