When Tom Southall was made redundant from his industrial services job of 14 years, it came as a bolt from the blue.

He decided to fulfil his lifelong dream of going it alone and set up his own firm in the sector. Now Telcoss employs 45 staff and is on track to turn over between £4m and £5m.

Tom, 56, has just signed a “lucrative” contract with a large local firm – and he’s never looked back. “Being made redundant was a bit of a shock,” he says.

READ MORE: ‘Suffering’ woman about to ‘lose her bottom teeth’ after filling nightmare during dental crisis

“I’d been in industrial services since 1984 from leaving school. But it’s been the best thing that could have ever happened.

“It was hard at the time and very frightening. But it’s enabled us to do what we are doing now.”

For the latest Redcar and Cleveland news direct to your inbox, go here to sign up to our free newsletter

Telcoss provides services from tank cleansing and high pressure water jetting to removing hazardous waste, working with some of the big chemical-heavy firms on Teesside and around the UK. Tom, who was born in Middlesbrough and brought up in Redcar, set up the business in 2019 by himself and was soon joined by his son Lewis. Now they’re planning to take on even more staff.

“We’re looking at £4m to £5m turnover,” Tom added. “It’s been absolutely fantastic year on year. But it’s not just me, it’s the people in the company.

“We are about growth and investment, trying to get young people from the area who all seem to want to get on in life. We’ve put a few young lads through their heavy goods [qualifications].

“It’s good to see the young lads coming in and learning from the older hands. People buy from people, they don’t buy from companies.”

“I’ve always wanted to do this,” he continued, “I would see vehicles and think ‘wouldn’t it be good if I had this stuff myself’. There are a lot of companies doing what we are doing, it’s a highly competitive market.

“You are only as good as your last job, but it’s growing. We don’t just work in the North East, we work throughout the UK from York to Scotland, the borders – and we’ve just done a big job in Dagenham.

“We didn’t think it would grow so much in such a short time. The way we’re going, if we outgrow this yard in Wilton this year we’ll be looking for new premises.”

He added: “As a native of Redcar who has worked within the industrial sector for a number of years – and witnessed the decline first-hand – it gives me particular satisfaction to be able to create a bit of a success story in the town and play a part in what looks like being an exciting future for Redcar.”

READ NEXT: