PRESTONS OF POTTO
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To celebrate his parents' 50th wedding anniversary, David Preston arranged for a OAF XF105.530 to be given the golden treatment. CM had an exclusive look at the fleet's latest head-turner.., and we also caught up with Anne Preston
Richard and Anne Preston are probably the hest-known married couple on the UK road transport scene. With a well turned out. 200-strong fleet, Prestons of Potto has long been one of the country's strongest and easily recognised brand names. And if you weren't aware that Richard and Anne have been manied for 50 years, then the latest DAF XF105.530 44-tonner to join the general haulage fleet certainly lets you know, in an unashamed indulgence. David Preston arranged for one of the company's new tractor units to be given some special treatment.. 'Me project was supposed to be an anniversary surprise for his parents, although he knew he could never keep it secret for very long. Both Richard and Anne remain committed and passionate about anything involving the family business. Now aged 76. Richard is officially classed as retired. although no-one believes that. Meanwhile. there's no sign of Anne Preston an effervescent 72ever wanting to do anything else apart from head up an organisation that she has striven so hard to champion.
Faithful to their roots the Preston 1-IQ is located at what used to he the Potto village railway station, and its long been lauded as one of the finest transport depots in the country: the fabulous entrance foyer is a reflection of the professional image that Prestons aims to portray.
The offices are a far cry from the one Anne Preston started out with, back in 1%5.
After giving up her job as a civil servant to have their two children. David and Jayne, Anne decided the business of Richard Preston & Son could go places. Huge conglomerates like ICI and British Steel were ensuring the growth of the nearby area of Teesside.
At the time, Anne recalls, the fledgling Preston business was being run from her mother-in-law's front room, and with Richard still out driving. Anne was expected to do everything in the office.
As one of the first female MDs of a UK transport and logistics company, she has been a huge success but at a cost: "I've always been very ambitious:she admits. "hut logistics isn't a part-time job. For any woman to get to the top needs total commitment. You can't raise a family and still expect to start some days at Sam and finish on other days at 12 midnight when you give everything to the business."
Over the years. Richard and Anne's efforts have brought huge success to Prestons, growing the company's turnover from £40,000 to I:24m.
Anne became the first ever female chairman of the Teesside branch of the Road Haulage Association and was chairman of the Long Distance Group of Great Britain and the first female member on the hoard of the RHA. Her services to the transport industry were recognised in 1987 when she was awarded an MBE.
Since then she's won all manner of awards; indeed, six days before our visit, she picked up the 2010 MAN everyvvoman Director of the Year trophy.
Getting out and about Anne reckons the secret to her success is simply down to getting out and about and selling the company: '1 never get much business by sitting behind a desk at Potto," says the woman who advocates networking. "Being female means you have to work a little bit harder, but it also has masses of advantages. Because there are very few females in the business, people easily remember your name.
"And being invited to dinners and the like means you are usually sat next to the boss of the organisers which again is a huge advantage: Getting the opportunity to do the work is one thing. but she believes that the continued success is down to its staff, past and present. The combined efforts of all those involved have seen Prestons weather the current downturn particularly well: "The current massive recession is the biggest business challenge we've ever overcome," she says. "Some of our customers have been 50% down with their work, but over the past 21 months, we lost very few staff and have been recruiting for a while."
Anne is the first to say that in road transport you are only one phone call away from sheer disaster. "I've always hated losing customers through no fault of our own. Perhaps they've relocated their business and we haven't been in a position to serve their new base. Something like that has always upset me," Her one big regret is the firm never set up a base in Lancashire. "In hindsight, I think setting up a depot somewhere in the North-West would have been a big advantage for us in finding return loads to the North-East."
In contrast, Anne reckons her life has produced all sorts of highs. In the early days, she recalls the fantastic high she felt in finding 14 loads for their next day's work even though they only had six vehicles to carry them.
The Prestons of Potto future seems in good hands with David Preston, hut what advice would Anne give to someone just starting in haulage today'?
That gets her thinking, but it is Richard Preston who suggests a specialist role: "it's hard making a success from scratch today in general haulage," he says."But if you can find a niche that a large operator cannot eater for, then you could perhaps make a go of it."
It helpsa lot if you have even a sliver of Anne's drive, but don't think she's finished with her input into the road transport industry.
If she were granted three wishes to make things better. she would first sort out the imbalance that Continental road hauliers enjoy over here. Not only in terms of final costs, hut also illegal operations.
At a stroke she would lift the archaic 40mph two-way
road speed limit for large goods vehicles, hut she would also shake up industry to accept deliveries at more different, round-the-clock, times: 'Some people in the construction trade close their site for the weekend at lunch time on a Friday, which is crazy.
Theo dc Pencier, the chief executive of the Freight Transport Association, summed up many people's thoughts when he presented Anne with the 2010 Director of the Year award at the recent everywoman awards.
"Annie has been a mentor,' he said, "and an inspiration to generations of women and Men in the transport industry, particularly in the North of England. She is fun and feisty, hut above all. possessed of a tirst-class business brain, which has enabled her to steer Richard Preston (V Son through thick and thin over many years,