I am a local business owner and have built, run, and sold multiple businesses for the last 25 years now.
Businesses I have run, continue to run, or sold are in the following fields:
- IT consultancy
- IT support and installation Services
- Property Lettings and Management Agency
- Property Investment for income/pension/lifestyle
- Property investment Mentor
- Investment property consultant
- Business Coach helping clients attract new customers and maximize profit
I am also a volunteer business mentor for The Prince’s Trust. This is where I help under 25’s with a start-up business.
I love all the coaching and mentoring I do as it’s so rewarding when you see someone achieve their goals knowing you have helped them get there.
Before I got into running my own business and building investment portfolios for myself and others I was in the Army.
The Royal Corps of Signals for 14 years which is how I ended up in Wiltshire with my last posting.
My Prince’s Trust story
Quite a few years ago, a friend introduced me to the Prince’s Trust, which will soon become the King’s Trust.
He told me they helped youngsters who haven’t had a great start in life or find it hard to do some of the things we take for granted. They may come from disadvantaged backgrounds or face other challenges along the way. Some of them had a form of tragedy in their lives. Most have been held back in some way or had their confidence knocked out.
I decided to find out more and see if I could be involved and help somehow.
The Prince’s Trust offers some fantastic and varied programs for their young people.
One of these programs, The Enterprise Program, aligned well with me because it helps young people start and grow their businesses.
This program was a perfect fit for me as a business coach.
So, after the required checks and familiarization days, I became an Enterprise Business Mentor Volunteer for The Prince’s Trust.
My first Mentee was a young lady who baked amazing cakes for events like weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Her energy and enthusiasm were brilliant, and she reminded me of how I was when I started my first business.
After a few meetings and cake-tasting sessions—I love cake!- we started to discuss the details of her business. I quickly found that she was making very little profit in the business; at one point, she was only earning £3 an hour! So, I asked her to review the costs, time, and selling price of her cakes to increase that profit.
She came to the next meeting and said:
“Neil, I’ve got it! I have decided to keep chickens!!”
“Chickens?” I asked.
“Yes, that way, I can have as many eggs as I like for free!!!”
Needless to say, I managed to show her that wasn’t the way forward !!
After we finished working together, she had a thriving business making a good profit and was buying new ovens to cope with the growth in orders. She was also put up for the Prince’s Trust Young Business Person Success awards and made it to the finals.
Seeing someone succeed and achieve their goals and dreams is a beautiful thing. What is most memorable for me is to say that I was involved in their journey and feel really proud of them, especially considering everything they have had to overcome.
Since then, she has started additional businesses, and I love seeing how she has grown and continues to develop.
