The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire Edition 47: Feb/March 2020 | Page 23

IN PROFILE MICHAEL AUSTEN Big Van World Where did your drive for business come from? As a very young child I had an interest in earning money. I was buying and selling things from a very early age, I remember living in Australia and holding garage sales when I was about ten. I’d get on a bus and go to car boot sales, buy stuff and bring it back to sell myself and make some money. I would also collect Corona bottles and return them to make some money on returns. My dad (also Michael) has always been an active and successful businessman and ran Austen Bros Circus and later when we returned to the UK, he ran a very successful tent and seat hire business called Austen Lewis. Therefore from a very young age, probably from about aged seven, I was always selling programmes or souvenirs. I have always had this desire to succeed and earn money. I vividly remember working summer holidays from the first day to the last day. I was also influenced by my godfather, Peter Featherstone, who worked with my dad and he always liked high quality things from cars, to suits to aftershave. I spent a lot of time with him and some of that rubbed off. Your family settled on the Wiltshire/ Gloucestershire border – what happened next? I had a lovely childhood and I didn’t want for anything. I grew up used to having lovely things in life and I went to private school. My parents wanted me to go to college to do an engineering course and get a qualification. The course wasn’t for me and I remember distinctly my parents being invited in and the result of that was that I had to leave college. My parents were not happy and this led to me leaving home at the age of 16. I lived on a council estate with friends for a couple of years and over this time I realised if I wanted to have nice things in my life and to better myself, I was going to have to work for it as my dad had done before me. This was when I took control, moved into a caravan parked on my dad’s premises and I started buying and selling vans. Michael Austen is the founder of Big Van World, the UK’s biggest used van supermarket based on a 20-acre site at the Chelworth Park Industrial Estate near Cricklade. The team sell around 2,000 vans a year and turnover during 2020 is expected to reach close to £20million. Over the past three years the team has sold close to £50m worth of stock. Michael started selling vans decades Do you actually like vans? Yes of course, I couldn’t sell something I didn’t like. I love ago and he has just turned 40. The business provides single vans to self- employed tradesmen right through to fleets of high-quality used vans for large companies. All of the vans are sourced from blue-chip lease companies and most have had one owner with a full service history. Repairs, modifications and works to all vans are carried out using state of the art facilities prior to collection. vans, cars and especially motorbikes. I have been involved in motocross my whole life. I even had a three-wheeled trike during the circus days. I started competing in motocross when I was about 12 and I still support this vibrant and thriving sport now. Big Van World sponsors the Kawasaki World Grand Prix team. I’ve also always loved cars and I’ve had a lot of supercars from Rolls Royce (my favourite) through to Lamborghinis and Ferraris. he’s now grown into a lovely young man. He went to school at Prior Park in Bath and he’s now at college in Cirencester doing a course in – no surprise I think – business studies. He has shown interest in joining me in the business. What does 2020 hold for Big Van World? More growth. We currently employ around 50 people, we sell around 2,000 vans a year and we are seeking to grow those figures. We have invested £1.5 million in the Seven Bridges site on the A419 which will open as a service station shortly. We’re just completing on a £1.4m purchase of the former Watson Fuel site, close to our current premises on the Chelworth Park Industrial Estate with a view to further expansion. In our new post-Brexit world what are your three business tips? It’s simple really. It’s focus, dedication and hunger. @BigVanWorld For more info: www.bigvanworld.co.uk You have also been a single dad too haven’t you? Yes I have my son, Mike, now 17. I parted with his mum when he was just a few months old and Mike came with me. Thanks to much help from friends and from my own mum, CELEB RATI NG 10 YEARS OF TRUSTED FI NANCI AL ADVI CE Y EA R S 2009 - 2019 INVESTM ENT PLANNING – RETIREM ENT PLANNING – PROTECTING YOU & YOUR ESTATE – CORPORATE SERVICES T: 01225 742644 Email: [email protected] Web: www.queenssquarewealth.co.uk THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2020 23