The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Back from the brink
DISCOVERY FLEXIBLES: From the edge of collapse to its first profit since 2013 for Dundee firm
Jimmy Urquhart was 34 years into his career when faced with a choice – see a long-standing Dundee company go bust or take the reins himself.
Eighteen months ago Discovery Flexibles, which has a workforce of 70, was teetering on the brink of administration.
In 2018 the business recorded a pretax loss of almost £1.5 million, following deficits of more than £1.1m in the previous three years.
The specialist machines at the Kemback Street factory, which prints and laminates materials used for food and drink packaging, were in danger of being turned off forever.
It would have been a sad demise for a proud Dundee company that had manufactured on the same site since 1866.
In its time it had several owners, including Low & Bonar and Constantia, and has been known as Wellfield Works, Bonar Packaging Films, Teich Flexibles and Danapak Flexibles.
General manager Mr Urquhart recalled: “In late 2018 I was sitting staring into space knowing I had a clear choice – do nothing and let the business collapse or take on the challenge of turning it around to keep myself and those around me in a job.
“The company was in a bleak position but I always felt that there was no need for it to be in the place it was.
“I really felt that I could, with the commitment of the entire team, fix the problems and see the business flourish.”
Mr Urquhart bought the company for a nominal sum in February last year and set two clear objectives.
He wanted to turn around and stabilise the business to make a profit in one year and secure the company’s future for its staff.
Newly published accounts, for the year ending December 31 2019, show the progress that has been made.
Against revenues of £11.9m, the pretax profit of precisely £9,412 may be modest, but after losses ever year since 2013, the black ink means a lot to the management team.
“We achieved our goals, but there’s still lots to do,” Mr Urquhart added.
“I’d like to be able to sit back and look at the fact that, as a team, we have turned the business round by almost £1.5m in one year, but a pandemic gets in the way of that pat on the back.
“We estimate that we have put something close to £5m back into the local economy in the last year. The fight has clearly been worthwhile.”
Mr Urquhart said he had communicated the two objectives to the entire workforce and worked quickly to address problems head on by making “tough but important decisions”.
The Brexit process, with deadlines set and missed during 2019, also helped as customers increased their stocks.
As well as safeguarding jobs, he also knew that many outside the company looking on doubted it could be saved.
“There’s been some tough days and many sleepless nights but I’m happy to say we have proved them wrong,” Mr Urquhart said.
“The loyalty shown by all of the employees really helped us to secure new business, even in those tough times.
“You can’t buy the experience that our workforce has and last year we brought on seven new customers as well as seeing meaningful growth from our existing customer base. That support has been wonderful.
“We’ve also had the full backing and support from the bank, the Pensions
Regulator and the pension trustees as well as local support via Scottish Enterprise.”
The day-to-day challenges for the firm have not gone away, but Discovery Flexibles is now in its best position for many years.
It is looking to the future with heavy investments in research and development. These include clever technology to extend the shelf life of many foodstuffs and an innovative drinks pouch. The business is also very focused on reducing and replacing plastic with more sustainable solutions.
“Our R&D work to develop new products should have launched by now if it were not for recent events and that will lead to an even better position,” Mr Urquhart said.
“Our plan this year is to build on the turnaround, launch those innovations and take this business into stronger profits.”