This Fantastic Industry

Hey there...

Its been a while since I wrote my first article for Linked In - 'Going It Alone' and I thought it was about time to write another ... Going It Alone was an article that shared my journey with you when I took the brave step in setting up The Little Branding Company... That was back in 2011 and here we are in 2017 as I enter my 6th year.

I have worked in many different roles since I left school back in 1982 but I think all of them have taught me a valuable lesson... my first job was a petrol pump attendant and I loved every second of it - it was thrilling for me, not just because of the pay packet with real money in at the end of the week but I was being paid to talk to people and have a giggle with people... Sometimes, I would be too chatty and when someone asked for ￡5.00 worth of petrol they often got ￡10 because I'd be chatting away and forget myself... mostly they found it funny and paid the extra - some wouldn't! The winter months were tough but I always remained happy and cheery with the customers... My job at the petrol station landed me a job with one of the biggest companies in the area as an office junior - the company held an account at the petrol station and felt my happy and bubbly nature would fit well into their business.

Being an office junior was fantastic... I'd have to make tea for everybody two or three times a day and would always have a joke with the guys in the warehouse, I'd have to answer the telephone, and do lots of little jobs for the other managers, one job was to type out invoices with 6 carbon copies eeuuughhh!!! Tippex really was my best friend back then! The business was so interesting - they imported and exported plastic granules and the Czech owner Mr Safranek had a little sideline exporting antiques over to America hence all the invoices and the Bills of Lading - the people were lovely to work with and Mr Safranek paid for all my driving lessons - at 17 I was very lucky and felt extremely fortunate and I'm eternally grateful to them for giving me the opportunity. He had about 8 cars and I think he found it amusing to let me ride with him to the bank in either his Rolls Royce, his red Ferrari, his yellow Lamborghini or his American style army jeep because I found it so exciting! I had my first taste of Beaujolais Noveau with them and I remember it was disgusting!! I think it probably still is! Another Manager there, Dennis Billany, also taught me how to gamble sensibly - when there was a big horse race on he would always encourage me to have a little flutter. I can remember winning ￡7.00 in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and was absolutely delighted! He was such a dear man - I often wonder whether all those fabulous people I worked with are still around somewhere ...

From there, I moved around to various companies doing accounts work, Purchase and Sales Ledger, Credit Control - you name it I did it - I enjoyed working with numbers - I found it interesting and challenging... But one day my boss said to me that my personality was wasted in the accounts office and that he wanted me to work in the Sales Office... I was absolutely terrified, 15 years I'd been working in accounts and I didn't know anything else but it wasn't long before I was deputy manager and then I was moving into marketing and all sorts of new areas... I loved the variety, talking to so many people - unfortunately my hunger outgrew the business and I left and entered the Promotional Industry - and wow! I was hooked! I remember the interview so well... being shown around the company and going into the showroom that was filled with pens, and so many goodies - I honestly felt like Charlie Bucket in the sweet shop !

That was over 20 years ago now and this industry still never fails to excite me - I truly believe the success of The Little Branding Company is not down to my vast knowledge of running a business or the education I received, its down to me and my happy, crazy and bubbly personality - its down to me being honest with customers, working hard and never giving up or losing that passion. Giving great customer service and going the extra mile to find the right product. Having the ongoing huge support from my two sons and my Dad, plus the belief in me from all my friends, suppliers and customers has helped no end but ultimately this post, all the way through, talks about personality and it comes back to the fact that people buy from people and your personality is key in any industry - I feel extremely lucky to have grown up so happy - I've had my share of problems and I've met some really horrible people along the way but I think meeting those people made me the person I am today... I would encourage anybody to live their dream - I'm certainly living my dream and I really do hope that my post inspires somebody to take that leap of faith and make their dream become a reality.

Thank you to all of my customers and suppliers that I've worked with in the past - Im looking forward to the future - I'm going to be launching a Networking Event in the next couple of months - the next little blog you read will be about that ...

Have a great day everybody and remember be happy and smile lots!