- What is your name, and the name of your business?
Arron Mogridge and the business name is Fleet Procure.
- What does the business do and who are your customers?
We are in the B2B market place. We work in the automotive leasing sector and we offer software for automotive solutions to motor dealers, leasing brokers, finance companies and the manufacturers such as BMW or Audi etc. In layman’s terms we offer a market place for brokers to procure vehicles at discounts and we work as outsourced deal collaboration and creation as well as the software itself helping with stock management of the vehicles.
- What’s the history of the business & what’s your role within the business?
The business is seven years old and first went live in 2017. I have been there from the beginning and am currently Operations Director of the business. We started with just two of us, Lee and I, and we have just hired our 9th person front end and we have about five developers back end as well. We have four people in Freshmill with the rest of the team working remotely. We are really keen on face-to-face meeting and see clients regularly. We really enjoy utilising the meeting space at Freshmill..
- How long have you had an office here at Freshmill and why were you looking for a space like this?
We have been here in an office for approximately a year and a half. So we started off with some hotdesking and then we got a dedicated desk, and then moved into an office. And then moved into a bigger office! As we grew and employed more people locally it made sense to have a space to utilise. Coming here has really worked well for us. It’s a great office space, great coffee, friendly people and good cake!!
- Why does Freshmill work well for you and your business?
Freshmill works so well for us because it has allowed us to grow, but also, we make use of the meeting space as well. The meeting rooms provide perfect opportunity to invite people in and we always get comments when people come in about how awesome this place is – how cool and trendy it is especially with all the exposed pipework and whatnot. Everyone is always very complimentary.
- What is the most important lesson you have gained from your career so far?
I like a quote, I don’t always stick by it but it’s a good one. It’s ‘Don’t make permanent decisions based on temporary feelings’. Basically, if you are upset or angered by something, take a moment to relax, maybe look from the outside in rather than your own perspective, understand, get to know any reasonings…And then respond!
- Where do you hope to be in 5 years time?
So, the business is doing really well, we have doubled in terms of revenue and custom in a year. The last year has been hugely incremental business-wise and we are looking to do the same this year as well. If we can continue on that trajectory, there is a lot on offer that we need to take advantage of within the sector we work in. So it is just really to continue the snow-ball effect.
- What advice would you give your younger self just starting out?
I would say I should have moved on sooner from where I worked previously, before Fleet Procure. I was in a safe bubble and I think that stopped me. The advice I would probably give is not to be afraid of change. The more you put yourself out there the more you get back. The more people you speak to, and the more different businesses you integrate and work with, the better it is. This is crucial in our industry for progression within the business.
- What is your favourite quote/mantra?
See my answer to question 6!
- If you could, who would you switch places with for the day, and why?
So I think there are two different ways of looking at this question: Who would you like to be for a day in terms of the knowledge they have? Or who would you like to be just to ‘be’ for a day?
To the first, I would probably say a cliché like Elon Musk – would I like his experience and knowledge and understanding of X,Y,Z? sure, but would I want to actually ‘be’ him for a day – No!
But then, I thought, wouldn’t it be nice to ‘Be’ a cat for a day – just to chill out and really relax!