What do you do for a living?

stuby · Post by **stuby** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 12:13 pm

I started in the body repair trade at an early age (14 !!) Time served, till the ripe old age of 25 - then took a header into the windscreen replacement industry - been with the same company 22 years now, 21 of them as Branch Manager !!

Dealing with the public - stress, stress and more stress !!

Still hands on though

Stu

mycar · Post by **mycar** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 1:32 pm

chickybok wrote:I thought there would be more Designers...

I`m in the designery camp (sorry Nige, no pun intended

)

I left school and studied furniture design and manufacture for three years. then did a cabinet making apprenticeship for another three. I`ve had three workshops over the years, employed people, imported furniture from Indonesia (business trips to Bali... bliss) and worked for direct sell companies when things were tight. Worked for Smallbone, then spent most of the last ten years designing and making furniture for a privately owned Chateau near Macon.

Now I`m on my own in a workshop that sometimes isn`t big enough, doing what I like doing, making sawdust.

Regards, Mike.

http://s194.photobucket.com/player.swf? ... &os=1&ap=1

fryardds · Post by **fryardds** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 8:02 pm

smallspeed wrote:its really weird but I was expecting more dentists!..

no really; most of the porsche owners who's cars i've detailed in the past, and 1/2 the east mids section of pcgb (before i saw the ddk-light ) seem to be in dentistry.. perhaps the dentists just gravitate towards me because i've got a mouth like a ransacked graveyard

Just so you won't be disappointed, I'm the token dentist here it seems.

Actually an orthodontist, who is the son of an orthodontist and I'm married to a dentist (it gets worse, both my sister and mother were dental hygenists).

As a kid I worked in my dad's office and knew that's what I wanted to do the rest of working life. So far I haven't regreted this choice.

dragonfly · Post by **dragonfly** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 9:01 pm

jury wrote:Managed to get a first class honours degree in car (transport) design from Coventry University...

I guess I was there before you as it was still a Poly then, and the course was Industrial Design (Transportation).
I then worked in marine industrial design (mainly self-employed) while racing multihull yachts for fun. That led to me becoming the UK dealer for a range of high performance trimarans about 5 years ago

Al

IanMcLeod · Post by **IanMcLeod** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 10:36 pm

I guess I have a dentist connection as my mother was a dental hygienist. Never felt the calling myself but did I get very straight and very clean teeth as I grew up. By coincidence I also got to go to a lot of rallycross events as a kid in the 70s as my mother was the hygienist for a dentist called Dave Preece who rallycrossed Minis back when it was very popular and always on Grandstand/World Of Sport.

Ian.

brembo · Post by **brembo** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 12:13 pm

Time served joiner ,have run my own business since 1983.Do new build timber frame houses,extensions,renovations etc.Also manufacture all types of timber windows,doors and stairs.Listed building work is also getting more common.
Dougie.

Ants · Post by **Ants** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 2:22 pm

I then worked in marine industrial design (mainly self-employed) while racing multihull yachts for fun. That led to me becoming the UK dealer for a range of high performance trimarans about 5 years ago

Al

That explains Dragonfly the name. If I'd known I'd have come and said hello at the boatshow last week.

I did physics at Liverpool Uni, then spent 8 years doing scientific research at NPL, followed by 5 years in sales at BOC Edwards. I now have a small sailloft making sails and covers for yachts and motor boats.

I'm thinking of moving into car trimming (as I currently have an experienced auto upholsterer working for me).
Does anyone on here need any work done?

Ants

www.bondsails.co.uk

early2.2S · Post by **early2.2S** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 4:56 pm

Interesting read - i did the London uni thing for 4 years (french & german) then worked in derivatives in the city for 10 years before switching camps and building an IT software business - now sold.
Currently have a small chain of childcare nurseries around the midlands area as well as a business that sells bunk-cots to the nursery and private market. Variety is the spice of life and all that..............!!
Regs
Stuart

Nige · Post by **Nige** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 5:58 pm

What are the nurseries called?

revival-cars · Post by **revival-cars** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 7:29 pm

Aside from the day job, I'm also a part time commerical pilot for an air ambulance company - Always a fun break from living and breathing all things 912 !

I'm guessing theres probably a few pilots lurking on here?...

DIRKBROWNFINGER · Post by **DIRKBROWNFINGER** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 7:29 pm

Interesting reading indeed. Well at least there are two people on here with something approaching "in common with" me. I spent most of the 80's in financial services before joining a firm of accountants advising ex-pats in Spain on investments, taxation, and offshore trusts etc.

I have been trading the markets from home ever since then - apart from my mid-life crisis which lasted three years! In 2001 I got qualified to teach windsurfing, waterski-ing, and powerboating - and did three summers in the Med and the carribean, along with three winter seasons in the French alps ski-guiding. Happy days!

Still do a bit to keep my hand in, otherwise its still the markets.

Dirk.

JAN · Post by **JAN** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 7:43 pm

Glad i posted this now, is very interesting.

Quite a few engineers, and ex engineers, and quite a few 'design types' too.

sjm · Post by **sjm** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 8:18 pm

Right - I'm not really a Noel Edmunds stunt double.

Did a few years in sales/ management for big UK insurer - moved in to HR, mainly design/ delivery of management and recruitment training and various HR initiatives. Did my IPD exams, as intended to go for it in HR. Then got approached to work for a recruitment company and 18 months later myself and another recruiter there left and set up on our own, specialising in Oracle technology. Have 14 people working there now, mainly on major European projects, but some in US/ Far East and UK. Been a bit quieter over last 18 months, but looking up again now.

Wish I had done something more like most of the engineers on here really...

Must be good to see something taking shape and knowing you did it. Congrats to you all...

On a different note - hoping cubist doesn't post on this thread as I have always been a little worried by his posts...

ged914cymru · Post by **ged914cymru** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 8:22 pm

Well it's time for me to tip the balance in the "highur ejucation" stakes. Didn't go to Uni as I prefered tinkering with old cars to burying my head in books.

Bummed around jobs until I got some money together at the age of 22 to start my dream business restoring & servicing VWs under the name of Aircooled Revival. Got fed up after 6 years mostly due to folks buying rotten wrecks surrounded by new paint-jobs & deciding I was the one taking the proverbial when it failed its' MOT on structural welding!

These days I own a logistics firm which, although successful, doesn't provide me with the job satisfaction of rolling beautiful cars out of the workshop.
The best logistics company money can buy can be found at http://www.a3freightlogistics.co.uk

early2.2S · Post by **early2.2S** » Sun Sep 20, 2009 10:06 pm

Nige,
the nurseries trade under the name Childfirst - www.Childfirst.co.uk
regs