Bill Gleeson talks to SHAUN DORAN, commercial director of FRC Group and Bulky Bob’s

SHAUN DORAN has made quite a career change from managing environmentally controversial logging businesses in the United States and Latvia to come to Liverpool to run a social enterprise that puts environmental issues at the top of its list of priorities.

“I spent 10 years in logging. That was before we all thought too much about the effects of chopping trees down and before concerns about our carbon footprints became the norm,” said Doran.

He now runs FRC Group, which was founded 18 years ago as a charity called the Furniture Resource Centre. FRC Group owns a number of trading subsidiaries that pay it a dividend from pre-tax profit. The biggest single subsidiary is Bulky Bob’s, the furniture recycling operation. It also owns Revive, a furniture shop on London Road. However, Doran doesn’t use the phrase second hand to describe Revive’s merchandise, though most of the rest of us would. Instead, he says: “It’s furniture that has been lovingly owned.”

The charity has evolved from operating what Doran describes as an “erratic” business model to something more structured.

The word erratic refers to the typical operation of a traditional charity. It depended on people donating furniture and volunteers available to deliver it to people who needed free furniture.

“No money changed hands,” said Doran. As a result, the availability of furniture and volunteers to deliver it was variable.

“People might have been available to deliver the furniture on a rainy Monday morning, but fewer would turn out on a sunny Tuesday.

“The business model did nothing for our staff and resulted in poor service for our customers,” explained Doran.

“So back in ’92 we set out to change this. We wanted to be able to deliver furniture to people who needed it without relying on the charity of others.”

FRC spotted that in many cases letting unfurnished accommodation to previously homeless people wasn’t working. All too often these people would end up moving or very quickly becoming homeless again. So FRC suggested solving this problem by devising furniture packages so the homeless have all the basics that they need delivered in a single visit before they move in. The packages would be paid for by housing associations. Since then, the service has gradually evolved and now includes such things as fitting and installing all the light bulbs and white goods.

A further innovation arose out of the government’s Housing Market Renewal Initiative. Demolishing old homes in places like the Welsh streets in Dingle and replacing them with new ones has meant moving a lot of people. FRC discovered that social housing providers were full of horror stories about moves that went wrong. A traditional removals van would load up and drive off leaving an often frail or vulnerable tenant to make their own way by public transport to an unfamiliar place. FRC responded by devising a removals programme tailored to the needs of social housing tenants that included ensuring utilities were connected, beds were made, sentimental valuables were properly cared for, tea was made and transport was provided. A member of FRC’s staff would act as a chaperone ensuring the removals’ men put everything in its right place.

“We can do all this and charge a competitive price to the landlord because we don’t need to make as much profit,” said Doran.

FRC is seen in many quarters as one of the leading social enterprises in the country. Tony Blair described it as exemplary.

THE FRC Group needs to keep a close eye on its financial performance, because it doesn’t receive donations or grants. But it also has two other key performance measures. These are social impact, both in terms of the recipients of the service and the staff who provide the service, and environmental issues. Its annual report, known as a sustainability report, carries data about all three of these issues.

The group employs about 85 staff. Around 25 are trainees who have been long-term unemployed, homeless, people with criminal records or have some other disadvantage that makes them difficult to employ. FRC gives them training that results in a HGV or ordinary driving licence and other related logistics qualifications such as health and safety training.

“If you turn up at a job interview with all the certificates you need you have an advantage over others looking for the same job who don’t have them.

“Around 94% of our trainees get a job when they leave us after 12 months,” said Doran.

As for the future, Doran said: “We see the most growth coming from Bulky Bob’s. FRC could double its turnover, but that would only be with a great push.

“Bulky Bob’s though could conceivably have 500 branches around the country in each local authority. That’s because legislation requires local authorities to offer this sort of service to their residents.

“Just in the last three months the number of enquiries we have received has risen sharply.”

As well as its original Liverpool operation, Bulky Bob’s already operates in Oldham, Warrington and Sefton and, as a result, the firm is no longer seen as just a Liverpool phenomenon.

Doran said: “Our growth this year will target Merseyside and Greater Manchester because that’s where our reputation is strongest.”

Local authorities have been set recycling targets. Many have already made easy gains, so are looking for ways of improving the percentage of the waste that goes to recycling.

“Bulky Bob’s can add between one and two per cent to those targets,” said Doran.

He is one of three directors who run the company. The others are Phil Tottey, the finance director, and Alison Ball, director of people. There is no chief executive and, as a result, nobody has the final say on any issues.

“This means we make better decisions. You have to make a more compelling case when discussing issues. There has to be more considered debate before we make a decision,” explains Doran.

He adds: “This is a very rewarding job. Very different from logging. When I left my career in the private sector, I was looking for something that was consciously different and made a real contribution to people's lives and I certainly found that at FRC Group. I have a degree in Sociology and another in Business and Finance and FRC Group is one of the few companies that would regularly – often simultaneously – call on the learning and experience that I have gained in these somewhat different fields.”

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