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In the Retail Industry, there is a commonplace adage ‘Retail is detail’. You can pick out poorly managed shops by the attitude of staff, the displays, the empty shelves. Behind the scenes, you can add absenteeism and staff retention as Key Performance Indicators. In fact, any successful business must, before anything else, think detail, think small.

My family background is the Maynard confectionery family 

Famous for Winegums amongst other things. The original Winegum product was dreamed up by Charles Riley Maynard (my great-great uncle). He started with a shop in Stoke Newington, London making sweets in a candy kitchen behind the shop, while his wife Sarah served the customers. From such small beginnings was born a major brand that is still visible on the shelves.  

Many years later, Maynards had four UK factories in London (Finsbury Park), Newcastle, Bristol, and South Coast (Brighton area). It could also boast around 400 retail shops and newsagents across England and a strong wholesale trading arm selling sweeties to larger retail brethren. It also had manufacturing and retail operations in South Africa and Canada. Just two family members, Charles and Douglas (my great-uncle) ran the business for over 80 years! 

Most of the major confectionery products were manufactured by family firms. Cadburys, Maynards, Bassetts, Pascalls, Rowntrees, Mackintoshes were all family units, to which you might add Huntley & Palmers, Clark Shoes – they all had a strong Quaker tradition that drove the way they did business. And they all started as very small businesses.  

So, what’s special about this? 

Quakerism is a way of life, rather than a set of beliefs.  Many Quakers find the life and teachings of Jesus inspirational, but there is no creed.  Quakers’ inner experience leads them to be committed to equality, peace, simplicity, and truth. 

The Religious Society of Friends (or Quakers) began in 1643 in the UK, at a time of growing disillusionment with the established church.  Excluded from many forms of employment for over 200 years, Quakers became tradesmen, industrialists, doctors, engineers, and scientists.  Renowned for their honesty, some built up large and successful businesses: Clarks shoes, Cadburys and Frys chocolates, Maynards and Rowntrees sugar confectionery, Huntley & Palmers biscuits. To which one might add Everards Brewery in Leicestershire, in family control since 1849 and still going strong. 

In the context of early 20^th century confectionery, many famous brands were born and thrived. But what is not realised is the strong Quaker commitment that many founders had towards the wellbeing of their staff. For example, Cadburys developed the village of Bournville in Birmingham to house their employees. And, in the case of Maynards, the Directors created one of the very first private pension and health schemes, not to mention the establishment of Sports & Social Clubs on key sites, regular staff outings to theatre and seaside, and company newsletters. 

But, most importantly, when their staff went off to war, they did so in the sure knowledge that all survivors could return to the Company to (more often than not) their former jobs. 

Such was the gratitude of the demobbed soldiers and their families that they were moved to commission a gold- illuminated Scroll in which they expressed the heartfelt thanks to the Directors of the Company for their kindness and consideration in troubled times. 

You don’t need me to tell you that those sentiments are tragically in short supply nowadays in a short-termist world where yesterday’s results are all that matter. Only fragments of that previous culture now remain – for example, the partnership culture of John Lewis and Waitrose which, until recently, has resulted in one of the most long-lasting retail success stories of all time. 

Build a strong business culture

Unfortunately, this lack of cultural purpose, in which senior managers are required merely to ‘follow the money’ and ‘get results’ has serious rub-off effects on all aspects of the way we do things; just a few examples:  

• Many big and famous brands have disappeared or been severely diluted in their impact 
• So called ‘Customer Relations Teams’ have been set up whereby the last thing that you can do is speak to a human being. In fact, some websites even lack any kind of customer hotline number.  
• Banks and others shut branches in your High Street, sometimes hailing these changes as ‘a major improvement in customer service’ (and charge you more for the privilege), usually meaning that you end up being processed by robots. I wonder how many of you can actually name your own Bank Manager, and the branch from which they operate? 
• Recently, Netflix proclaimed a major enhancement in their programme offerings, celebrating this ‘sea change’ with a 25% increase in the annual subscription. 

This lack of attention to detailed appreciation of customer needs and wants is a serious dysfunctionality creeping into our business psyche that needs to be addressed…soon. 

But for small businesses, this represents opportunity 

I would suggest that the clue to that opportunity lies in the quaker tradition of service, honesty, care for your staff, making them feel part of your way forward to a brighter future. Governments will never understand this, because they only speak and listen to big businesses and their spokesmen even though 9 out of 10 businesses are small, employing few people. Yet many of these businesses hold the keys to future prosperity and increased productivity, because they are not so bound by finnicky regulation/compliance issues and the problems of changing course that beset very large companies. 

The opportunity doesn’t require huge financial outlay 

The business owners just need the time and the encouragement to work with their teams to develop new ideas for products and services and develop them within a sound business framework that encourages team participation and ideas sharing, with the rewards shared out proportionately for all who remain loyal to the cause. From that process will emerge the new brands and products that following generations will come to regard as common place 

The post-industrial myth 

For too long, government has maintained a glassy-eyed focus on the merits of a high-cost, high-tech revolution. Whilst important, will it deliver the jobs, the productivity improvements and the sense of societal wellbeing which is sadly lacking today? Yet small business owners hold the key to long-term success. They don’t get much support from governments who will maintain their support for the high-tech stuff in the fond belief that this will drive a high-wage economy towards the sunlit uplands. But this focus risks even greater polarisation within society and ever more industrial unrest. 

The seeds of success 

Lie in thinking small and getting strong before building big. 

Small businesses should take that opportunity to sharpen their entrepreneurial skills so that they become the big businesses of tomorrow. Building the right organisational structures and disciplines from Day 1 that will evolve with growth. 

The stories of Cadburys, Maynards, John Lewis, Clarks Shoes show how small businesses can evolve into mighty organisations. These brands have evolved and survived for over 100 years. 

The trouble is that many small enterprises feel that they have no flexibility or economic headroom for such initiatives. Yet they need not be costly. The main initial investment is time spent reflecting on a plan for change, based on a great creative idea, stable staffing, great communication (internal and external) and solid, well-managed finances. But it all starts with great dialogue with all stakeholders. 

A few tips 

Let’s reflect on areas where it might be good to set aside supposedly smart communication methods: 

1. Talking to Staff 

How often do you tell your staff what is going on and listen to their concerns and ideas? Or walk the office or shop floor? Such remoteness really devalues any sense of respect you may have for your team and vice versa. 

2. Talking to customers 

How often do you talk to them directly; find out what they really think about your service and product? Talking openly to customers is a sign of strength, not weakness. 

3. Talking to service providers 

How often do you talk to your bank for example? Do you encourage them to contact you? All too often, business owners/managers feel that it’s best not to say anything if the going gets tough. The reverse is true: bankers do not like surprises. Who does? 

4. Talking to suppliers 

Some business leaders feel that they know their suppliers well enough and will happily seek to dictate terms to them, heedless of any warning signals. This invariably leads to poorer quality and customer dissatisfaction, whereas sensitive negotiation leads to both product and cost improvements with benefits for all. It all comes down to good, creative communication. 

Where to start? Why not by encouraging phone calls as the first line of communication rather the last? The Company which communicates confidently and effectively will always be one step ahead. 

Think small, get strong, build big 

To find out more about Tony Maynard, visit his profile here.