Brian had no idea about the leather industry when he saw an advert in the local paper for a job at Andrew Muirhead & Sons and was surprised at the scale of the factory and the complexity of the manufacturing process. As he observes, “There is a lot of science that goes into leather”.

Having just left school, he thought that it would be a short-term job before going to university but never left as he became, as he puts it,  “part of the family”. He has been with the company for 11 years and has no regrets about not going to university.

In his role as Pre-finish Supervisor as Pre-finish Supervisor, he has responsibility for a team of 23 people who take care of all the processes after the leather is tanned and before it is finally finished. These processes include drying, buffing and staking. This is a challenging task as a number of variables have to be controlled to keep the leather in optimum condition. However, he enjoys the challenge of ensuring the job is done properly and the satisfaction that comes from doing it well.

Since joining the company, he has completed vocational and management qualifications and had considerable on-the-job training. In his opinion, the industry offers the potential for career for life. Anyone joining the industry who is keen and bright will have options for career development in a range of areas, such lab work, distribution and quality control.Brian believes that leather will be here for the long-term and is proud to be part of the industry.