Investing in the future
Because both my business partner and I were still in full employment, all profits where re-invested in the company. This gave us capital to invest in items of equipment to improve the service that we offered. A substantial amount of money was devoted to the purchase of a private mobile radio system. This gave us communication between vehicles and the base station. This is further enhanced now with cellular phones and radio-pagers and has now been upgraded to GSM cell phones.
We used this time also to develop our sales and installation skills, and have always prided ourselves on the quality of our workmanship. The ability to hide cables, refit carpets etc. are skills that can only be developed with practice.
Diversifying
With our background in the television industry, it was decided to diversify from just installing security alarms. Closed circuit television was the obvious market to look at. However, for most of the early to middle eighties the majority of CCTV systems installed, were large industrial or urban systems, installed by the multi-national companies, so it was very difficult to enter this particular market. However, with persistence we were able to establish a customer base for the smaller installations, usually corner shops etc., and have now progressed to multi-camera installations, using the very latest multiplex technology. We have recently completed the first installation in the UK where a local Parish Council has funded domestic CCTV systems for 98% of its residents, a fact that could possibly enter the Guinness Book of Records.
