A ALEXANDER & SON
Glasgow firm A Alexander & Son is now well into its third generation of family ownership. But while the business has grown beyond all recognition, the family feel remains BY NICK MARTINDALE
Test of time
A Alexander & Son managing director Stewart Alexander (left) with his father, company chairman James
Company A Alexander & Son Established 1962
IN AT THE DEEP END By the time Stewart, now 34, came into the office in 2007, the economy was starting to take a turn for the worse. “I learned the ropes in difficult waters, which in retrospect was better than if I’d come in during the good times,” he says. A contract with Dobbies Garden Centres helped it weather the storm, and also introduced the business to Bernard Diamond, who was working with a Northern Irish contractor responsible for the mechanical element of the contract. “We ended up starting our own mechanical division – Bernard is now a director of the
IMAGES: ©PETER SANDGROUND / UNP
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he name of Glasgow-based A Alexander & Son is something of an anachronism. The business was set up in 1962 by Andrew Alexander and William Tawse, initially trading as Alexander and Tawse Ltd. It was only when William retired in 1975 and Andrew’s son James, who had joined as an apprentice in 1964, took on a more managerial role that the current name was adopted. Now, the business is run by James’s son Stewart, who joined as an apprentice in 2001 and moved into management in 2007. Last year, James took on the role of chairman, with Stewart running the business as managing director. The early days were a case of slow and steady growth, recalls James. “When I started we didn’t even have a van, so we travelled in the tram carriage,” he says. “We did quite a bit of work for what was Yarrows Shipyard, and also did work for the Glasgow Eye Infirmary, the British Shoe Corporation and Safeway.” Over the years the business has made a number of acquisitions – the last one in 2003, when it took over M&G (Glasgow) Ltd, adding significantly to staff numbers and customer base. “In 2003 we’d lost a key customer when Safeway was taken over by Morrisons. Taking over M&G brought us a new batch of customers, including care homes and housing associations, and we’re still working with them today,” says James.
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