FIFTEEN years ago the haulage business was booming; a search through the Yellow Pages guaranteed to turn up a long list of local contractors.
Today, the selection is more limited. One of those still there is Thomas Young and Sons Ltd, based in Strathaven Road, Hamilton. “Since the ‘80s costs in the haulage industry have gone up all the time. A lot of firms bit the dust,” says company director Stewart Young.
Thomas Young, needless to say, has survived this difficult period. More than that, this family-run business has grown and prospered; now operating 12 lorries and 21 trailers and employing 18 staff.
Stewart puts its success down to the inherent advantages of a family-run concern. His father founded the firm 47 years ago. Stewart joined straight from school at the age of 15 and now takes charge of the operational side of the business. His brothers Billy and Tommy both drive lorries and are fellow directors.
“It’s very much a hands on firm. The companies we deal with know they can pick up the phone and I’ll be able to answer any questions right away because we own the business and run it,” says Stewart. Such is its success that the company is planning to move to larger premises.
A new site at Craighead, Whistleberry Industrial Estate Blantyre was found after a two-year search, carried out with the help of South Lanarkshire Economic Development’s Company Development team. In fact, some of the land was bought from South Lanarkshire Council, the remainder from Beacon Estates.
The company is also applying for the Council’s Business Venture Fund Property Improvement Grant through Small Business Gateway Hamilton. This grant is part funded through the West of Scotland and 1997-99 Operational Programme through Strathclyde European Partnership. Stewart plans to use this money to erect fencing round the site.
An immediate benefit of the move will be the saving in fuel costs. Currently, the 44 tonne lorries are forced into taking the long way round on most jobs due to the A723 railway bridge which has a 25 tonne weight limit.
The company’s customer base is sensibly spread across different sectors. It transports bricks and concrete for Raeburn Brick, Hillhouse Blocks and Paver Systems; railway lines for Austrian company VEA and machinery for Joseph Leckie and Sons. The lorries cover all of the UK and Ireland.
Indeed, diversification is the reason the company still exists today. It started life as a grain merchant buying is product from breweries and distilleries. Initially, this came cheap. “They put it up little by little until it was quite expensive. Finally, they cottoned on and started selling to the farmers themselves,” said Stewart.
By then the company was already leading a double life as a haulage contractor and was able to switch all its resources in this direction.
“I try to keep the business varied because you never know when one area of work might dry up,” says Stewart. “Whatever it is they want moved, people just need to give us a call and we’ll see if we can do it.”
Business South Lanarkshire - Spring 2002
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