Three Generations - TRU7 Group

TRU7 GROUP – PAST, PRESENT
AND FUTURE

A series of articles exploring the history of our third-generation family business, TRU7 Group. Here we delve right back into the family archives to find out more about Percy Nicholls, who set up as a sole trader in 1964 with no idea that in doing so, he was forming the foundations of the multi million turnover enterprise his son and grandson run today.

THREE GENERATIONS

Percy Nicholls was one of 13 siblings and grew up in the heart of the Suffolk countryside.

The youngsters rarely went to school, and their father, Robert, who was always exploring ways to make money, took full advantage of the availability of his large brood as he tried to get new enterprises off the ground.

This meant that Percy – like his brothers and sisters – was usually drafted in to help, and when the family started buying up farms around Suffolk, he was among the children sent off to manage them, living on-site without parental support when he was young as eight or nine.

As Percy got older, he joined his dad as the family started buying up garages – setting up in the motor trade and supplying many with their first cars after the war.

There was a captive audience – with only two competitors in the whole of Suffolk – and throughout the 60s, they started to smarten their showrooms up to become the premium choice in the county, naming the company Nicholls Car Sales.

While business was booming, Percy, who had recently married his sweetheart, Shirley, had started to get itchy feet. He was doing the lion’s share of the work and was frustrated at taking orders from someone else. So, a year after his son Guy was born – in 1964 – he left the family firm to set out on his own.

FROM THE AGE OF THREE, GUY WOULD
JOIN PERCY AT WORK

Guy said: “I’m not sure he really had much of a plan. He had knowledge of machinery and he had business prowess he had picked up from his father. He had also set aside money he had earned through the motor trade.

“So, at the age of 31 he cashed in £1,000 of premium bonds – which was an awful lot of money in those days – and started up as a sole trader buying and selling vehicles, trucks and diggers.

“He quickly worked out how to use the skills from the motor trade to spot a bargain and had an incredible ability to turn pennies into pounds while working every hour under the sun. He was amazing to watch.”

And watch he did. From the age of three, Guy would join Percy at work and would spend all his time getting grubby cleaning vans and machines.

Continue exploring the history of our third-generation family business

GUY NICHOLLS

FROM SHADOWING DAD TO BRINGING THE COMPANY INTO THE LIGHT

In the second of a series of articles exploring the history of third-generation family business, TRU7 Group, we meet CEO Guy Nicholls, who has been instrumental in the growth of the plant hire, construction, and demolition firm. He explains how he built on the foundations of the company his father left behind to turbo-charge the firm to its multimillion turnover – and incredibly bright future.

READ THE ARTICLE

JAKE NICHOLLS

FROM RACING PODIUM TO BOARDROOM POLE POSITION

In the fourth of a series of articles exploring the history of one of Suffolk’s stalwart businesses – TRU7 Group – we meet Managing Director Jake Nicholls. The third generation of the Nicholls family to run the plant hire, construction, and demolition firm, he explains his plans for further growth, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather with the same “stubborn” streak that’s catapulted the enterprise to a multimillion turnover operation running thousands of machines.

READ THE ARTICLE

“In fact, it brings me right back to the start. tell me I can’t do something – and I will do it better than you could have ever imagined. just like my dad.”

JAKE NICHOLLS

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The Three Generations