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Cardiff Business Club interviews John Timpson CBE, former CEO and current Chair of Timpsons

On 11th April 2016, Cardiff Business Club was granted a pre-event interview with John Timpson CBE, former CEO and current Chair of Timpsons.

CBC: You were keen to vocalise your thoughts on a possible Brexit recently in an interview on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs and in The Telegraph, where you argued that Britain leaving the EU is a ‘risk worth taking’. What makes you think that?

JT: There is a risk in the sense that in the short term we don’t know what is going to happen should we leave. But on the other hand, when I think about my business and the advantages that I have had by being free of having shareholders and by allowing our people to have the freedom to do their own thing, the last thing that I want or would feel comfortable with is being told what to do by someone miles away. That is why I say a person’s decision on whether to remain In or Out is very often an extension of their own personality: If they are processdriven, like to play it safe and stick to the rules they will be the ones who will want to stay in the EU. However, if they are mavericks, entrepreneurs and - like me - they enjoy the opportunity to really have the freedom to do it, especially if they see that too much power could finish up with the bureaucrats in Brussels, then they are going to want to go Out. All the arguments that we are hearing mostly come from the In camp and from people who have already made their mind up on where they stand. That said, two weeks ago I emailed each of my grandchildren and I had two surprises. One was that they replied to my email in the first place and within an hour, which is most unusual for my grandchildren! But secondly, more seriously, they all firmly responded by saying they are in favour of remaining in the EU. I think this bears out to what I believe is a generational concern – I am of an age when I remember how it was before we joined the EEC as it was then.

CBC: How do you think Britain will vote?

JT: I believe that the majority will vote to remain In. I don’t think that the opinion polls in the run up to the referendum will agree because quite simply they need to create ‘news’, as we saw with the Scottish referendum last year and the last election too. Too close to call makes great headlines.

CBC: Do people have enough information to hand to be able to make an informed voting decision?

JT: I don’t think the information is around. The danger is that there was perhaps too much information which was by and large based on fantasy – a “think-tank has come to the conclusion that…” or “a group of experts” or a “body of economists have shown”…none of this means anything. I studied Economics at university and I don’t trust what they say. There aren’t any facts about the future. The In versus Out campaign is not about money in my view, it is about sovereignty – 'Am I allowed to do what I want to do?'

CBC: The company has reported strong growth over the last 12 months, what do you put this down to?

JT: The reports published by The Telegraph were actually incorrect, as they cited the figures from one division of the company (Timpsons Ltd) and not the total figures for the whole Group, which were £210 million (VAT incl), with a profit of £16 million. The success is quite simply down to having great people. We have been consistent in picking people with ‘personality’ and giving them the freedom to ‘get on with it’. But we have also been good at buying poor performing businesses that we know what to do with. We have made the mistake in the past of buying ‘good’ businesses that I think I know what to do with, which can often be perceived as being rather arrogant and sometimes doesn’t work. And we have expanded our presence within supermarkets and invested heavily in growing with them. Our photo business has been a huge success for us, having bought Max Spielman at a time when people said that photoprocessing businesses on the high street had had their day – this is now one of our most profitable business areas. Since then we have bought the Tesco photo business too.

CBC: The company has diversified a number of times since you started with the business in 1960 to ensure it remains relevant, but perhaps one of the most significant changes you have made is in your recruitment policy. Around 10 per cent of your workforce is made up of ex-offenders, what prompted this radical approach to staffing and what have the long term implications been for the business and those who you have recruited?

JT: Like just about everything else that works well in business, it happens by chance. My son James happened to go to a prison where he was organising a function and he was so impressed by the person showing him around that he handed him his card and asked him to give him and ring when he was released and he would give him a job. And that’s what he did. We have learned a lot from this, we made some mistakes by employing some people who we knew would be too tough for us. But now we have a number of people who have joined us from prison that are rising up through the business, ranging from brand managers to area managers. It has been a very positive experience.

CBC: In your view, are businesses doing enough to encourage younger workers and those from disadvantaged backgrounds to help them get a start in the workforce?

JT: From our perspective, speaking modestly, I think that we have done a lot to champion the cause of supporting those who have been in prison. Indeed, the subject of giving ex-offenders a start was something that was once never talked about. Now it is one of the first things that is mentioned whenever people refer to our company. We also positively support those leaving the Armed Forces too and having such a long involvement in foster care, I am now looking at how we can support foster carers. We also run our own apprenticeship scheme, which is separate to that run by the government, which in my view, is appalling, and an example of totally muddled thinking. Our scheme will never receive government funding, and we don’t want it. I don’t want to run our apprenticeship scheme according to government guidelines. I want to do it in a way that works and has a greater level of success. I want us to be able to do so without the requirement to teach them English and Maths, which goes against what we are tying to do with our ex-offenders – many of whom cannot read or write. They don’t need GCSEs, they need life skills and that’s what we teach them.

CBC: Your 2003 book, 'Dear James…,' was a fascinating insight into the leadership lessons that you wanted your son James to adhere to when you were passing over the reigns to him. If you could choose just three lessons to share, what would they be?

JT: Firstly, always make sure that you have the right people. Secondly, always check the cash. Don’t bother about profit, that doesn’t matter. What matters is watching the cash because cash is control. Third, always makes sure that if you have somebody who is no good, get rid of them.

CBC: What does the future hold for you?

JT: My life has changed a lot over the last few months, with my wife dying at the start of the year. I'm taking on more things, more challenges and doing things that I always said that I wouldn't do, like appearing on 'Any Questions?' Having been so involved in fostering over the years, I want to further explore the aspect of attachment with children in relation to its impact on education – something that isn’t given any attention on initial teacher training courses. I have no intention of getting back to running a day-to-day business again…thank God! Business to me is still a hobby and I just seem to do more of it.

John Timpson CBE was interviewed by Paul MacKenzie-Cummins, Managing Director of ClearlyPR, on behalf of Cardiff Business Club

For highlight's from the event visit our YouTube channel.