April 2009 LCT 13

News

12 LCT April 2009

Company Profile

One of the most noticeableand interesting factsabout the commercial

laundry business is howresolutely the foundingfamilies have stuck with thebusiness created by theFounding Fathers, sometimesa hundred and even more,years ago. A notable exampleof this tenacity and longevitywas until very recentlyFishers Services which, forover 100 years kept closefamily links with the boardand management throughsuccessive generations ofdirectors from the family.

The challenges which facemost family businesses as theyapproach even the second orthird generation of ownershipare the ones which, in classicbusiness-school terms, presentoverwhelming combinations ofeconomic, financial and personaldedication demands which seemunable to be met and inevitablythe business is sold or otherwisedisposed of.

The challenge above allothers, it seems, is that ofpassing the essence of theoriginal in terms of financialmanagement, marketdevelopment, essential businessattitudes and ethos to a nonfamily team of directors. If thiswasn’t challenge enough howdifficult can it be to repeat thatsuccessful transfer of ownershipeight years later and againsucceed in building on theprevious success and continue toexpand market share, increaseturnover and maintainprofitability?

Quite an achievement, mostwould agree. However, the trulysignificant achievement in thecase of Fishers Services is thefact that the founding family

attitude to quality and customerservice has not diminished, hasnot slackened in drive or beenreduced in these successivechanges. Changes, which inother laundry businesses havenot necessarily been managed sovisibly, so effectively, or so well,as that seen in the recent historyof Scotland’s flagship laundryenterprise: Fishers ServicesLimited.

Fishers Services began life inAberfeldy, Central Perthshire,over 100 years ago and wasfamily-owned by five successivegenerations of Fishers until 1999when the Fisher family sold thebusiness to the then managementteam led by Victor Ward andfinanced in large part by amerchant bank based in London.Trading continued profitably andwith further success in securingmajor hotel laundry contracts,until a further MBO resulted inthe successful acquisition of themajority shareholding in thebusiness by the current directorsled by Bruce McHardy andcolleagues in early 2008.

That in the driest of terms isa summary of the Fishers’ story.But like all summaries, it doesnot give justice to the immensecommitment which makes themodern day business possiblefrom a history of familyendeavour and success, whichhas very few equals. The currentphase of development of FishersServices centres on the openingof the third new-build laundryplant owned by the companyincluding the opening of thePerth Plant on 4 December1996. That, significantly, wasalso the occasion of theintroduction into the business ofthe fifth generation familymember, Jennifer Fisher, by herfather, Donald Fisher and in the

presence of her grandfather,Hamish.

What the new plant on theTyne Tunnel Trading Estaterepresents is confirmation thatthe strength of the Fishersbusiness has continued todevelop in all areas of businesssuccess under Bruce McHardy’sleadership and that the 26,000square foot building is not a leapin the dark but confirmation ofthat success. This plant is new inall respects and incorporatessome of the most modernthinking in European laundrytechnology and systems.

vast territoryIt is close to three hundred

miles from the ancestralAberfeldy homeland of Fishers,to the Tyne Tunnel. Thisrepresents a vast territory wherethe processing services have tobe delivered and where qualitymust be maintained. The newplant, designed for an initialproduction volume of 350Kpieces of flatwork per week isalready fast approaching thetarget production figure. Therapid uptake of service is not allfrom pioneering sales effortssince the plant commencedproduction in January 2009, asquite a percentage was alreadybeing trucked from the NorthEast of England to the plants atthe Cupar headquarters on adaily/weekly basis.

However, it is very pleasingto report that new businesssecured since the setting up ofthe Fishers service in the NorthEast of England, is proceedingat a very satisfactory rate andthat this – despite talks on allsides of a deep recession – willalmost certainly mean that theinitial planned volumes will be

reached before the planned peaktime in mid-year 2009. This inno small way is the result of thevery high regard in which thehospitality industry holds theFishers Services business. Theattainment of the plannedproduction figure does nothowever mean that anycustomers from the hospitalitysector in the North East ofEngland will be turned away!

Word of mouth is a fantasticsales aid and the ‘word’ on the‘Housekeeping Street’, for verymany years, has been solidly infavour of the Fishers level ofservice. However, the new salesmanager for the South, NeilForbes and group commercialdirector, Tennant Hilditch can bewell pleased with the efficientand calm way in which the newplant has gained significantbusiness in a very short time.

“We set out to provide a‘local’ service to our existingcustomer base in the North Eastof England, as well as to reducethe rapidly escalating truckingcosts of the haulage to and fromCupar,” commented Hilditch onour visit to Fishers in January, asthe plant was entering its thirdweek of production.

“We were also keen toprovide the traditional Fishersservice levels to existing hotelgroup customers in a wider area,while at the same timeincreasing the generalprocessing capacity of theFishers Group as a whole, thusallowing us to accommodatenew business from laundrieswhich are in process of closingas well as increasedrequirements from new hotels inScotland.

“The new plant will reach theplanned capacity in June but thatdoes not mean that it will be full.

There is significant productionheadroom and the option ofadditional shift working whichmeans that we have appreciablecapacity for the foreseeablefuture.”

We questioned Hilditchclosely on the Fishers’ attitudeto prices and pricing in theincreasingly cut-throat attitudeto contract pricing reportedlycommon in other parts of thelaundry business.

“Fishers will not ‘buy’business for top-line growth’ssake, our policy is to price workfairly in order to cover the costof processing and transport. Wealso must allow for re-investment in our work force,our stock, our plant, ourmachinery, and, as we are acommercial enterprise, on ourreturn on capital as well as togenerate an appropriate level ofprofit,” he said.

“Fishers is thereforecommitted to hold to our pricingpolicy but always without beinghidebound or inflexible. Ourbelief is that the prices wecurrently charge are fair, andthat any increases in our inputcost base must be dealt with bya partnership approach with ourcustomer base whereby aproportion can be absorbed byimprovement in our ownworking practices andspecifications and an agreedproportion passed to ourcustomers.

“You must remember thatthe history of our industry islittered with examples of howlow, unsustainable pricing, hasled to the demise on companieswhich were once profitable.Fishers have neither the desirenor the intention of adding itselfto this list.”

Tennant Hilditch, by these

comments, may just be makingthe most eloquent and succinctstatement of why Fisherscontinues to grow, prosper,expand geographically andsurvive.

All this while adhering to avery strongly independentpolicy where he does not seegrowth in membership ofloosely associated groups oflaundries trading equablytogether across the country,while offering standard prices toall destinations:

“We believe that our strengthas a supplier rests on our serviceprovision and on our culture ofcommitment which we havegrown at Fishers over a hundredyears of effort. In the presentcentury, hotels expect localservice provision andunderstand that local conditionsaffect the end price. Really ourexperience is that nothing runby a committee can deliver asgood a product as an enterpriseunder direct control and with aclear, concise, understandingand acceptance of therequirements.

requirements“Also, it is unarguably true

that the pressures fromcustomers to impose onsuppliers a low price-high,volume pricing regime,increases steeply when a laundryis a member of an Association.The requirements of eachindividual laundry business areparamount and I believe thatindependence of operation andespecially of pricing, are criticalfactors in our establishedsuccess. The industry will cometo see that by adopting a policyof short-term gain leading tolong term failure, is a policy

which will not gain widespreadacceptance.”

“Where do Fishers see thefuture?” was our next questionto Hilditch.

“There will be an increase inthe provision of dedicated,bespoke textile specificationdriven by the desire fordifferentiated branding by thehotel groups. There will also bean increase in emphasis on thechefs’ wear sector both in termsof textile specification and incomfort in wear of chefs’outfits. We also think that largelaundry providers will becomeregionalised providers asopposed to attempting tobecome ‘national’ providersfrom inadequate managerial andfinancial bases.”

Bruce McHardy, Fishers’managing director was equallybullish and confident when wetalked with him and MichaelJones, operations director, in hisCupar office, about the Fishersbusiness as a whole. How wasthe company getting alongnearly 15 months since the mostrecent MBO?

“We have done everythingwhich we said to our financierswe would do. We are verypleased with the growth whichwe have achieved and this isseen in our investment in theTyne Tunnel plant which hasgiven us an appreciable increasein production capacity andstorage space, not only in thenew plant, but also in theexisting plants in Scotland.

“We have radically reducedour operational costs by cuttingout the huge transport costs ofshipping items to and fromCupar for processing. We canalso demonstrate that theFishers Services promises arekept to all our customers no

matter where they are locatedand, very importantly ourcommissioning team inNewcastle have quicklytransferred the Fishers ‘Culture’to the staff in the new plant.

“This is very important tous as we believe that ourNewcastle staff will quicklyshow all of our customers inEngland, that Fishers is a‘different’ supplier with a solid‘customer first’ companyattitude, where we keep ourservice promises. We have alsomoved very positively topresenting Fishers as a ‘Green’company by adopting positivepolicies to improve our CarbonFootprint profile. For example,we have adopted a ‘nopolythene’ policy as acorporate statement. Thebenefits are already appreciableand will become more so as therest of the plants move to thispolicy.

“IT is also an area ofsignificant investment where weare in the process of installingan ABS management system forproduction planning and datacapture and control here inCupar with group-wideconnection.

“In the Tyne Tunnel plant wehave also decided to go ‘SteamFree’ from day one. This is amajor innovation and utilisesthe latest European technologyin machinery design andoperation and delivered byJensen SSC in Banbury. Thisinnovation radically reduces theinbuilt ancillary costs of atraditional steam heated plantby removing the need forpipework, large boiler capacityand bulky and energy wastefulsteam heating for tumblers,tunnels and ironers. We areconfident that we have taken a

market-leading processingdecision and the innovation willallow us to further develop andimprove our already high levelsof service.”

Bruce McHardy is leading areally confident team at Fishersand our visit to the new plantsoon gave evidence that hisstrongly expressed views inCupar were demonstrated on theshop floor. The space is morethan adequate for the currentprocessing requirements and thefirst batch of the completelynew cages had just beendelivered. These, as can be seenin the photograph, are of all-polypropylene construction witha textile closure sealed by along zipper. This gives assuredclean delivery to client base andthere will be 450 of these in theTyne Tunnel circuit.

very pleasedAll the main processing

equipment is supplied byJensen SSC UK and theydeclared themselves verypleased by the fact that fromorder confirmation date tocomplete commissioning therewas a mere twelve weeks gap.In fact Ian Stubbs, the designerof the system, was verycomplimentary of the efficiencyand support levels given to theon-site team doing theinstallation, ‘from date of entryinto the building to productionstart took seven weeks, a periodwhich included all builders’ anddrainage works. Without thetotal co-operation of the Fishersteam on site this could not havehappened.’

In addition Stubbs was verykeen to point out the excellencein commissioned performanceof the single roll two-metre

ironers which “being gasheated, we consider are thefuture of flatwork finishing,giving perfect quality with notape or clothing marks, whilstrunning at 38m/minute onsheets, 26m/minute on tablelinen and 22m/minute on duvetcovers. When linked to a LogicPlus feeder and a Universalfolder these ironers give simpleprocessing with high qualityand capacity.”

The new Fishers Tynesideplant was scheduled to beofficially opened by DonaldFisher on March 25 in thepresence of many local andindustry dignitaries. He will nodoubt be echoing his words at theopening of the Perth plant on 4December 1996 when he said,“The Fishers business is built ontourism and on our investment inour people. Our standard has tobe very high as we are monitoredby the Scottish Tourist Board forthose standards. Thus we arepartners with our customers andtheir well-being is ours too. Wehave traditional Victorian valuesand we share these with ourhousekeepers throughout thecountry.”

Thirteen years later, we, atLaundry & Cleaning Today,salute this very fine formerfamily firm, which weabsolutely believe, continuesthe Fisher family tradition ofservice to their customers in thehospitality business. A traditionbuilt in Scotland over a centuryof service and now beingdelivered to their new friends inthe North East of England.Long may this fine businessmodel continue to set standardsfor others to try and equal, butperhaps not to surpass veryoften.

A SPLENDID CATCH One family business is much like another,isn’t it? Irving Scott reports

From China via Cherry Tree forwashing 50kg loads very efficientlyand economically

'Fisherised' notice in two languages including Polish

Powerful line up of the four new gas-fired driers showing theburner units atop the units. Efficient and energy saving andshowing the economies already in the first month

Tennant Hilditch and (r) Neil Forbes. Two very happyhotel laundry sales people beside one of the new 100per cent polypropylene, zip sealed trolleys

Mezzanineview ofironer line atNewcastle(plenty ofexpansionroom here)

Fishers: The new team at thetop (pictured at Cupar HO)after news of themanagement buyout in early 2008

JOHNSON SERVICEGROUP PLCANNOUNCESRESULTS

CARPET AND UPHOLSTERYCLEANING COURSES 2009

Johnson Service Group plc hasannounced its preliminaryresults for the financial yearending 31 December 2008reporting a ‘resilient tradingperformance in a difficultenvironment’ with net debtreduced to £78.5 million (from£168.5 million), continuingadjusted operating profit at£17.4m, and adjusted fullydiluted earnings per share of3.0p.

John Talbot, executivechairman of Johnson ServiceGroup, commented:

“The trading performanceoverall for 2008 has beensatisfactory, given a deterioratingUK economy. JohnsonsApparelmaster has had anextremely successful yeardespite challenging marketconditions. I am delighted withthe return to profitability ofStalbridge Linen Services in thesecond half of the year.

Drycleaning will continue tobe affected by the lack of

confidence in the high street.However, the actions takentowards the end of 2008 haveresulted in a reduction in theweekly costs of the business of£4.0 million (6.0 per cent), on anannualised basis, at presentlevels of activity.

Our FM division has had avery successful year. Weanticipate that the profitability ofthis division will continue togrow notwithstanding marketconditions.

The Board’s current intentionis to resume dividend paymentsas soon as appropriate and itintends, subject to continuedsatisfactory trading, to declare a2009 interim dividend.

Following the significantprogress made during 2008 wenow have three market leadingdivisions which are well placedto meet the difficulties presentedby the current economic climate.Overall, the Board expects toachieve a satisfactory result for2009.”

Anyone contemplating settingup in business as a carpet cleanercould find a weekend inLeicester well spent, says theNational Carpet CleanersAssociation (NCCA).

This is where the NCCA isholding the next training course,aimed at both newcomers to thebusiness as well as moreexperienced professionals, whomay wish to extend, or update,their technical skills andknowledge, or perhapscomplement the training coursesprovided by equipmentmanufacturers.

The NCCA Carpet andUpholstery Cleaning courseprovides impartial training onthe complete spectrum of carpetand soft furnishing cleaningtechniques and equipmentcurrently available within theindustry – with the added bonusof NCCA membership at the endof the line.

Attendance at this course, ora similar course, is mandatoryfor all new applicants for NCCAmembership, who must achievea pass to an appropriate standard

of the test paper, which follows.Only after successful completionof the course will the applicantbecome eligible to be a fullyaccredited member of the NCCAand add the coveted logo to theircompany name.

The course will be led byPaul Pearce and PawloWoloszyn (directors of theNCCA) who are practicingcarpet cleaners in daily touchwith customers and theirproblems, as indeed are all theNCCA directors. As a result,participants are able to reap thebenefit of their combinedexperience and thus avoid thepitfalls, which lie in wait for theunprepared.

The course listing for theforthcoming year is as follows:

24th – 25th April 200912th – 13th June 2009

Further details of this andsubsequent courses are availablefrom the National CarpetCleaners Association at:- 62cLondon Road, Oadby, Leicester,LE2 5DH. Tel: 0116 271 9550,e-mail: admin@ncca.co.uk

Paul Ogle, managing director ofJohnson Cleaners UK (JCUK),has confirmed that April 29 hasbeen set for the long awaited‘Summit’ meeting, for allGreenEarth® Licensees in theUK who are independentdrycleaners.

Whilst the date has been setthere is, as yet, no confirmationof the hotel venue selected. Thisis expected to be announcedbefore the end of March in theinvitation to the licensees. Thiswill include a detailed agendaand details of probable future

co-operation in marketinginitiatives between JCUK andthe independent licensees.

The meeting will be chairedby Paul Ogle and the presidentof GreenEarth Inc from KansasCity, Tim Maxwell, will also bein attendance. Presentations willinclude summary details ofGreenEarth® sales growtharound the world and a fullresumé of the benefits arisingfrom the use in day-to-daycleaning of this environmentallybeneficial, cyclosiloxanesolvent.

JCUK set to holdGreenEarth® ‘summit’at London location