GTN meets the suppliers
Behind the scenes at Zest
From the family’s origins suppling supporting poles for mines, Zest is now a leading supplier of wooden fencing, sheds, arbours and garden furniture and runs a garden centre. Steve Morgan, Managing Director, talks us through the history, its ethos, hopes for the future and why he has decided to plant up 30 acres of trees.
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teve Morgan is a whizz at making and his mother sold wood burning stoves. wooden pallets and is certainly Money was tight and nothing could be no stranger to using an axe. He’s wasted. This gave him the work ethic he the fifth generation in his family to work has today which he hopes, along with good with timber – his great, great, grandfather quality and service, runs through the team George Morgan owned seven sawmills in at Zest which has its factory, design centre, Scotland and Ireland mainly suppling props distribution warehouse and garden centre to support pits. Steve Morgan’s father, in Flintshire. Malcolm Morgan (Founder of P&A) was After university and travelling, Steve only 11 when his father died and sadly his returned to the family business which mother’s best efforts to keep the sawmill also had interests in a sawmill in Scotland company afloat failed. “I think that fear of and one in Wales. “At that time, we were failure is something that drives me,” says 70-80% pallets with some fencing, sheds Steve, “if my back’s against the wall – it’s a and maybe an archway or picnic bench,” huge driving force.” he says. “It was a steep learning curve,” he says. The pallet manager at the time did On moving to north Wales, his father everything on paper, making a new cutting continued to work with timber as an list for each job. “I thought – you can do export manager with a company making this on a spreadsheet. So I cut out 95% floors for squash courts and then, with of his work just with a bit of technology,” another company, Palice and Ashgrove, in explains Steve who said it also greatly Mold, North Wales, as a fencing manager. reduced the amount of wasted time Eventually in 1985, when that company and money. In 2000, Malcolm went bust, Malcolm took it on. retired. “It wasn’t a very As a young lad Steve helped secure business at the time”, in his father business recalls Steve but through suppling pallets and Below: Inside the new design.shed centre diversifi cation he has turned chopping wood to sell diversification Inset: Steve Morgan the company round. as fuel for local families
20 May 2022
www.gardentradenews.co.uk
