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What do the owners of a small commercial vehicle recovery business do when, in the middle of a recession, it is hit with a shock bereavement? They pick themselves up and get on with the job. CM meets Jill Bardsley and her brother William in Atherton Boxed in by the M6, M62 and M61 to the west of Manchester, there’s no shortage of commercial recovery work at hand for Bardsleys, but the recession has nevertheless had an effect.
“We’ve more than one string to our bow and it’s helped us to stay in the game while others have gone under,” says Jill Bardsley. She, her brother William and mother Pamela run a family business that is well-respected in the area, and while known for their small leet of wreckers, they can also provide diagnostic services for most brands, contract maintenance, MoT prep and brake testing.
The founder of the business in the early 1960s was Jill and William’s father, David Bardsley. His unexpected death last year, at just 64, was a heavy blow to the family. “It’s an old cliché, but he really did teach me all I know,” says Jill. Brother and sister learned at their father’s knee and keeping going says as much for his legacy as it does for their grit.
“Dad started the business with his brother Barrie and he did everything from laying the concrete in the yard to building the early wreckers,” she says.
David Bardsley founded the D Bardsley Car & Commercial Repairs garage nearly 50 years ago. A family business from the start, D&B Bardsley Haulage soon evolved, with brother Barrie running a variety of tippers and general haulage trailers nationwide, while continuing to develop and expand the garage business.
Today, the commercial recovery operation is the core of their business, accounting for around half the company’s activity. While poor weather might be bad news for the rest of us, for the Bardsleys it’s a different story.
Only happy when it rains
“It has a big inluence on breakdowns,” says Jill. “Even something as innocuous as a cab being tilted in the rain can seek out an electrical fault and drive work our way.” And as for the past two winters: “We were snowed under,” says Jill with a wry smile. “I loved it, we were so busy.” The Bardsley leet has used many brands over the years and it’s now a mix of Volvo, Scania, Mercedes-Benz and a lone Foden. With tractor-trailer combinations, rigids and slide-beds, the leet can handle anything from fully-freighted artics and double-deck buses down to regular light recovery jobs.
A Volvo FH12 6x4 rigid provided a turning point for the company because David Bardsley had previously built his own units.
“As we do a lot of recovery for the local Volvo agent Thomas Hardie, William and dad decided to buy a brand new Volvo FH12 from them and send it off to Boniface Engineering for the recovery body and underlift gear,” says Jill.
A Scania P112, owned from new and “a faithful wagon” has been well looked after and came from her uncle Barrie’s leet. “We stretched it and bodied it for recovery work and it has been as good as gold,” says Jill.
New isn’t always better
Two Mercedes-Benz slide-beds, an 815 and a 1314, at 7.5 tonnes and 12 tonnes, hold fond memories for her – she learned to drive in them. “My dad would take me down the narrowest streets and with the long rear overhangs the turns were an education, to say the least. It was a great way to learn. With the tail-end skimming over the tops of bonnets, it was a lesson I didn’t forget,” she says.
A D-reg 6x2 Scania, again bought new, is still serving the company well after 25 years’ service. “It’s been a good truck,” says Jill. “We’ve looked after it and it has done the same for us.” A special Foden 6x4 wrecker sits in the yard and is now rarely used. “It’s there if we need it,” says Jill, but she clearly has it earmarked for restoration. Her father built it, doing all the fabrication work himself and taking up many late nights. To say it’s not for sale is an understatement. We suspect it’s a future Truckfest exhibit and will no doubt have her dad’s name on it.
Jill’s admiration for her father shines through. “Dad was a natural-born motor engineer,” she says. “Skipping school to help out in local workshops, he set out to start his own business with a trolley jack, a box of tools and sheer determination.” The newest truck on the Bardsley leet is on an ’03 plate. Jill and William take a pragmatic view of leet replacement. “We upgrade as and when required. The trucks may not be on the latest plates, but they are properly maintained and well presented. Everything in our yard is paid for and we have money in the bank.” Not every operator can say that.
It was obviously a massive shock for the family when David Bardsley died unexpectedly last year. “We all miss him very much and William in particular spent a lot of time out on the road with him. Family and staff are all doing a great job, which is what he would have expected of us,” says Jill.
Variety is the spice of life
With just 10 employees, they punch well above their weight with the variety of work they undertake. Apart from Jill and brother William, mother Pamela still does much of the irm’s paperwork and an aunt does the wages. With a family business atmosphere like this, it’s little wonder that staff stay for the long haul and with the tough times they’ve been through in the last year, Jill’s been grateful for them all pulling together. “We look after our staff and they look after us,” says Jill, adding: “Some have been here 19 years.” Pamela has always played an active part in the business. Apart from trips to France with David on recovery jobs with the Foden, she has been queen of the paper chain needed to keep customers, VOSA and everybody else happy. She’s always been there to keep an eye on her son and daughter as they grew into the business. Jill remembers: “One summer I was working in the back garage servicing the salt gritters with one of the mechanics. I don’t think mum liked it, I was only 16. The following summer I was in the ofice, but I much prefer being out.” Not just a recovery operation, Bardsleys’ survival, when others have failed, is down to just a little diversiication, but not outside their core competence. They have regular work from London to Northern Ireland moving buses between the capital and Wright’s bus factory in Ballymena. “We double-man the job and it works well for us,” says Jill. With six Class 1 licence holders and three ADR certiicates between them, there are few jobs that can’t be tackled. So what about the recession? The downturn has affected the work, says Jill. “The reduced trafic on the road has seen business fall back, but we’ve taken on new work to make up for it.” Apart from recovery contracts with the local Volvo, DAF and MAN dealers, Bardsleys is building a reputation for being the place to go for a Class 4 MoT on a motorhome. “It may sound like an odd one, but we have a yard that has plenty of space for them to manoeuvre and they get a warm welcome and a cup of tea. Sure, it’s a niche, but it generates revenue and the work arrives by word of mouth,” says Jill.
A job for both men and women
Passing her Class 2 at age 22, and her Class 1 almost 11 years later, she has no doubt turned a few heads. She’s not what you might be expecting to arrive if you’re marooned on the hard shoulder of the M62 on a wet night. Jill admits: “I do get the odd look now and again when I turn up driving a heavy wrecker, but I’m used to it. The novelty soon passes when they see me getting on with the job.” At a relatively young age, Jill and William have taken the helm of the enterprise set up by their father David, but they both already have more experience in the business than many accrue in a lifetime.
From the trips to Motherwell with her dad at the age of eight, to helping service trucks in the workshops at 16, and her Class 1 licence at 33, Jill Bardsley is a hands-on type in a tough business. Don’t be fooled by the blonde locks – she’s more than a match for most of us. If David Bardsley is looking down from on high, he’ll be glowing with pride at his son and daughter. ■