It’s All In The Family... Leading And Growing A Family Business

It’s All in the Family... LEADING AND GROWING A FAMILY BUSINESS

IT’S A GREAT TESTAMENT TO RICHARD FULLER, MD of County Battery Services, and his father who started the business, that County Batteries celebrated its 40th anniversary last year. From small beginnings in ‘the mother-in-law’s’ double garage in 1974 to a £1.2m turnover business with multiple outlets today, County Battery has responded to demand and moved with the times to get to where it is now. RICHARD GOT Richard meets weekly with his team to review each of their goals and set new targets which he INVOLVED IN HIS FATHER’S claims has made them much more efficient and effective. “Involving the staff is key – if you share business when he was still at school. Wanting a your targets and goals they will help you get bit of pocket money, his dad said he could work there. They can’t do that if they don’t know in the shop after school, which eventually led to what’s going on!” Richard added. working 6 days a week, as the retail side of the business grew. Being so heavily involved in the business was a blessing when Richard’s father died suddenly in 1987. Despite Richard losing his best friend, he marched on with the business, began diversifying into all sectors of battery sales and launched the company’s own brand of car battery, Fuller.

In the late 1990s, Richard was given the advice that the company needed a website for online ordering. Always one for a challenge, Richard decided that he didn’t want to pay the £5k quoted for building one, so he went on a course and built it himself! However, the online ordering was a victim of its own success – they couldn’t keep up with the volume of orders, the “Having goals is the key to success – TAB integrated payments part of the website didn’t helped create our goals and give us work correctly (it was “rubbish” in Richard’s focus,” explains Richard. words), so he took the decision to stop providing the online ordering option. Although TAB has generated more work for Richard to do, he says that it’s the right kind When Richard joined TAB in 2013, he was of work. He has opened a new branch, his advised that he needed to regain interest turnover has increased dramatically (which has in the website and make some investment brought its own set of challenges – albeit good in it as there was too much business being ones) and “life is lovely.” lost by not having it. He did, and now it’s prospering! “Having goals is the key to success – TAB helped create our goals and give us The biggest change Richard made since being a focus,” explains Richard. TAB Member is creation and managing of goals. “We never had very focused goals before TAB,” “Being on a TAB Board is like having lots of said Richard. “My team is now using TAB’s non-exec directors that help you along. There’s strategic planning process which has done so so much support,” Richard adds. The benefit to much for us; it’s amazing.” Richard of his TAB Board and Facilitator has been so great that his right-hand man now sits on a different TAB Board as well.

Looking back is there anything Richard would have done differently? “I’d have joined TAB 20 years ago!” he said.

TheAlternativeBoard.com

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Source: The Alternative Board