‘Gambling: The sure way of getting nothing for something.’

Published: 17th November 2016 | Issue 39 Share article:

So said Wilson Mizner. Research him and you’ll find cheery anecdotes, but I rather suspect Mizner was more crooked than the flow path in a low-noise trim. He was bang on re: gambling though and I fear our sector is flirting with some modern-day gambling itself.

The Oil & Gas market has gone through the floor, while oil prices are the best they’ve been for some time and prospects are admittedly looking slightly better. Sadly, uncertainty remains and confidence is rock bottom.

Likewise, the £ is the lowest it’s been for decades, but trying to make sense of whether that’s currently hindering or helping the UK economy depends largely on who you talk to, at what hour, and their political colour.

Yes, a low £ does help exports, but is of little comfort if you import significant raw materials, paying upfront, while your customer keeps you waiting many months for payment. Risky stuff. As is the re-opening of the Scottish Independence debate.

The City of London is the biggest casino of them all however, and I suspect appeasing this behemoth, and its overseas counterparts, is affecting our sector as much as it is any City worker currently crying into his ‘Bollly,’ be it from angst or joy.

I recently helped a member celebrate 150 years of trading. That’s exceptional. The fact is that small UK businesses seldom survive 10 years, and even the life expectancy of even an ‘S&P500’ company has shrunk dramatically to C.40~50 years. It is entirely possible that a valve company may be designing today products that will last longer than the company will itself.

One story I heard this week was of a ‘blue chip’ company buying a smaller one for a particular product, but they apparently already had in their archive a technically great but long-forgotten alternative! There was just no staffer left who knew of its existence. Similarly, some longtrusted brands are still available, but are so buried in the corporate pile they’re obscured from customers.

Brands are extraordinarily powerful, but they seldom sell themselves. If they do it’s not for long without the push of good marketing and back up of expertise. I’ve lost count of the number of companies I’ve visited who have little or no marketing budget, worse still no plan or inclination. They ‘gamble’ on reputation-alone for custom. Some of course are content to coast and await fate to throw the occasional ‘double six.’ True a few businesses are run just to provide the owner with a salary, but these days standing still is like putting the company in reverse.

I recently looked at the minutes of BVAA’s inaugural 1939 meeting, attended by a phalanx of men whose surnames imperiously adorned their companies. Over time these became trusted brands in the industry. Regrettably however even these ‘household’ names are now disappearing. Brands, even companies, their history, and most critically experienced individuals – going or already gone.

It was not long ago that the biggest moan I heard was the lack of experienced staff available to industry. Yes, we have to reshape to survive, but there’s both wisdom and knowledge in those grey beards, and dispensing with them in haste could be the biggest gamble of all.

A fine pedigree is a wonderful thing, but if you’re not regularly educating the next generation of buyers, they’ll be oblivious. And if you don’t have the experienced staff to back up the claims, customers will go elsewhere.

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