Husband and wife plumbing team win Best New Business in Herts FSB Awards
A ST ALBANS-based husband and wife team, On Tap Plumbers, has scooped Best New Business in this month’s Hertfordshire FSB Awards and taken second place in St Albans Business of the Year.
The business was started from scratch three years ago by Anne Timpany, originally fromNew Zealand, and husband, Raff Agalliu, originally from Albania. Since then, the couple have pooled their skills in plumbing, customer service and marketing to doubling its turnover every year.
Anne said: “We had no family contacts or friends in the UK when we started out, so it was tough. But we saw an opening for a plumbing business whose emphasis is on excellent customer service. We want to show people not all plumbers in the UK are dodgey and unreliable.”
Anne and Raff were presented with the award at a ceremony at Shendish Manor on June 13th, beating off four other new businesses in their category.
Judges comments included: ‘The essence of quality shone in this entry. Rapid growth, good revenues and self sufficiency – a business that strives to improve’ and ‘I love this entry! Their passion and drive leaps off the page and is backed up with concise evidence and robust plans for the future’.
Anne said of winning: “Raff and I are so proud to win the Best New Business award and also be named runners up for St Albans Business of the Year. We’d like to thank our fantastic team, our wonderful clients for your continued custom and the excellent service our suppliers have given us over the last three years. Without all of them this wouldn’t have made been possible.”
On Tap Plumbers provide all the services you would expect from a plumber and also install plumbing, heating and tiling, as well as creating householders’ dream bathrooms. Their work has been used in the revamp of the Samuel Ryder Academy nursery in St Albans,Martins Wood Primary School, Stevenage and several schools in Hackney.
They have also worked on the conversion of high-end, luxury offices to flats in Portland Place off Oxford Circus, which included intricate marble bathrooms, needing great attention to detail.
Their latest large scale projects include Revive Fitness and Spa in Potters Bar and 5-6 Connaught Place, Westminster.
Anne went on: “In the UK, anyone can just start up a construction business without any particular training or qualifications, but in NZ you have to have accreditations.
“We provide a guarantee with all of our work, we are fully insured, our prices are totally transparent and reasonable, and our staff are helpful and reliable. I would like to help change how that works here in the UK and restore more respect, reliability and responsibility to the industry.”