In the latest edition of our ‘Meet the team’ series, we sat down with our Head of Fulfilment, Warehouse & 3PL, Mick and found out everything there is to know about Flow Group, his day-to-day role and some of his favourite things.

What is your role at Flow Group?  

I’m Head of Fulfilment, Warehouse & 3PL so I oversee a lot of the day-to-day operations across our site in Brighouse.

Who are Flow Group?  

Flow is a friendly company, with a team with experience in the Fulfilment, Print and 3PL industry who can provide advice and guidance.

How long have you worked at Flow Group?  

As a co-founder, I’ve been here since day 1, since we first started Flow Group back in 2008.

What does a day in the life look like?

My day-to-day varies, it’s busy and challenging managing all the different areas onsite, but it can be really fulfilling. If I’ve been working on a task that’s taken a lot of time and effort, I always feel great when it’s completed.

What does Flow Group mean to you?  

I’m proud of Flow’s reputation because we believe in doing things right, even if it’s not always cheaper. The long-term benefits of doing the job right, for Flow Group and our customers, make it worthwhile.

What is Flow Group's secret to being so successful?  

It’s got to be hard work at the start of a project. We try to work out where the potential quality assurance (QA) issues will be before starting a job, so we can be honest with the customer. Our mantra is under promise and overachieve.

Why do your customers choose to work with you?  

If we have a problem while we’re completing a job, we’ll always try to give the client a solution instead of just dropping it in their lap.

We don’t miss deadlines and provide a quality finish on the job. On the shop floor we tell the team to aim for perfection, no hand fulfilment job will be perfect throughout but if we aim for it the job will be of a standard that is top notch.

If you could pass on your most valuable piece of business advice, what would it be?

Never undersell yourself, quote a price you’re comfortable with which gives the client an outstanding quality, and don’t negotiate down to a point where the job isn’t worth doing.

What does the future hold for the industry and Flow Group?  

I think the print industry is slowly declining due to the improvements to digital displays.

An exception probably being free standing display units (FSDUs) and countertop units (CTUs) as they’re tactile and we seem to be building more than ever right now. Flow will keep doing what we do and looking to continue to diversify. We recently bought Modern Bookbinders which was totally alien to us and involves a great deal of craftsmanship. So, it has been a steep learning curve, but it's now fully integrated.

What do you most enjoy about your job and working at Flow Group?  

I enjoy the different challenges and the knowledge that we do jobs well.

We have a nice friendly team who fit Flow’s culture well, so we can have a bit of a laugh whilst we work.

What makes Flow Group different?

It’s a bit cliched but we do have some really good people working here, the culture is great, and we all get along.

I think this is reflective in our work, as the different departments will all help each other to meet deadlines wherever needed. Being honest is a big thing for me, we have clients who send us work without asking for a price first which shows that our clients see us as an extension of their own business.

We have open conversations on projects and are confident in what we do to put our own proposals forward.  

Why would a customer want to work with Flow Group?  

Quality is pretty much guaranteed, and we won’t promise what we can’t do.

What kind of customers do you work with?  

We work with Large format printers, educational book suppliers, glove suppliers, a company that makes lighters.

Anyone who needs assembly or packing solutions, we can help.

What was your favourite project to work on and why?  

We were tasked with the assembly of a metal FSDU from a first-time client which they designed for one of the big DIY chains. They didn’t have the manpower to hit the deadline so they asked if we could help. The FSDU bolted together and looked pretty cool once it was finished, it was just a bit different to the norm.

We have built a small CTU for the same client three years running now which is shaped like a small stage with a sloping roof made from card. It’s a tricky one to build to get the roof to sit perfectly, so it was nice to for the client to comment that our production stock was better than their sample that they sent to the client!

What have you learnt by working at Flow Group?  

Stick to your guns when negotiating, always give accurate feedback to clients. Aim to overachieve because it’s a much nicer conversation to have with a client than I’m sorry but….

What's your proudest career and personal achievement to date?  

I just do my job, so achievement isn’t really a word I’d use, however I do have a feeling of pride for how Flow has turned out from the early days working 36 straight hours (and longer) on multiple occasions.

It’s nice to see how good our staff retention is, even from those early days. On a personal front the usual cliché of being incredibly proud of my kids.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?  

Sausage, egg, chips and beans, with loads of fresh white bread and proper butter. There is no better meal!

What gets you up in the morning (other than an alarm clock)?

My wife asking me if it’s my turn to make the coffees.

Any other notable hobbies/facts about you?  

I used to play pool in a local league but stopped for about 3 years, but I’m just about to start playing again for a new team.

I’m trying to learn guitar (which is particularly difficult when you have no rhythm and are tone deaf) so at the minute I’ve got 3 guitars, but they all sound bad!

I do like a weekend away, usually somewhere warm, Lanzarote at Christmas is brilliant. It’ll be my 4^th year running when I go this year.