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Locksmithing with Heart: HBL Security Solutions
» A STORY OF HOW TOM WHATLEY transformed HBL Security Solutions( previously Herne Bay Locks) from a Saturday job as a teen in the van with his dad into one of Kent’ s leading locksmith businesses. His journey blends family, growth, and commitment to sharing knowledge.
Tom has spent almost two decades building a business that reflects both tradition and innovation. He’ s now the co-owner and director of a thriving business with five employees, a storefront in Swalecliffe, and a growing reputation in auto and general locksmithing.
From father & son in a van
I started working with my dad when I was 16, though really I was tagging along on Saturdays well before that. My father, Robert, opened Herne Bay Locks back in 2000, working from home with just a van. It was always the plan for me to join him, I suppose it just must have been in my blood.
At first it was just the two of us, a proper father-and-son set up. I’ d learn by watching him, then eventually we’ d both go out together on jobs. Once I learned to drive, I had my own van, and that’ s when we started to cover more ground. Those early days taught me the basics: hard work, looking after customers, and figuring things out on the fly.
Growing pains
When you move from a small family business to employing people, you face challenges you never imagined. Suddenly, it’ s not just you and your dad covering the bills- you’ ve got wages to meet, responsibilities for other people, and laws around employment to wrap your head around. That takes you right out of your comfort zone.
It’ s good pressure though. Growth brings more work, more services, and more opportunities. For us, it meant moving from our first shop on Stanley Road- which we outgrew after ten years- to our current premises in Swalecliffe, Oyster Bay. That was a massive leap forward. The new space gave us room to expand, bring in new tech, and push harder into vehicle security.
Why auto locksmithing became the focus
We still do general and domestic locksmithing, but vehicle work has become our bread and butter. Key programming, immobiliser problems, trackers, van deadlocks-those are the jobs people really need specialists for.
I gained my skills through the Auto Locksmiths Association( ALA) and a lot of self-research. The great thing about being part of ALA is the support. There’ s a WhatsApp group where, if you’ re stuck on a job, you can throw the question out and get a response almost instantly, and if the person who replies doesn’ t know, they’ ll know someone who does. That kind of support is invaluable. It means you’ re never really on your own, even when you’ re stressing over a problem car on a dark, cold, winter’ s night.
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OCTOBER 2025
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