It was here that Roy's interest and skill in development work came to the fore and he was soon working closely with Barudan one of the leading machine manufacturers at that time.

Roy's engineering background was perfect and before he knew it, he was spending extended periods in Japan working closely with their dedicated R & D team. At that time, Roy was closely involved in some of the major breakthroughs in embroidery. He helped develop machine functions that we now take for granted and yet back then they were key to the increased production demanded by high street stores such as Marks and Spencer. Automatic colour change and thread trim might seem simplistic now but these were breakthroughs that greatly expanded the possible markets for embroidery. For instance, if these two facilities had not been developed then multi-colour sock embroidery would never have been economically possible and once these small four and five colour designs could be done on socks, then why not gloves and other small difficult to embroider items.

Roy also had a heartfelt commitment to customer care and this belief is as strong today as it has ever been. Roy said: "In those early days it was really easy to get caught out especially as machines were changing and developing so quickly. I knew that to maintain customer confidence we had to be at the top of our game all of the time so I developed a technical training program for my team ensuring that they could handle all of the latest developments."

Rising to director level Roy's responsibility grew but something was pushing him to look for new challenges. In 1994, with the support of this family, Roy decided that the challenge was to run his own company. He firmly believed this would not only give him the satisfaction he was looking for but also better support the industry he loved.

On February 14, 1994, Your Embroidery Services Ltd was born with Roy at the helm. In those days the company offered advice and consultancy, making good use of all of those years of experience.

Roy said: "It was scary but exhilarating. I worked from home and I would come downstairs each morning and go into my office with just the dog for company not totally sure where the next pound was coming from.

"Strangely, though, the experience has stood YES Ltd in good stead because I have first-hand experience of what some of our new customers are going through and, of course, it is recent enough for me to still remember those feelings. I would like to think that, because of that, I understand customers and their problems better."

It wasn't long before Roy was being asked to supply used machinery. Because of his knowledge and independence customers trusted him to supply what they needed and not what he needed to sell. Both he and the customer would agree the specification of the machine they needed and Roy would then go out and find it.

Roy said: "In a way it was great in those days because I didn't hold stock. I would find what the customer wanted and the deal would be done. I was in that perfect position that all businesses like to be in where I was running cash flow positive - lovely words - but now of course things are different.

"A company the size of Your Embroidery Services Ltd must hold stock to be able to compete in what is undoubtedly a more competitive market and make sure that its customers' needs are satisfied as quickly as possible."

Software and consumables were added and the need for premises became more important. Initially, this was a shared unit with one of Roy's old friends but the space needed for storage and workshop areas saw a move into the Boughton showroom.

Around this time the desire for a new machine began to form. At the same time Korean based Han Kuk Manufacturing Company was looking to launch their SWF product range into Europe starting with the UK so fate stepped in and brought the two together.

Roy was already known by the decision makers in Korea but he did not know a great deal about SWF. What he found out surprised him because, although they were not a known force in Europe, this company was already one of the major players in the Asian bowl markets.

"You can imagine my surprise when I discovered just how big they were. I also discovered that their product was certainly worth looking at," recalled Roy.

Roy's interest was strong from the start but he was concerned about the range of models. Being used to dealing in the large production markets they did not fully understand the difference in the UK and European areas.

The large multi-head machines that were the backbone of their success in Asia would not achieve the same results here. Roy continued: "It was plain to see that they needed to introduce new models to satisfy the UK demand but I was unsure how this highly successful company would react to suggestions from a company as small as YES Ltd.

"History, of course, tells us that my worries were unfounded. They listened to what we had to say and responded by quickly developing the smaller models that the market required."

Since then, both companies have gone from strength to strength but for Roy there is a further satisfaction that, just as in his earlier days, he is once again involved in the development of new and exciting functions that take the machines to the next level.

Since joining forces, both companies have together been responsible for ground breaking advances in machine speed and electronics as well as a host of other things.

Most exciting for Roy though was the satisfaction that he could finally answer the question that, for many years, so many embroiderers had posed with a definitive YES.

The question was: can I embroider two patterns at the same time? The development of the unique Dual Function machine was the first and only one of its kind and finally allowed embroiderers the flexibility they had been looking for.

Roy commented: "This was a real breakthrough. Ever since I have been involved in the industry the desire to embroider more than one thing at a time has been there but until the introduction of this machine it was just not possible. In my time I have been involved with many of the groundbreaking developments that have changed the face of machine embroidery and I would rate this with them.

"When auto colour change arrived it revolutionised the industry and auto thread trim did the same. Dual Function has had the same impact and I am proud to have been involved in its development and promotion."

Roy now has other technical matters to think about with his deep involvement in the development and marketing of the new style digital ink jet printers form DTG.

On a lighter note it is interesting that the industry he chose to work in gave him other opportunities that he would otherwise only have dreamed of. I am talking about Roy's passion for football and, in particular, Nottingham Forest, a team he has supported for 50 years.

During his days at Geoffrey E Macpherson Ltd, the managing director (Geoffrey Macpherson) was also the chairman of Nottingham Forest and so Roy was able to attend some of the matches that most fans could only dream about.

One that stands out is the 1979 European Cup Final against Malmo FF at the Olympic Stadium in Munich. Malmo seemed intent on playing a defensive game until John Robertson delivered the perfect cross for Trevor Francis to head home the winner. Brian Clough said that it was the single most satisfying moment of his career and I suspect Roy felt the same.

With a career that has spanned some of the major developments in this industry and a commitment to customer service that has resulted in training programmes for both technicians and users it would be fair to judge Roy's career in the most positive way possible.

When I put this to him however he said: "My success in embroidery is as much down to luck as skill. I was in the right place at the right time and I was lucky enough to work with some of the best people in the trade. They helped me get where I am today and here and now at YES Ltd. I can say the same about the current and past staff. Their success is my success and I thank all of those that have helped and supported me throughout the years."

What a career. Happy Birthday Roy!

For more information visit www.yesltd.co.uk

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