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BUSINESS IS BOOMING
FOR ‘SIR SMILE A LOT ‘!
Saltash-based locksmith Paul Bushell is actually AKA Sir Fix-A-Lock – but he does smile a lot.
In fact, Paul has plenty to smile about
– with a very busy and successful
business that he set up following a 25
year stint with the Royal Logistic Corps
(RLC).
Paul was just 16 when he joined the
Army from his home in County Down in
Northern Ireland.
“If it hadn’t been for the Army I’d not
be doing this,” he said. “The resettlement
programme was very good, and they still
look after you even after you have left.”
“The Army gave me some great training
and I really enjoyed it, spending most
of my service career in Germany or in
England,” he said. “But when it was
time to leave, I decided locksmithing
was the way forward for me. It’s proved
to be a fantastic decision – I totally love
my job and would never want to do
anything else,” he told LSj. “Sometimes
I am amazed that I get paid for doing
something I really like so much!
“I have always liked helping people and
this job enables me to do just that every
single day.”
Paul’ss last job was as the Senior
Permanent Staff Instructor at the
Territorial Army bases in Plymouth and
Bodmin.
He reached Warrant Officer Class 2 and
was based with 155 Wessex Transport
Regiment, where he trained TA troops.
Paul left the Army in December 2013
and, after training with some of the best
in the business, including Keymaster’s
Dennis Manning and Martin Newton
of Safe Ventures, he launched his own
business “Sir Fix a Lock” after taking
,
on the client list of another Plymouth
firm: Bel-Cher Locksmith and Safe
Engineer, because owner Chris Belcher
– a famous name in the industry - has
retired from the day-to-day locksmithing
to concentrate on his many consultancy
commitments and lock/lockpick projects.
Besides taking over the clientele, Chris
was key in helping Paul set up his
business by training, mentoring and
guiding him through the first three hectic
years, as he juggled a full-time army
career with his part-time locksmithing.
He has already learned a huge amount
but is only too aware that in this business,
nobody ever knows it all.
“There is always something new to
learn,” he said. “That is probably why I
like it – there’s always a fresh challenge
ahead. Customers expect you to know
the latest in security and so you do need
to keep up to speed to make sure you can
offer the full service.
“I do general locksmithing but
specialise in Safes and PVCu,” said Paul,
who paid tribute to his training and his
valued mentors – especially Chris, Martin
and Dennis who are, in his own words,
some of the “top blokes” in the industry.
“I cannot speak too highly of them,” he
said.
“Chris is still there for me should I need
him - Dennis has a vast knowledge and
despite being very busy, always has time
‘Customers expect you to know the
latest in security and so you need
to keep up to speed to make sure
you can offer the full service’
20
THE SEP/OCT 2014 ISSUE
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To read more, visit www.locksmithjournal.co.uk