Sporting family play the generation game as SELECT's oldest Member firm

In the latest instalment of our 125th anniversary celebrations, we meet David and Ian Stewart, who run SELECT’s longest-standing Member firm, James Stewart & Son – a fifth generation family business in the Borders that’s seen plenty of changes since it joined the association 87 years ago...

David Stewart with son Chris (left) and Ian Stewart with son Matthew

HI DAVID. WHAT’S THE HISTORY OF YOUR BUSINESS?

The business was started in 1886 by my great-great-grandfather James Stewart, who was a tinsmith. He originally made things like pails, pitchers and milk churns, then expanded into selling domestic hardware, cycles and ironmongery. He and his son Thomas ran the shop in the centre of Kelso and the business is basically still in the same place. In the 1930s my grandfather, also called James, went to Edinburgh to train in ironmongery, plumbing and electrical installations, then came back in 1933 and expanded the business to include electrical contracting and the sale of electrical appliances. With the introduction of electricity to Kelso, the firm was involved in the electrification of houses, farms, estates and industrial premises. My father Kenneth then did a degree in electrical engineering and worked in Edinburgh for a couple of years before coming back to take over the business in 1968, after which his father semi-retired, becoming Provost of Kelso in 1971 and being awarded the MBE for services to local government in 1975.

AND HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED?

As a boy, I was sent out to work with the electricians during the holidays and the school strikes of the 1980s, which I enjoyed. Initially I was labouring and watching, but gradually I got more to do, just like an apprentice. I also worked in the shop after school every night and Saturday morning for a few years, then my dad got me into the office to help with basic costing and estimating. After that, I did a degree in building services engineering at Heriot-Watt University, then worked as an electrical design engineer for three years before coming back to help my father in 1995. I always had it in my head that I’d work in the business and I’ve been here ever since. Whether I would have done it if I’d known all the hassle is another matter!

WHAT DOES THE BUSINESS DO NOW?

We have a hardware shop in Kelso and another in Hawick, which are both busy, and we’re a member of Euronics so sell a lot of electrical appliances, plus we have contracts with insurance companies for appliance repairs. On the electrical contracting side, we do anything from domestic repairs, small installations and farm work right up to large electrical contacts in commercial premises, plus we’ve been working for Scottish Borders Council and NHS Borders for around 50 years. We stick to the Borders region – we’ve always kept ourselves busy and seem to cope with most things.

AND WHAT DOES YOUR TEAM LOOK LIKE?

We have a team of around 40 staff, including appliance engineers, shop and office staff. On the electrical contracting side we have 11 electricians and an apprentice, plus me and two foremen, one of whom is semi-retired. My older brother Ian used to work for Baillie Gifford but came back to Kelso in 2000 and now runs the retail and appliance repair side of things while I look after the electrical work.

HAVE YOU ALWAYS HAD APPRENTICES?

Yes, we try to take on one every two years – I think that’s the only way we’ve kept going. All but one of our current electricians have served their time with us and stayed, which is very satisfying. In fact, six of our current electricians have been here more than 30 years – I can remember them starting their apprenticeships when I was helping out as a schoolboy. We do find getting apprentices more difficult these days, which is perhaps down to the schools encouraging everybody to go to college or university. But being involved in the local rugby and cricket clubs helps – there’s always word of mouth if someone’s looking to get started.

Foreman Pete Lang, electrician Greg Ponton, and Approved Electrician Derek Scott

HOW HAS YOUR WORK CHANGED OVER THE YEARS?

Solar PV was probably the first big thing, which we started in 2011. We became MCS accredited in the same year and now do around 10 to 12 installations a year, plus new builds, mainly sticking to domestic. There was a lot of PV work when we first started due to the feed-in tariffs, but when they stopped the demand almost disappeared. However, with electricity bills now rising, demand has increased again. People are quite keen to use us as we’ve been here for so long, whereas some newer start-ups tend to disappear when something goes wrong. People know where we are and where to get us – and also know we’re not going anywhere.

HAVE YOU BRANCHED OUT INTO OTHER RENEWABLES?

EV charge points are ticking along and we now do a good number of installations per year. Battery storage is also taking off in conjunction with PV and we’ve had a few jobs in the past few years. We’ve also wired up some heat pumps on new build sites. We just try to keep up to date as much as we can – if something new comes along you’ve got to embrace it and learn about it so you can serve your customers.

SO WHEN DID YOU JOIN THE ASSOCIATION?

I know the exact date because it’s on our membership certificate – 6 October 1938. It’s amazing how long ago that is and how much things have changed, even from when I started. Fax machines were the height of technology back then! Everything is much quicker now and the whole world seems to have speeded up, but that’s progress – you just need to adapt.

HOW HAS THE ASSOCIATION HELPED YOUR BUSINESS OVER THE YEARS?

We use the Technical Helpline regularly and the training is very handy – in fact we’re just putting all our electricians through the 18th Edition course, which we’ve been doing online. That’s been really good as the team can do it from here in sections without having to travel up to The Walled Garden, which works well for us. We also use SELECT for employment advice and I’ve spoken to the staff a few times about the various things about the business.

HAVE YOU DONE ANY OTHER TRAINING WITH SELECT?

One of our electricians went on the battery storage course with G-TEC last June, which got him up to speed. Our Foreman Pete Lang has also done the Scottish Building Standards course as we’re an Approved Certifier of Construction. Training has its place when there are major changes, such as the IET Wiring Regulations, and you do need to keep up to date. Saying that, it seems like there a lot more hoops to jump through these days, particularly when it comes to health and safety.

HOW WERE THINGS DURING COVID-19?

We shut down initially but because we do a lot of work for NHS Borders we were immediately asked to continue projects at the local hospitals, plus we were doing repairs for Scottish Borders Council. As soon as we could get going again we got everybody back to work because there was plenty to do.

David (left) and Ian in the original hardware shop in the centre of Kelso

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB?

I’m not sure – maybe 5.30pm on a Friday! Being your own boss gives you a certain flexibility, but also comes with more responsibility. Seeing the apprentices develop is quite satisfying. Most lads are 15 or 16 years old when they come in for an interview and you struggle to get two words out of them. Yet as they go through their apprenticeship they become more vocal, their confidence increases and they turn into good tradesmen who you can rely on. That’s pretty amazing to see.

AND WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES?

Payments have always been a problem. It’s like anything, most people are fine but it’s the 1% you struggle with. Retentions are a big bugbear and it’s unbelievable the amount of times you have to chase – you can wait three or four years to get money released. Sadly, I don’t think it will ever change.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE SECRET OF YOUR LONGEVITY?

Being an established local business means you’re well known, so the local building companies and architects know us and we get a lot of work that way. However, you still have to provide a good service and to do that you need good staff. We’ve been very fortunate to have conscientious tradesman and helpful retail staff down the years, for which we’re very grateful. Of course we’ll never get everything 100% right but if something does go wrong we make an effort to sort it. In the end, it’s OK having a good name but it’s easily lost if you don’t provide a good local service. Customer service is very important, especially in a town like Kelso – word will soon get around if you’re not helping people.

SO WILL YOUR CHILDREN FOLLOW IN YOUR FOOTSTEPS?

I have two sons, Jamie aged 16 and Chris who’s 14, who already come in after school to tidy up and do odd jobs. Jamie did work experience with the electricians and seemed to enjoy it, so who knows. I also have an 11-year-old daughter Lara, who says definitely not! Ian’s son Matthew is 17 and has also been helping out after school, doing appliance deliveries and being the shop laddie. Ian also has a daughter who’s doing business studies at the University of Stirling. We’ll leave it up to them – we wouldn’t force anybody to come and do it.

AWAY FROM WORK, WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING?

I play cricket for Kelso, although I’m probably far too old for it. But the season starts at the end of April and I’ll be ready to go again. I also played rugby for Kelso High school and for Edinburgh Wanderers when I was there, then was centre for Kelso RFC 2nd XV when I came back. I now watch Kelso most Saturdays and also coach the U15s.

AND FINALLY…WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THE BUSINESS?

We’ll continue what we’re doing and try to get involved with any new technology. A lot will depend on what Jamie, Chris and Matthew decide to do, but hopefully one of them will keep it going. In the meantime, we’ll embrace the challenges and keep providing a good service. After 139 years we must be doing something right!