Success Stories

Age: 62

Job: Owner/Manager of Tiptree Clocks, near Colchester

Jim's story

Jim's story is one of determination to overcome the odds and of being prepared to try new things when circumstances don't go the way one hopes.

Disadvantaged with polio from an early age (he spent his sixth birthday in an isolation ward), Jim was left with a weak left leg which required him to wear a calliper and a raised shoe.

As an adult, he worked for Marconi Radar in Chelmsford but its closure prefaced a string of jobs in mechanical engineering and precision machining and assembly that were dogged with business failure, relocation or down-sizing.

During this time, Jim recognised the need for qualifications to keep him competitive in the jobs market and he acquired an HND in advanced manufacturing technology which is the computerised control of manufacturing processes.

In 2007 working in an order processing job, he was once again facing redundancy as the business considered downsizing and he realized he must do something positive in order to remain active and do something that was stimulating and rewarding.

He said: "I had heard of St Loye's Foundation and the fact that they ran a clock repair course so, after my DEA in Colchester recommended me, I was duly enrolled on a residential course in September 2007 qualifying in July 2008.My experience gave me confidence to set up my own clock repair business, Tiptree Clocks, which I now run from home."

Jim's determination to get the best results has even seen him developing new techniques of diagnosing clock malfunctions by designing his own bespoke audio indicator equipment.

His success hasn't gone unnoticed.He has been Highly Commended in the Ready to Start Entrepreneur Awards made by Leonard Cheshire Disability in partnership with Barclays Bank and as a regional winner was invited to the House of Lords to receive his certificate.Jim has also passed examinations set by the British Horological Institute and has been shortlisted to receive a Shaw Trust Star Award 2009.

All in all, it's a success story about a former St Loye's trainee who has set up his own successful clock repair business which is 'ticking along nicely'!

Tiptree Clocks website is www.tiptreeclocks.co.uk and Jim can be contacted via info@tiptreeclocks.co.uk.