THE recent fall in the value of the pound may have helped exporters but this week’s SME Focus highlights the challenges it has posed for firms that use imported goods and machinery.

Names:

Tracey Graham and Thomas Smith.

Ages:

52 and 47.

What is your business called?

Abercromby Vending Ltd.

Where is it based?

Dalmarnock, Glasgow.

What does it produce, what services does it offer?

We produce fresh food daily retailing through our vending machines. We offer fully automated catering services including food, snacks and hot and cold drinks. We offer exclusive memberships to our Abercromby On The Go card system for staff within our customer base. This is a contactless cashless payment system with staff benefits like bonus top ups and prize draws. It was part grant-funded by Scottish Enterprise. All our fresh food complies with the Scottish Government’s healthy living award criteria.

To whom does it sell?

Public and private sector organisations including NHS Health Boards, Glasgow and Aberdeen Airports, Glasgow Life culture and sport, Warburtons bakery.

What is its turnover?

£3 million.

How many employees?

30.

When was it formed?

2005.

Why did you take the plunge?

The rationale behind Abercromby Vending was simple, says Tracey Graham: To merge the talents I developed as a caterer and Thomas’s vending machine engineering skills to form what we believe to be Scotland’s first and exclusive healthy fresh food vending company.

What were you doing before you took the plunge?

I ran a successful café business on Abercromby street in the east end of Glasgow and enjoyed the lifestyle of the business and the day to day interaction it brought with customers. The café was part of the community and remains so today under new ownership. Thomas was a vending service engineer and enjoyed the trade so much he was determined that one day he would start his own company. In 2004 he pitched the idea for Abercromby Vending to me and, convinced by his enthusiasm and conviction, I decided to partner him in the venture. When Abercromby Vending was formed we brought in new ideas such as fresh food and large coffee shop style hot drinks. All profits were invested back into the company and we both took less than the average minimum wage for the first three years.

Those years where the hardest; any money we were making was going straight back in to pay the overheads, buy new machines and parts to repair machines. We had to make sure that our five employees at the time had wages. But our standard of living was never an issue, we knew that if we worked long enough and hard enough eventually we would be able to look back and be proud of what we had achieved. We have built a successful business with a great bunch of hard working employees who have helped us to achieve our goals.

How did you raise the start-up funding?

With our savings of £6,000 and our mum and dad mortgaged the council house they had bought to raise the funds for us to purchase our first food preparation unit.

What was your biggest break?

In 2009 we partnered NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde to help re-align catering services, providing 24/7 services for NHS staff, patients and visitors.

What was your worst moment?

Having to convince the Regional Support Assistance board for funding to help build our new premises in the East End of Glasgow which would allow for more company growth, production and employment. We were awarded £140,000 to help create 12 jobs in 2012.

What do you most enjoy about running the business?

The satisfaction that we provide Living Wage jobs and fair employment contracts which in turn insures the quality and services we give to our customers.

What are your ambitions for the firm?

To continue to push the barriers of technology within vending and to provide the best experience possible for our end users.

Just over three years ago we introduced the first 10 cashless payment system readers to our machines. The uptake of people using cards was only 8 per cent initially but we pressed on and today we have over 300 of our machines in public locations with cashless payment options. The percentage of uptake has gone up to 62 per cent in some locations.

What could the Westminster and/or Scottish governments do that would help?

We are facing a 15 per cent increase on our bottom line for the purchase of machines from our main supplier as a result of the pound fall against the Euro following the Brexit vote. This is going to have a real effect on the company’s ability to provide future employment in the east end of Glasgow and also to pay the registered Glasgow living wage. A large majority of our suppliers have had price increases due to the weak strength of the pound. The prices of raw materials such as fruit juice, coffee and sugar have increased up to 5 per cent. The rising cost of fuel for our fleet is an added burden. The Government should lower the VAT rate from 20 per cent to 10 per cent.

What was the most valuable lesson that you learned?

To always conduct yourself with integrity and honesty and never forget your grass roots.

How do you relax?

Going on holiday; vending is a 24/7 – 365 day business this is the only time you relax when you can’t physically get involved in the day to day running of the company.