Firm shows Dunkirk spirit

The mailing services firm held a party to celebrate its success after it managed to fulfil every single contract and keep every single customer despite the devastating blaze.

The event, at the refurbished premises in Wem Business Park, was held last week to thank customers and staff for their support.

The blaze began in the early hours of November 10 in two vans parked outside the offices.

Managing director Nick Chavasse was awakened at 4.30am by the business park manager who had arrived to tell him that his office was on fire.

Marketing manager Lisa Bishop said: "Nick arrived to find the building well alight and the fire brigade on the scene, dealing with the fire.

"Once allowed into the building, we found the offices were very badly damaged and what had not been destroyed or damaged by the fire had been affected by the water used to put it out.

"With no power, and smoke pervading the air it quickly became obvious that we were not going to be able to function as normal in the office area.

"Staff were telephoned and warned what to expect and they duly arrived equipped with warm clothing, flasks of coffee and some Dunkirk spirit to get on and do whatever was needed."

The clean-up began with the main aim to keep the business running as normal and temporary IT and phones were set up.

Lisa added: "Even in the midst of a very mucky clear-up operation, a customer arrived with a job that had been booked in for that day. Once he got over the initial shock, we assured him that we would take care of his mailshot as planned and the job would go out on schedule - which it did.

"I think he was so surprised by this that he returned a little while later with some cakes for the staff to say thank you.

"We had to move out of our brand new offices that we had only recently moved into some six weeks before and move back into temporary offices, salvage what we could, make use of another empty unit on the estate and continue to do business while the builders came in and sorted out our fire damage.

"On December 23 the company was given the all-clear by the builders to move back in and business resumed once more in our new offices.

"The party was a delayed launch of the new office and a thank you to all the people who helped us out through those six weeks."

Lisa said the company wanted to thank the Computer Factory in Wem which ended up moving the IT systems "not once, not twice but three times"; Henshalls in Newport for its assistance through the insurance claim and "our sterling staff".

And there was more good news for the company, which last year scooped the Shropshire Small Business of the Year Award.

It has clinched a two-year contract to distribute a new fortnightly magazine - Look & Learn. The magazine, last in circulation in 1984, is being relaunched and being printed locally by WPG in Welshpool.

By Amy Bould