Ask the Expert: Paul Hargrave, Neylor

Tony Cassar: Paul, welcome and thanks for being part of the WFA Ask the Expert series. What were you doing before entering the window covering industry? 

Paul Hargrave: I was in the army for 10 years, having left home at the age of 16 as an army apprentice vehicle mechanic.

When I was younger, all I wanted to do was join the army. As an apprentice, it was the earliest way I could get in. I served for just over 10 years before taking long service leave to go backpacking around the world with my wife, not knowing really what was next.

Tony Cassar: So, how did you enter the window coverings industry?

Paul Hargrave: Through my dad who worked at Kresta. He mainly installed vertical blinds and used to get me to help him on Saturdays and school holidays. He would have me do the weights and chains; he would give me a box of weights and a roll of chain while he was installing the tracks. He paid me a dollar per blind, and I remember having a really sore thumb!

Tony Cassar:  What was the highest  sum you would make in a day?

Paul Hargrave: I don’t know, maybe 20 bucks or something. But back then he was getting 10 bucks a blind as a subcontractor. I don’t think the rates have changed much!

Tony Cassar: Tell us a little bit about Neylor?

Paul Hargrave: My dad, Len Hargrave, and his friend Roy Perkins founded the company. The name “Neylor” was derived from a combination of their names: Len and Roy. Roy also worked at Kresta in the service department.

In 1992, they decided to start their own business, using their contacts in the commercial building industry. They soon became known as skilled service and repair technicians, cutting down vertical blinds for new office partitions and supplying new blinds. They also began manufacturing vertical tracks in Len’s garage and later expanded to a larger shed attached to their house.

After returning from my travels, my dad asked me if I wanted to join the business. I agreed to give it a try. Roy had already passed retirement age and was looking for an exit anyway. I joined the business in 1997, and my sister followed in 1999. My mum joined the company in 2002, making it a bit of a family affair back then. That’s how the early days were.

We identified an opportunity in the market for blind repairs, acknowledging that our expertise lay primarily in our trade skills rather than business management. We used to work for around 50 real estate companies. However, the long hours on the road and working in manufacturing in the evenings and on weekends could be tiring. It was a bit of a slog, but we were able to make enough money to cover our basic expenses.

In 2001, we won the contract with the WA Government for breakdown repairs in all government schools across the Perth metro area. This contract, which we still maintain more than 20 years later, is a testament to our reliability and commitment. With a history in office fit-outs, commercial sales were a big part of our success. We wanted to expand our involvement in this area, and in 2006, we did just that.

Before long, Ross Lava enquired about our interest in becoming a distributor for Vertilux. After a successful meeting with him, we decided to do just that, shifting our focus from manufacturing to sales, project management, and installation. In 2007, my dad retired from the business and in 2008, we rebranded the business to better connect with our target market of architects and designers. We worked with a branding agency to change our name to Neylor Architectural Shading and repositioned the business to prioritise high quality products, technical expertise, and long-term client relationships. Since then, we have never looked back.

We collaborate, design, and innovate and are the long-term trusted advisor to the Perth commercial market. We are very proud to hold the number one position as the commercial choice in Perth.

Tony Cassar: What are your main activities within the organisation today?

Paul Hargrave: I’m the managing director. Transitioning from being an installer in a van to learning how to run the business effectively has been a long journey. My focus is on strategy, company culture, leading and coaching the team, and alleviating their stress. I now drive the business instead of trying to run it from a van.

I don’t get too involved in the day-to-day operations. I trust my great team, especially my business partner Michael Rees, who handles business development, sales and distribution.

Tony Cassar:  So you’re working on the business, rather than in the business.

Paul Hargrave: Yes.

Tony Cassar: What are your greatest challenges in the business at the moment?

Paul Hargrave: It’s always managing cash flow. That’s always a big one – making sure you get your claims in on time. We’ve had a large project here that we’re working on that got delayed by a couple of months, and we ended up with 10 floors of blinds sitting in the warehouse. 

Luckily, we have good suppliers who can help us out. It’s always a struggle managing cash flow. That’s one of the areas where we have to be nimble and constantly learn.

That’s a challenge, especially as you get older. It’s important to be mindful of maintaining energy levels. If you’re not innovating and staying ahead of the market, you can quickly get caught up and not add value to your clients.

Tony Cassar:  Do you think there are more products from overseas being used in commercial markets?

Paul Hargrave: We’re not seeing it here in Perth, but we’re lucky in a way that we’re isolated out on our own so we’re not as susceptible to that.

In the hotel market, we have certainly tried quite a few projects and have found that those hotel chains know and understand the cost of everything. They have big buying power from Asia. They don’t like paying multiple margins from suppliers in Australia. We can’t get close with some of that stuff, but when it comes to technical matters we can add value.

Tony Cassar:  So, what’s the largest job you’ve done?

Paul Hargrave: 6000 blinds in one of the office towers here in Perth. Currently, we have been engaged very early by the builder, Multiplex, on an early contractor involvement contract for a tricky job at the ECU City Campus.

We’re working with them from the start, as it’s coming out of the ground, and we’re trying to understand and interpret what they need and what they want. It’s quite onerous, and the level of documentation required is quite high. We’re learning a lot.

Tony Cassar: How many team members do you currently employ?

Paul Hargrave: 25. I have been recruiting recently because we have multiple large projects on at the moment. Normally, we are running with one and a few other medium-sized ones, but currently, we have multiple large projects. As a result, we’ve had to increase our team size.

With recruitment in the past year, I’ve seen a significant increase in the number of candidates applying. A couple of months ago, I hired a new store person and received over 150 applications.

We currently have a strong team, and I believe that by compensating and supporting them well, providing quality uniforms and equipment, we can attract talent to our company. We also invest in tools and resources to ensure their success. Overall, I think we have a great team.

Tony Cassar: What roles are you trying to fill?

Paul Hargrave: We’ve recently welcomed two new project managers to our team. One of them has 30 years of industry experience, while the other has extensive project management experience, although not specifically in blinds.

Tony Cassar: What challenges do you believe the window coverings industry is facing today or in the future?

Paul Hargrave: It’s a bit of a cottage industry that we’ve gotten into, an easy thing for mums and dads, and our business got into it the same way through my dad. There is no formal trade or qualification for it, so people tend to fall into it rather than making a conscious decision. I think that can be a challenge. The pathways often involve family connections.

Tony Cassar: How’s your year been so far?

Paul Hargrave: It’s been extremely busy. The commercial market does go in cycles. This time last year, we didn’t have enough work. It’s just the way it goes. It’d be nice to have a steady stream of work.

Tony Cassar: What have been the greatest achievements in your career so far?

Paul Hargrave: I think being able to help facilitate my dad’s early retirement and then establishing a business that promotes work-life balance and a great lifestyle for my family.

I prioritise balance at Neylor with my team and consider it crucial to our success. We have accomplished a lot and secured the top position in the market. From a commercial standpoint, we have been very successful.

In my personal life, my family – my wife Rachel and my son Sam – greatly influence the decisions I make every day.

Tony Cassar: Who have been the greatest influences in your life?

Paul Hargrave: My mum and dad have always been very supportive and actively involved in our lives, especially in our sports and in business. We immigrated to Australia from England in 1980 on a Qantas flight from Heathrow to Perth via Bombay. Both of my parents worked hard to provide for us and give us a good life.

The other person would be Steve, my business coach. He has been amazing. I have been working with Steve for 20 years and he has taught me so much about life purpose, mindfulness, leadership, and all the skills required to create and run a successful business. Most importantly, he has taught me about work-life balance, which is why this business exists.

Otherwise, you just become a slave to it. We still catch up at least once every month to talk about strategy and leadership. He also provides leadership training to our business leaders and our leadership team.

Tony Cassar: Tell us a bit more about how this relationship came about and how these learnings fed through into the business?

Paul Hargrave: When I first started in the business, I was running the business without really knowing what I was doing.

I had a strong desire to learn how to run the business properly. I considered pursuing a diploma, but I discovered that it was completely useless to me. The content was mainly focused on middle management in large corporations and had no relevance to my situation. I realised I needed to find an alternative approach.

We were referred to a guy named Steve Goddard. At first, I thought, “Who’s this guy? He’s weird.” But he really pushed me to think differently, which I found challenging. However, he guided me through a transformation and changed my perspective. I had to change my way of thinking before I could progress further

Opening your mind to new ideas is crucial. Coming from a military background, I had deeply ingrained habits and behaviors. Once he expanded my mindset, I was able to welcome new ideas. From that point on, we were able to make some changes.

He guided us to re-evaluate our business model and operations, rather than just continuing as we had been.

We used to have a business model where we advertised in the Yellow Pages, spending $50,000 a year on that. We aimed to get leads and be the cheapest in the market. However, we realised we needed to change our approach. Steve encouraged us to shift to a distribution model focused on building relationships. Cultivating strategic relationships is important for businesses to achieve success.

He taught us how to communicate effectively with high-level individuals and emphasised the importance of building and maintaining relationships. He guided us through the process of rebranding and repositioning the business, helping us progress along this journey. By implementing these strategies, we gained clarity on our business relationships and identified who we should and shouldn’t be working with.

Tony Cassar: Paul, tell us a little bit about your family and your interests outside of the window covering industry.

Paul Hargrave: Family is everything. I am married to my lovely wife, Rachel, whom I met when I was 16 during my first year in the Army. We have been together for a long time and have a 15-year-old son. Samuel. He has started working in the business on weekends and during school holidays to earn some extra money, and he’s really enjoying it.

I have been privileged to be involved in his junior footy as a coach. I have been doing that since he was in Auskick 11 years ago. The footy takes up a fair bit of my time on the weekends and a couple of nights a week. I love doing that and we’re in the finals this year. Hopefully we can go all the way.

Tony Cassar: Lovely, thank you Paul, and thank you for your time today for our Ask the Expert series.

Paul Hargrave: It’s been a pleasure, thank you Tony.