Family Legacy

Esspee was established by Geoffrey Smith in 1964. His son Greg, continued to manage the company after his fathers retirement and offers this reflective on the family legacy…

I can remember being an 11 year old, coming home from school on a cold wet autumn afternoon in 1965, to be met by my dad. “Forget your homework son, there are holes to be drilled”. It didn’t take long, to work out we probably weren’t drilling for oil and, more likely that my schooldays would soon be over. Sure enough in no time at all, my career at Esspee began in earnest.

I was given the position of ‘Can Lad’. This lofty title meant I did everything and anything that nobody else would. I learned fast. We seemed to be good at our jobs. Soon, our growing reputation meant we were moving from our original premises – these were more of a ‘lean to’ or ‘shed’ – into the factory that is our home today. We employed more local people, and production continued.

As time went by, we gained a reputation for being easy to talk to and able to listen. Our knowledge enabled us to advise on the most suitable materials and established us as a name to be trusted.

Fast-forward 25 years, and we have significantly increased our product range, improved our productivity, and have nurtured an exceptionally skilled and experienced workforce.

Today, we continue to become better at what we do. We continue to grow, without losing the feel of the family business that was the cornerstone of its success.

If my Dad was still alive today, he would have been ‘chuffed to bits’ to see that we have become such a major player in the supply of resistant materials, worldwide.

Greg Smith (Founding Family Member)