In conversation... Malton Inflight

As Malton Inflight celebrates its 30th anniversary, Gordon Oakley, founder and ceo, tells us how it all began, his unique management style, and plans for the future

When I left school I had no idea what I wanted to do for a living, but after trying several jobs, including sandwich maker, ice cream seller, kitchen porter and heating and ventilation fitter’s mate, I blagged my way into a job sourcing spares for British Caledonian. I later became a buyer for catering and cabin equipment.

I learned how to persuade suppliers to react quickly, and I thrived under the pressure. Working in those frantic but magical days alongside many experienced, dedicated and talented people gave me a passion for what we do today, innovating and helping to solve problems for Malton customers.

Initially, Malton's strengths were in sourcing products such as hot towels, amenity kits and fun packs, and in 1993, it was one of the first airline specialist companies to open a dedicated sourcing and inspection office in China.

My hope is that over the next 30 years we will continue to grow. Providing employment and exciting career opportunities to more people around the world will, in turn, bring new energy into the business and smarter ideas.

Building on success

We’ve already won the Mercury Award for Innovation and Quality five times, which, to my knowledge, is more than any other company.

We’ve been recognised for an interactive children’s fun-pack, a combined liquid hand-soap and air freshener, and for our trash compactor box, as well as for our chinaware made from seashells and for our Ministro tea/ coffee/soup flask. Our successes to date reflect the magnificent hard work, input and expertise of our team.

In return, Malton is committed to providing the best training it can, and encourages diversity and equal opportunity. Every morning we have a short stand-up meeting, where each person in the office shares their priorities for the day. I’m very proud too that Malton has one of the highest Corporate Social Responsibility ratings of any company in Asia, and we're focused on finding 'greener' products.

We’ll continue to improve and always aim to set a high benchmark for our competitors to aspire to. •