| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 15/05/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 61 |
| Copyright: Other |
meetthe
MD
This week: Stephen Moss MBE, BCP Airport Parking
Age: 47
I QUALIFIED as a barrister and although I loved law as a subject, I decided it was not the job for me. Nevertheless, I still draw on my legal training today as I do my studies at the London Graduate School of Business Studies, where I obtained a Masters of Business Administration.I did a spell in corporate finance in the City but moved on from being a merchant banker to a restaurateur and wine merchant. I ran an English restaurant in Chelsea called Drakes, so called as it was in Pond Place.
Working at Drakes brought home to me that people were perhaps the most important element in business. We could make or break someone’s evening. Guests could have had a perfectly good meal but if the service wasn’t consistently good – maybe they had to wait too long for the bill – then the whole experience could be ruined.
The restaurant and wine merchants were part of my family’s business group, which up until that point had concentrated on property. We owned some land at Gatwick and, using my legal knowledge to obtain planning permission, we developed it into an off-airport car park.
We sold the food and wine interests and in 1989, I became a full-time ‘car-park attendant’ as managing director of BCP. We have grown from parking 100 to 4,500 cars a day at Gatwick and now we also market car parks at 16 other airports and ports around the country.
BCP remains a family concern to this day, a structure that has certain advantages. While naturally the business has to be run profitably, you don’t have to look over your shoulder to outside investors or shareholders, so you don’t have to dwell on short-term returns and cutting costs to the bone. You can take long-term decisions on service and product development.
I think all members of staff need to know where a company is going and their role in achieving those goals. That’s why BCP has worked hard to gain Investors in People recognition.
Our main service – airport car parking – is provided right at the start and the end of a holiday so it can, to an extent, make or break the whole experience. Customers are more likely to talk to friends about negatives than positives – so it’s essential to get everything right.
It is important that everyone, from telephone personnel to car-park attendants, do their best. For instance, our airport bus drivers will always help with the loading of passengers’ luggage.
In the UK,there’s still a tendency to equate service with servility, yet the hospitality and travel industries provide worthwhile careers for 10% of the working population.
Each week I spend quite a lot of time getting involved in tourism and hospitality training initiatives. For example, I am chairman of Springboard, an organisation that seeks to promote hospitality and tourism as a first choice career.
Springboard goes into schools and colleges to create greater awareness of the opportunities available to help young people reach their full potential. In a new initiative, Springboard will run the Travel and Tourism Programme, which, with Travel Weekly support, will provide curriculum help for travel and tourism courses in schools. I love the industries I’ve been involved in and am very happy to put something back.
In addition to people, I enjoy creative marketing and product development. At BCP, we have developed some innovative products.
We’ve introduced the meet and greet service, where customers are met at the airport terminal and their car is parked for them and returned to the terminal on their return. Then there is our chauffeur-driven car service and most recently the chance to relax after check-in one of our 13 airport executive lounges.
We also work very closely with travel agents and ensure they are kept in the picture and are reminded of the money to be earned – we pay out well over £1m in commission every year. Finally, technology has proved to be another challenge. We’ve just upgraded our Web site to provide on-line reservations for agents.
CURRICULUM VITAE
1970-73: Kings College, London University (LLB Honours in Law)
MY TOP TIPS
l If you don’t enjoy what you are doing, you won’t do it well.
* Create a positive and caring style of leadership and encourage your management team to emulate it.
* People are the key company resource and it’s vital they feel valued and part of the team.
* Regard innovation in information technology as an opportunity, not a threat.