Two friends who were made redundant from tyre-fitting companies after a lifetime in the trade have got together to open their own business.
Peter Forster and Paul Bailey have opened B&F Tyres in Wingate, County Durham, and are already looking at growing the business and taking on staff.
Peter said: “I’ve been working in tyre fitting since leaving school, but was made redundant last year after the company I had been working for made massive cuts.
“I’ve known Paul for the last 10 years, and after he was made redundant too, he came to me and asked if I’d consider going into business with him.
“We both know the trade inside out and he thought that we could make a good go of it together.
“We’re looking into advertising to get the B&F Tyres name out there. As the company grows we would love to be able to take on a couple of apprentices and give them the same opportunity we had when we left school.”
The new tyre-fitting company was given help and funding to set up by public-funded support agency Be Enterprising.
Agency coach Amanda Hennessy said: “The guys both know their trade inside out. It was just a case of sending them out to see whether their services would be used in the area.
“After Peter and Paul received positive feedback they were more confident about their venture and we started tackling the business plan.”
