Ethical 'Recovery' in Economic recession
Date: 5 March 2009
Jon Roberts, 42 had been out of work and
struggling to support his wife and twin sons before reaching out
for some local help.
What makes Jon’s journey back into work unique
is that Jon has started his own business ‘Recovery Landscapes’ in
the midst of some of the toughest times the economy has experienced
– and Jon’s business is blooming.
Ambitious to work in the landscaping field,
Jon turned to employment specialists Working Links, a Government
funded initiative offering all the support and guidance needed to
help qualifying benefit claimants into work. Now his business which
is community based, ethical and friendly, is saving his customers
much more than just money.
Jon’s business success isn’t just down to his
wealth of experience, but more to his ambitious green policies such
as reclamation and recycling. Jon says” I’ve had an
affiliation with gardening since a child and the family has its own
allotment too. I love all aspects of Nature and working outdoors. I
believe that you can re-use materials rather than buy from scratch.
Just recently I built a customer’s garden wall with materials she
already had in the garden. I minimised the cost for her and I’m
going someway in helping the environment. Maximising what’s already
available creates a personal finish and the customers love it.”
Jon has an amazing and varied array of
previous jobs from painter decorator, right through to sales and
marketing. He was claiming benefit for a year but in the last six
weeks Jon has launched his business in the midst of a
recession.
Jon says “Personally I feel that it is a great
time to start a business. If you are passionate and confident about
your business then there are just as many opportunities out there.
You have to manage people’s expectations, understand the market and
not out price yourself."
“This recession is more about re-adjustment.
I’m here to save people money rather than spending it
unnecessarily. My advice to others who are thinking about starting
their own business is to offer a good service and not to be greedy,
but get the help that’s out there. It’s all about moving forward
and making progress. It’s about having a goal in life. Recovery
landscapes is about helping those that live in Leicester to enjoy
the space they are in. Re-establishing that link with nature can go
a long way to beating those credit crunch blues”.
Tony McAllister was Jons consultant at Working
Links and said "Over the months that I have worked with Jon,
he has shown great determination,motivation & passion to turn
his life around.With the help of Working Links he has grasped the
opportunity to start his own gardening business. I am very happy
that I was able to help & support Jon to achieve his
employment goal particularly in these difficult economic
times."
To contact Jon Roberts: 07971 484 569,
or email: globalroberts@yahoo.com