Hello and welcome to our very first blog post.
Certex has never had an official blog before but – in our quest to keep up with the times and join the social media community that seems to be gathering such momentum – we thought it would be a great idea. Besides, there’s always plenty to report on from Certex and the lifting industry in general, so I hope you’ll log on regularly.
I was delighted to be asked to write the blog but I have to say that I’m new to all of this, so please bear with me. In fact, I am always amazed at how much things do change and how you have to keep responding to it. I have been working in the lifting industry for almost 25 years now and in that time have only been with two companies – Bridon and Certex – yet I feel as though my job has kept constantly changing with new challenges every day. A lot of this is due to new products and developments, changing industry regulations and requirements, differing economic conditions and of course new technology but the point is nothing stands still.
Certex itself is a prime example. When I joined in 2004, the company was owned by Bridon International. A year later I was part of a successful management buyout team and became one of the three owner-directors. Then almost exactly three years ago, the company was sold to Forankra International AB, a Swedish subsidiary of Axel Johnson International and one of the market leaders in the supply of lifting and lashing equipment across Europe. We didn’t take this step lightly as it was fun running our business but we felt that our new owners had the financial strength to take us further.
As we reach the third anniversary of this new ownership, I find myself reflecting that in some ways things have remained the same. Certex still has the same management team, staff, quality service ethos and – most importantly – many of our original clients. We have not been immune to the financial crisis but we have been able to thrive and develop thanks to the financial backing of such a big company. For instance, we have been able to source new products and develop our own quality brands; install new integrated IT systems giving stock visibility across Europe; and increase our market share in several key sectors. All of which would have been difficult to achieve on our own in the current economic climate. We are lucky that this change has had such a positive effect and that we have been better placed than most to weather the storm that is affecting so many others in our industry.
Times still remain uncertain but there are small signs that the market is recovering and we’re certainly in a strong position to support our clients with an excellent portfolio of products and services that will allow them to focus on their core business, while we take care of the lifting.
Charles
About the blogger:
Charles Gillespie is Sales and Marketing Director at Certex UK. With almost 25 years’ experience within the lifting industry, he started his career with the wire rope specialists, Bridon, working up to General Manager for Distribution and Sales. He joined Certex in 2004 and was part of the successful Management Buy Out team that bought the company a year later. Certex UK is now part of Axel Johnson International and is one of the nation’s leading suppliers of lifting gear and services.
