Popes Electrical & Data Supplies
Up for the challenge
By Richard Mead.
This article appeared in Electrical Gems Issue 85, June—July 2008
When Daryl Read bought John Pope Electrical, he knew nothing about the electrical trade. but Daryl threw himself in at the deep end and somehow managed to stay afloat. at the time, Daryl remembers wondering if he was crazy. Now, looking back on those hectic first years, Daryl is sure that he was.
John Pope Electrical, the business Daryl was about to purchase was in Canberra, and Daryl lived in Sydney. But back in December 2002 nothing seemed impossible for Daryl. So he jumped in with both feet. Later, with his wife and business partner Wendy by his side, they sat around the dining room table at home and thought: "What have we done?!"
Life in Sydney with two incomes and no kids had been great, however the pending birth of their first child, Jack, had caused them to think longer term. While most people would be wanting to build a nest and find security, Daryl and Wendy decided it was time to move back to Canberra and take the plunge into working for themselves. Now, with the ink barely dry on the contracts, the reality of the situation began to sink in.
"It was then that I realised people buy from people. Trust and relationships are the key..."
Daryl Read, Owner, Popes Electrical & Data Supplies
Daryl had no background at all in the electrical industry. And both Daryl and Wendy, while originally from Canberra, were living and working in Sydney. Daryl had completed a Bachelor degree and Masters degree in Engineering and was working for Telstra. Wendy was an accountant with Qantas. Neither had the ideal qualifications for entering the electrical wholesale business. "The first 3 years were crazy," Daryl remembers. "On the home front our family grew to 3 children under 5 years, and on the business front we opened a second store at Mitchell in 2003 and also struggled with the loss of a number of key staff. I was trying to manage one of the branches as well as run the business," Daryl remembers.
But during that time, when Daryl and Wendy worked so hard just to establish a foothold in the local market, a large mulitnational (Rexel) closed their Canberra branch. "Daryl remembers thinking: 'Hey, we must be doing something right if the guys with all the experience and resouces can't make it work'. It was then that I realised people buy from people. Trust and relationships are the key and these are built up over time. We are working to a plan and we know that if we do the small things well, and treat our customers and staff right, then we will achieve our goals," reflected Daryl.
One of our saviours was the appointment of Mick Barry as manager of our new Mitchell store," said Daryl. "Mick did an amazing job establishing the new branch and now runs our Fyshwick store. And on a personal note I was flat out trying to run and learn the business at the same time. Outside work, it wasn't easy finding the time to see Wendy and the kids let alone continuing to play Australian Rules football which involved training 3 nights and playing on weekends."
But Daryl, Mick, Wendy and their staff were rewarded for their tenacity and the business experienced steady growth over this period. "I think our customers and staff could see that we were having a red hot go and we had everything on the line," Daryl reflected. "As far as we all were concerned, there was no way it wasn't going to work," said Daryl.
"After the insanity of the early years we have now established an outstanding team of 14 dedicated staff and have managers in both stores. We have a loyal group of customers who we look after with all our might and I think they appreciate the fact that we are a local business that will go the extra mile when needed," emphasised Daryl. In December 2005, the name was changed to Popes Electrical & Data Supplies as it more accurately represents the range of products now supplied.
In 2006, Popes Electrical & Data Supplies won the Family Business Australia (FBA) NSW/ACT Best 1st Generation Family Business. The First Generation Award category focuses on the founders and owners who manage the business and is judged on aspects of 'innovation and entrepreneurship'. "We have also been state finalists in the Telstra Business awards in 2006 and 2007," said Daryl.
"The awards are recognition of the hard work and dedication of our staff," said Daryl. "They are the ones who are pushing me along saying "lets do this" and "lets try that". It is a great environment to work in." Daryl has just returned from walking the Kokoda Track, but that's another story. Perhaps in a later issue...