Dave Wison, Preseli MD, has been with the business for 25 years.
Here are a few of his thoughts looking back and to the future….
What are the biggest changes you have seen in the industry in last 25 years?
I know, 25 years seems like a long time to me too! Honestly, it has flown. The biggest changes in the industry? When I first started in 1999, most of our orders were received by post or fax. Customers sent us physical artwork back then, in the form of bromides. We had an email address, but hardly anyone was using it. I even recall one of our senior colleagues giving the email address to someone over the phone: “it’s preseli dash uk dot com dot uk or something like that…” (not realising that email addresses have to be as exact as telephone numbers!).
How has Preseli changed over the years?
In many respects, our business model is the same. We still buy from the Far East, we still have a parent company in - Hong Kong which is as vital and pivotal as ever - and we still import promotional products and are a trade only supplier to the promo industry. However, there was a significant change to the range of products we offer about 15 years ago. Originally, we were very much an importer and stockist of promotional products which we would then print in the UK (using both out-sourced printers and, for some time, our own in-house print facility). In addition to our stock ranges, we would also source bespoke-made products in China on an ad hoc basis.
The change came in around 2009 when we started to import lightweight, quick to produce, made-to-order items such as Lanyards, Pin Badges and Keyrings. Nowadays, we still have stock items in our range, but they only represent about 15 percent of our sales. The bulk of our business is the made-to-order ranges.
What do you miss about the industry of 1999?
Not much, if I’m honest. It was slow receiving orders by post and far from ideal by fax. I miss the fact that I had a more streamlined profile back then! These days I have to buy new clothes every time I go on holiday – for some reason, inbetween holidays my old clothes seem to shrink in the wardrobe!
What advice do you wish you'd been given 25 years ago?
Buy Amazon shares maybe! Joking aside, I think that a lot of the time you just have to go through the process of learning on the job, sometimes it’s trial and error. I was very raw when I joined Preseli in 1999. My previous work experience, after leaving university, was in the travel industry, so very different to promo. I suppose that if I was to cherry-pick a single piece of advice to be given back then, it would be to remain customer-focused, no matter the challenges that will inevitably be faced by the business.
Who/What has been your biggest influence during your time at Preseli?
My single biggest influence has to have been Peter Perowne, the Chairman of the Preseli Group, my senior partner in Preseli UK (and also my Uncle)! Peter went out to Hong Kong well over 40 years ago and runs a number of successful businesses as well as investing very wisely in property. He has taught me many things over the years. Maybe the most important thing I’ve learned from Peter is to try to make Preseli as vital as possible to our customers, so that they come to trust us with the supply of our range of products. That way, our customers come to rely on us (and, in turn, we rely upon our customers to sell our range of products, because we don’t deal with end users).
What are your hopes for the future?
That Preseli will continue to be a trusted supplier to the promo industry. It would be nice to enjoy some years of political and economic stability (Covid and Brexit have been hugely unwelcome challenges in recent years).
Any particular events or moments that have changed how you work?
Well, I’ve already talked about technological changes, which have fundamentally changed how our business is conducted. The fact that the majority of our orders are made to order in China and imported within 10 days to 4 weeks, shows that the world has effectively become a smaller place!
Do you have a particular approach or management style for how you do business?
I would say that I am a people person and that the way that Preseli is run reflects that. Our team, both in Hong Kong and the UK (and even in France – bonjour Clare!) is the single most vital element of our business. I work hard to keep the team working well and that is reflected in our success. We were very happy to be voted BPMA Supplier of the Year and I think that shows, as much as anything, that we are doing the right thing in terms of our staff as well as our customers. We enjoy very low staff turnover and I think that, as well as our winning the BPMA Supplier of the Year Award, shows that we are doing the right thing in terms of both our staff and our customers.
