From Royal Army Ordnance Corps to Trade Counter and Warehouse Team

Tony joined the Trade Counter and Warehouse team at BSS Swansea in 2011, after gaining 16years’ experience in the domestic side of plumbing and heating. Before that, he worked in a variety of roles after leaving the Army in 1991.

“I served in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps for14 years, joining in 1977 when I was 16. I worked as a Supply Specialist or stores-man, which involved receiving, checking and giving out all kinds of supplies from food rations to ammunition. I trained at Deepcut barracks in Surrey and served in the UK and overseas.

I didn’t have any firm career plans when I left in1991, so I started out working in security. After that,I took a job counting money from phone boxes and then worked as an HGV driver, as I’d gained my licence whilst in the Army.

In the mid-1990s, I started work for PTS PortTalbot as a delivery driver and warehouseman (at this time, PTS wasn’t part of the Travis Perkins Group). I spent 10 years there, working on the Trade Counter and Sales office as well as in the warehouse, where my army stores training stood me in good stead.

PTS opened a new branch in Swansea in 2004and I was transferred there to work as Branch Assistant. The Travis Perkins Group then tookover PTS, but the Swansea branch was sold to Plumbase so I worked for them for a while.In 2010, the Group acquired BSS Industrial. Shortly afterwards, I received a phone call from their area rep telling me there was a job going at BSS Swansea. Having always worked on the domestic side of plumbing and heating, I was interested in finding out more about the industrial side. So I applied, was offered the job and started my dual role of Trade Counter /Warehouseman in 2011.

Working on the Trade Counter involves serving customers and helping them find everything they need. You also deal with the occasional complaint, so you need to be diplomatic. This is actually one of the best parts of the job for me, as I really enjoy problem-solving and building rapport with people. One of the skills you learn in the forces is how to read a person’s mood or demeanour – something that’s proved invaluable on the Trade Counter.The other part of my job is in the warehouse, where I receive orders from the central BSS warehouse, check them and get them ready for distribution. I also unpack and put away stocked items, deal with any returns and look after stock control. I also pick orders for customers who’ve called into the branch with small orders.

The biggest challenge I’ve faced at BSS has been product knowledge. Everyone thought I’d be OK due to my experience in domestic plumbing and heating – but the industrial side is completely different! I had to restart my product knowledge from scratch, which was hard work but well worth it.

I’ve had a lot of training since joining BSS, including customer service and sales courses at Head Office in Leicester. I’ve also completed banksman, Health & Safety and Fork Lift Truck training courses, amongst others.

In the future, I’d like to move into an office-based sales or telesales role, so I can learn about this side of the business. There are all kinds of career opportunities within BSS and the Travis Perkins Group, which makes the company a good choice if you’re leaving the Forces. Whatever your skills and background, you’ll find a role to suit – whether that’s entry level or managerial.If you’re keen to learn and willing to work hard, BSS is a fantastic place to work and I’d recommend it to anyone.”