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

1. JOHN TIMPSON
CBE
THE
INTERVIEWTHE MONTHLY INTERVIEW FROM CARDIFF BUSINESS CLUB
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2. On 11th April 2016, Cardiff
Business Club was granted a
pre-event interview with John
Timpson CBE, former CEO and
current Chair of Timpsons. Here
is a transcript of that interview.
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
THE INTERVIEW I APRIL 2016
or Out is very often an
extension of their own
personality: If they are process-
driven, 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
Above
Left to right: Huw Williams,
Geldards; Guy Clarke, Secretary of
Cardiff Business Club; Gerald Davies,
former Chairman of Cardiff Business
Club; John Timpson CBE; David
Myrddin-Evans, Divisional Director &
Head of Brewin Dolphin in Cardiff
and sponsor of the event; and, Scott
Waddington, Chairman of Cardiff
Business Club
Photo: Richard Bosworth.
"The last thing
that I would
want or would
feel
comfortable
with is being
told what to
do by
someone
miles away"

3. 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 photo-
processing 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
"Like just about
everything else
that works well in
business, it
happens by
chance."

4. 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
THE INTERVIEW I APRIL 2016
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. CBC
Above
Left to right: Stephen Jones, Brewin
Dolphin; John Timpson CBE; David
Myrddin-Evans, Divisional Director &
Head of Brewin Dolphin in Cardiff
and sponsor of the event; and, Scott
Waddington, Chairman of Cardiff
Business Club
Photo: Richard Bosworth
"Always
make sure
you have
the right
people,
check the
cash, and
get rid of
the wrong
people."
John Timpson CBE was interviewed
by Paul MacKenzie-Cummins,
Managing Director of ClearlyPR, on
behalf of Cardiff Business Club