The question of how to drive the UK’s manufacturing businesses was at the very heart of the Santander SME Manufacturing Summit held in Birmingham in October. Senior executives overseeing businesses with sales in the tens of millions of pounds divulged the secrets of their success in a packed schedule of talks, panel discussions and interviews, while attendees had time to meet, discuss business and get the ball rolling on future contracts.
Attendees hailed from every corner of the UK manufacturing sector, from production industries to trade suppliers, making this event a cocktail of potential deals for all involved.
“It’s good to meet new businesses as well as professional peers.” Geoff Hopwood, Managing Partner, Haines Watts.Genuine insights from business leaders Among the host of business presentations was a colourful keynote speech from Ian Maclean, Managing Director of luxury knitwear brand John Smedley. Ian explained how the company had adapted to survive over its 230-year history, weathering economic shocks, world wars and staggering changes in technology, tastes and the fashion sector generally. He went on to describe how the business has updated, yet retained its core values of quality, design and brand. And all this in the face of spiralling costs and growing competition from cut-price, disposable alternatives. Ian believes flexibility and capital are key to survival for retail brands. “A business has to evolve,” he says. “It has to have the capacity and the ability to evolve, either slowly or very rapidly because conditions change and that’s important with regards to how much capital you have. If you don’t have a lot of capital you’re almost done from the start. So it’s important to retain capital within the business so you can ride out those changes in the shops.” Learning to survive Providing a view from a much younger business was Geoffrey Gestetner, founder and Managing Director of Davidson Holdings, which owns and manages a group of building products companies. Created in 2003, Davidson Holdings has grown both organically and through acquisition to become a leader in its market. During his on-stage interview, Geoffrey discussed his varied career in manufacturing and how he developed his own business into a company with £20 million in turnover. He also explained how he learned to roll with the punches, such as when the biggest supplier of a new acquisition suddenly went into administration. When asked what it takes to launch an entrepreneurial business, Geoffrey laughed. “Be as lucky as me?” But really Geoffrey believes it’s about more than having a great idea; it’s about laying the groundwork. “I had 10-15 years working with other people understanding building products and understanding the design and making and selling of those products before I decided to go do it myself. I understood the principles of launching and selling that product and reaching the market. If you’re going to take that risk you might as well do it when you’ve got a chance, and you’ll have a much better chance if you understand the markets in which you’re going to operate.”
Hear from some of our delegates “Today has been very fruitful,” says Jamie Tunnicliffe, Sales and Marketing Director of John Smedley. “Just now I met a gentleman in the fashion industry and we are talking productively about how we can work together.” Another delegate said the event had been “well worth taking a day off from the factory”, while others pointed to specific networking conversations, or insights that they would take away and employ within their own businesses. “It’s good to meet new businesses as well as professional peers,” says Geoff Hopwood, Managing Partner of accountancy firm Haines Watts, which has a group of clients in the manufacturing industry. “The environment and the structure just works really well.” Rolling out across the UK The SME Summit series is part of Santander’s commitment to fast-growing small and medium-sized businesses in the UK and will continue to feature a host of speakers, as well as opportunities to network, share contacts and gain valuable insights into what makes a successful business in the 21st century. Santander SME Summits are now rolling out across the UK in a bid to help businesses overcome common problems and to create even more success stories.“If you don’t have a lot of capital you’re almost done from the start. So it’s important to retain capital within the business so you can ride out those changes in the shops.” Ian Maclean, Managing Director, John Smedley.