Redundant South Yorkshire hospitality boss retrains as a plumber to beat the pandemic – The Star

Richard Adlington, of Penistone, took the plunge after seeing desperate pleas for tradespeople in an online community forum.

He had business support from the Sheffield City Region Launchpad programme and borrowed 7,000 from Finance for Enterprise - becoming the 1,000th recipient of an FFE Start Up Loan.

Mr Adlington oversaw kitchen installations in pubs and hotels across the country until the first lockdown forced the hospitality sector to close. He was made redundant after 250 projects fell to one.

Convinced of the demand for plumbers, and using skills he mastered as an apprentice, he set up Radlington PHS.

He said: I knew I had the technical skills and experience to work as a plumber, but I also knew running my own business meant getting the fundamentals right from day one.

Since launching he has grown his customer base despite Tier 3 restrictions a three national lockdowns and is now planning to create an apprenticeship.

Radlington PHS is the 1,000th new business to receive a Start Up loan from Finance For Enterprise.

Ian Howson, business advisor at Finance for Enterprise said: It was clear from our first meeting that Richard had spent a great deal of time planning his business.

The financial projections he used to support his application were well thought out and by producing figures which took into account the impact of Covd-19, it was clear the loan would help him secure the equipment and transport his business needed and provide a cash buffer to protect it during the pandemic.

Ben Hawley, business adviser at Launchpad, said: Richard came to Launchpad with a clear idea of how he wanted to grow his business but he wasnt sure what steps would be needed.

He spent time taking part in wide range of training sessions and it was clear hed spent a great deal of time developing and refining his ideas. The business plan he produced clearly illustrated a need for additional investment and the work he undertook enabled him to secure the funds to give his business the best possible start.

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Redundant South Yorkshire hospitality boss retrains as a plumber to beat the pandemic - The Star