Sweeping story of success

Jul 17 2008 by Karen Dent, The Journal

In a world where many sectors of British manufacturing are struggling to survive against competition posed by cheap foreign imports, Cottam Brush stands out as a North East success story. But as boss, Ben Cottam tells Karen Dent, it hasn’t always been plain sailing.

WHEN Samuel Cottam arrived in Sunderland in 1858 to set up a business making brushes for the mining and shipbuilding industries, he was hoping to clean up as the only brushmaker in town.

Financed by his uncle’s brushmaking factory in Hull and with the heavy industry at the heart of the local economy, success seemed guaranteed.

But it wasn’t the clean sweep he had been expecting – before Samuel could set up his factory, his uncle’s business was wrecked by fire.

“It burnt down and he was on his own. But he managed to get himself a house and started it from there,” said Ben Cottam, Samuel’s great, great, great grandson and the sixth generation of the family to head the firm.

Now 30, Ben joined the family business in 2001 and has been managing director for three years. But he insists it was not a foregone conclusion.

“I did an engineering degree, then I took a year out and travelled around the world, then I started at the business,” he says. “In my final year at university, I discussed it with my father and his co-director at the time and looked at the options.

“I’d never assumed I’d come in, but when I looked at it, it made sense.”

He is grateful his father David, the company chairman, did not subject him to the same pressure earlier generations of the family had suffered. Ben says things have changed immensely since his grandfather George – now in his 80s but still an active non-executive director – was virtually forced to work for the family firm.

“I speak to my grandfather a lot about the business,” said Ben.

“He came in when the business was pretty weak and his father insisted he came in – he didn’t really want to, he had trained as an engineer.

“He was here against his will and my great grandfather didn’t give him much opportunity to make his own decisions.

“So he packed my great grandfather off to America to stay with his sister.

“When he came back, he saw my grandfather had developed the business so he let him get on with it.”

George Cottam took the helm in 1949 after a difficult period for the business, then called Cottam Bros.

“The business has been in many forms in many generations.

“There were different members of the family involved – brothers and sisters – although you can trace it back father-to-son. There were feuds and there were splits,” says Ben.

“The war years were difficult – there were the typical family feuds when it was difficult to decide who was in charge and who ran the business.

“At one point there were two Cottam factories in Sunderland, but my grandfather brought them back together.”

Ben credits his father and grandfather with making the changes that have allowed the business to survive the disappearance of the pits and the shipbuilding industries which it was set up to supply.

“I think my grandfather realised we needed to move away and find other markets,” he said.

“He started to look at different things. We supplied locally to heavy industry but my grandfather got us into the more specialised work, then my father took it even more specialised.

“My father developed the oil and gas work, which is half our business now and growing.

“We make brushes for pipeline cleaning and inspection – pipelines is our biggest niche.”

This adaptability has helped the firm to survive some difficult times for British manufacturing. If an industry needs a brush, it is likely that Cottam will be able to design it.

“Now, when we’re in a credit crunch, some of our business has slowed down a bit but the oil and gas is absolutely booming.

“Technical brushes is a growing part of the business. We will do them for any industry, such as agriculture and manufacturing,” said Ben.

“We have been making 4ft long brushes for managing tennis courts. It’s just trying to find little niches.”

Ben has already stamped his mark on the business by overseeing last year’s relocation of the factory from seven buildings near the Stadium of Light in Sunderland to its new base in a modern, purpose-built site at Monkton Business Park North in Hebburn. At the same, Cottam Bros became Cottam Brush.

“I’d like to think I’ve modernised it. The move has got us into new premises and we are now trying to think longer term as a business.

“We are really trying to address the long-term strategy,” said Ben.

Now employing 35 people, the business has a £2.8m annual turnover.

“We’ve got an absolutely great team here now. It’s the future of the business,” Ben said.

“We understand there is certainly an interest in our past – and the history of the business is certainly very interesting.

“But it shouldn’t take away the credit of what is happening at the moment. As a manufacturing business, every year is a win for us.”