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Just seen this at 6mins they talk about Factory expansion.
No debt. Brilliant.
Great success story.
Very much the same philosophy as the German Mittelstand.
Seems like a good business philosophy. I like what he said about selling the business and finance / debt.
I liked what he said about not selling the business and finance/debt.
Why can't more companies have this approach.
Yesterday I was reading about Andrew Page Autoparts and how the MD/owner knew all of his staff and at any depot visit, would visit the shop floor first before talking with the managers etc. He sold up to financiers/Eurocar parts and it all went downhill from there.
Why can’t more companies have this approach.
Because they don't plan ahead and get an offer they can't refuse, is what I have seen a few times.
I liked what he said about not selling the business and finance/debt.
Is he immortal? Or will he pass on the business to family members who will either sell it or ruin it by not having his knowledge or experience.
The latter, except I doubt they’ll ruin it because they’ve been schooled in the way of Hope since they were born. Ian’s son is at Oxford or Cambridge so clearly isn’t daft.
Going to either of those does not make you smart or good at business, just means you have brains. I know more than one person who went there that I would not trust to take public transport, let alone run a business.
The velodrome on their factory roof has been talked about for some years. I think Hope even went so far as to apply for outline planning permission about five years ago.
Not too sure if they are serious or it's just a clever promotional gimmick.
Why can’t more companies have this approach.
I think it comes with disadvantages as well as benefits. You can only grow much more slowly for a start, and you are in fact more vulnerable at first to competitors who do borrow.
Small home-grown companies can reach a point where they may still have spare manufacturing capacity but their other departments can't grow any further. It takes a big investment of cash and management skill to take them on into the next stage. Unfortunately many home-grown directors are also not well trained and not very worldly.
Maybe their ethos is not solely based on rapid growth and profits, maybe a steady margin, happy workforce and a quality product provides enough !
Why can’t more companies have this approach.
Very common in Germany, so much so they have a name for it: Mittelstand.
Ive been in two companies that grew through organic growth without debt and were great places to work. However sometimes you out grow the original team / people or you need lots of investment to take it to the next stage, or the people who started the company have had enough/an offer they can't refuse and want to move on.
Very common in Germany, so much so they have a name for it: Mittelstand.
The different ways economies develop is based on government policy, the sophistication of financial markets, the culture of the the country, the taxation regime inter alia. Adam Tooze is well worth reading if you want to gain an understanding of history from an economic perspective.
The latter, except I doubt they’ll ruin it because they’ve been schooled in the way of Hope since they were born. Ian’s son is at Oxford or Cambridge so clearly isn’t daft.
Well that assumes that he wants to follow in the family footsteps and that £ signs in front of their eyes, and that any business schooling they’ve had doesn’t break the hope mould. But no matter how smart he is without 30 yrs actual hands on business leadership experience getting dropped into the driving seat he’ll be bound to make some bad decisions. If you are in your thirties and someone offers you cash so you (and probably your children) never have to work again and still live a very comfortable life it would be hard to say, “no, I want to continue in my (presumably well paid) position but with continual stress, hassle and the ongoing risk that someone does something that wipes out your market.