When it came to recruiting a key account manager shortly afterwards , SBT knew he had the skills , experience and personality needed to become a key player in a role combing customer service with an engineering background .
James ’ career path had begun after he left All Saints Secondary School , in Ingleby Barwick , and signed up for a two-year level 3 BTEC course in electrical engineering and finished with a set of distinctions .
From there , he switched to East Durham College for the first two years of his apprenticeship , before studying at Sunderland University for a Higher National Certificate ( HNC ) in mechanical engineering during his final year .
He excelled so much that , in 2016 , he was named North- East and Yorkshire Young Apprentice of the Year .
Meanwhile , as well as getting that invaluable grounding in engineering , James had honed his customer service skills through a range of part-time jobs , including serving behind the bar at northern racecourses , and working in retail outlets .
“ As well as the racecourses , I had jobs in sports shops and a pharmacy . I always found it easy to talk to people and engage with customers , so that stood me in good stead for the job I have now ,” he explains .
“ SBT is a company that believes fundamentally in making customer service the top priority , so it ’ s my job to make sure to supply customers with whatever it is they ’ re looking for as quickly as possible .”
That philosophy has served the company particularly well during the challenges of the pandemic years , with 2021 turning out to be its best year ever .
The business was able to diversify by using the strength of its existing connections , including public sector organisations . The NHS has been a long-standing customer and SBT was quick to supply surgical masks , sanitiser ,
overalls , and gloves , as well as standard products such as belts and bearings .
While other businesses suffered , the pandemic actually led to an increase in the customer-base , products and the geographical area the company covers .
Backed up by a second office at York , the 11-strong team has attracted the attention of more than 500 authorised distributorships from the world ’ s leading manufacturers , receiving technical support training from all those industry partners . That means there ’ s no need for a middleman when SBT staff are called onto customers ’ sites to provide solutions .
And as well as investing in people , the company is committed to developing its online activities , having just launched its first web shop with more than 60,000 products listed .
SBT may have stayed close to its North-East roots but , with founders Pat and Martyn still at the helm , it ’ s making an increasing impact on the region ’ s business community through its reputation for flexibility , accessibility and down to earth customer-service .
The business has always enjoyed low staff turnover because it takes care to hand-pick its employees . They have to be the right fit , and James is the perfect example .
Outside of work , football remains his biggest passion . As well as following his beloved Boro , he has ambitions to become a coach with the highly regarded Teesside community club Kader FC .
And he ’ s equally focused on making a difference in business circles – helping Aycliffe companies to maintain their performance through SBT ’ s unrivalled depth of stock and services .
If there ’ s a problem , his goal is to come up with the right solution .
To find out more about what SBT can offer , please visit : www . sbtltd . co . uk
18 | Aycliffe Business