Voice of the trade
Barry Enever
Area Sales Manager, South West, Victoria Carpets
The legend that is Barry Enever is leaving a legacy of thriving business in the West Country for Victoria, the company he has served for 25 years! Here, he takes a look back – and forward...
Q When did you start with Victoria?
A Rather depressingly September 1st 1997.
Q How did you get into the trade?
A I had a friend who ran an employment business in Bristol, and he got me onto a final interview process with a Dutch vinyl floorcovering company. I worked for them for a few years and then the UK MD left to run a carpet company called Bergoss. They only had agents and he offered me the opportunity to become an agent for them which is what I had wanted to do.
Q What’s kept you with the Company so long?
A The opportunity to work for Victoria Carpets came around as these things sometimes do. As a result of losing another agency. I had a call from John Duncan, the then MD of Victoria Carpets, to ask if I wanted to see him as they were struggling to find someone to cover the South West for them. I saw it as a golden opportunity as VC were a very well-respected brand in the trade.
It was a bit of a gamble for John as at that time they only employed salespeople and I was the first ever Agent they took on. Victoria Carpets have always been brilliant to me and I always thought that they were capable of achieving far more than they had done at that time. It was only when Geoff Wilding came on board that things really changed!
Q How has the industry changed during your time in it?
A
It has become far more professional, I think. And I guess the
main change in product is the ascendency of LVT which is in
many houses now.
Q What will you miss?
A A real cliché this one, but I have a good number of customers like Bruce Robertson at Trago Mills and the owners of Moorlands, to name just a couple that I call my friends. And so not seeing them regularly will seem strange although socially I know we will keep in touch!
Q What will you not miss?
A Oops, another cliché… the driving!
Q Favourite part of the job?
A Seeing the turnover in your area grow when you and the company have put in a lot of hard work.
Q How do you plan on spending your retirement?
A I have always done a lot of exercise so will probably ramp that up a bit. I go to Spain a lot golfing. My son lives in New York and so will be able to visit him more regularly and my daughter who already has a two-year-old son is now expecting twins and so my family life will no doubt became a lot busier!
Q Anything else you would like to share with us?
A I can honestly say without any need (now!) to ingratiate myself to anybody, that Victoria Carpets is probably in the best hands that it has ever been in. Notwithstanding the era of John Duncan when he was MD.
Although it was, of course, a different animal then. Putting the whole group to one side, which is clearly becoming more and more successful, under the current management team, a lot of very good things have, and are happening within Victoria Carpets and Design Floors and there is more to come, I am sure.
