The Realities of Family Business

When we first started the business many years ago we had no idea that it would become a family affair, with our wives becoming an integral part and even our children getting stuck in when needs must. Being a family business is at the heart of Earland Brothers; it has a daily impact on the way we operate, make decisions and drive the business forward. Here are just a few reasons why we love it…

Freedom

We have the complete control to do what we feel is right, not only for our customers and the business - but for our families too. We love not having to answer to shareholders or venture capitalists’ demands, and this in turn leads to us taking risks and having only ourselves to answer to. We don’t always get things right, deep in the store room are some fashion errors… but that is all part of the retail section, if it were that easy everyone would be doing it.

The Adventure

Risk taking, problem solving, joys, sorrows, victories and defeat are all part of the adventure of running a family business. We don’t have a safety net to fall back on, so we have the responsibility to do things the right way, not only for us but hopefully the future generation. As brothers we have loved adventure since we were boys, from camping with the Scouts to travelling the world; running your own business is a journey we are wandering along every day.

Personality

We hope that our personalities come through in the way we run the business, we don’t want to look ‘corporate’ or straight laced, there are plenty of other businesses out there to do that! Our aim has always been to provide a high standard of personal service and value, together with a wealth of knowledge on products that ensures the best products we can find delivered to our customers.

The Next Generation

Our children, though not so young anymore, have always been able to see that hard work and dedication pays off - we hope that has set them in good stead as they venture out into the world of work. Whether they decide to take on the hat business or move further afield we hope that they understand you really can love the work you do and that it doesn’t have to be just a way of paying the bills.