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Our newest recruits...
Our next round of new starters have arrived! Over recent weeks we’ve welcome 4 new faces to the team.Alice Raven joins us after completing 3 years as a Geography teacher, Alice is joining our Agriculture team and is already busy finding great candidates for our clients roles.Hannah, Harvey and Jack join us after taking part in our assessment centre just a few weeks back. New to recruitment and the industry, they are well under way in our MorePeople academy learning the ropes before settling into their new desks.Find out more here, and be sure to find them on LinkedIn!
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Environmental Horticulture Group Parliament Lunch
A new Environmental Horticulture Group (EHG) launched last week at a parliamentary event in Westminster, and of course our Horticulture manager Sarah Want attended! “EHG aims to champion UK gardens, landscaping, arboriculture and environmental horticulture and push the government for greater support for the sector. Industry event in the House of Lords will be attended by more than 160 high-profile MPs, Peers, officials, ministers and sector representatives, as well as TV’s Jim Carter and Alan Titchmarsh”Find out more about the group here > Sarah comments; “I felt privileged to be invited to the Environmental Horticulture Group Parliament Lunch, a big thanks to Boyd Douglas-Davies for this. The YPHA Committee were there to represent, as well as industry leaders across all sectors of Horticulture. The lunch was set up as an opportunity to network, as well as to hear about industry updates. Boyd explained that the former Ornamental Horticulture Roundtable Group was changing, to the Environmental Horticulture Group aims to champion UK gardens, landscaping, arboriculture and environmental horticulture and push the government for greater support for the sector. Some of their key focuses are around cross-border trade, seasonal workers and improving environmental sustainability. As well as Boyd, we also heard from Baroness Fookes, who explained her role was to support this, and do her best to get Government to rise to the challenge too. Trudy Harrison (MP) also said a few words, as well as Actor Jim Carter and Gardener Alan Titchmarsh, about the importance of gardening, the environment and the impact on everyone in general. One of my favourite quotes was from Alan Tichmarsh who described the Horticulture industry as being ‘the saviours of the nation”. Personally, I got to spend time representing the YPHA, and how we can play an important part in the changes needed within the industry, and I also got to meet a number of clients for a catch up, which is an opportunity I wouldn’t usually get!”
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Get to know... Guy
Name: Guy MoretonPosition: Executive ChairmanTime at MorePeople: Co-founded the business, so 23 years!1. Describe your job in three words: Fast, fabulous, relentless!!!2. What’s the coolest thing you’re working on right now? An MD role for one of our great clients who grow salad crops and supply the retailers with fantastic UK home grown fresh produce…they have grown (excuse the pun) their operations massively over the past two years and intend to continue to develop their UK home grown production over the next 2 years3. Which famous person would you love to meet? Barack Obama or dead - Elvis Presley!!!4. Favourite drink: Banana milk shake!!5.Best holiday destination so far: St Lucia…just THE best place in the world!!!6. What are you currently reading? I am re-reading (on audiobook) Dale Carnegie “How to Win Friends and Influence people”, quite simply one of the best self-development books of all time….and the Santa Killer, a novel by Ross Greenwood and the 6th in the series about Detective Inspector John Barton…it’s v good!!7. Current favourite song: Don’t break the heart by Tom Grennan & Billen Ted8. If you weren’t a recruiter, what would you be? Selling flowers or cars!!!9. If you had to watch only one tv show over and over forever, which one would it be? I love Friends and constantly watch the re-runs …it gets better and better the more you watch it!!!10. What’s your biggest claim to fame? I was the first person in the UK to sell a pre-priced/packed cut flower bouquet concept to a UK retailer (1986 and was Tesco) and therefore was involved in the massive development of the UK retail flower sector right from the start!!!11. Where were you born? In Birmingham12. What’s your proudest moment? My kids, my grandkids and our business MorePeople!!!13.Dogs or Cats? DOGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!14. Which football team do you support? Mad fan of Peterborough United15. What did you want to be when you were a kid? Wanted to be a general in the army and for a while a farmer and a vet too!!!16. What three things are you taking to a deserted island? Phone for the audiobooks and head phones (headphones include with phone PLEASE!!??) PLUS matches and a pen-knife 17. Do you have any phobias? I don’t like watching TV progs with loads of blood…….ironically I am absolutely fine with blood in real life, just on casualty!!!18. Where are you next going on holiday? Not sure yet but possibly Majorca or Crete19. What’s your least favourite household chore? Ironing20. Describe MorePeople in three words: Great value for money, fast and dynamic and a great place to work …I know that’s not three words but it is three things!!!????21. What do you love most about your sector? Pace, the people, the products…if I had to choose one, then the people we deal with every day make this job the BEST IN THE WORLD!!!22. Who inspires you? My hero’s in life are the people who do a job they hate in order to put food on the table…I have always been lucky to do a job that I loved….flower selling and recruitment…but people who get up every day to do a job they don’t love to earn money get my utmost admiration…otherwise people who get over adversity and make something of their lives after something awful or tragic or problematic has occurred….in terms of people…..Martin Luther King inspires me.23. What is the worst job you ever had? I spent a few weeks collecting bull semen on a Milk Marketing Board AI (Artificial Insemination) Semen collection unit in Suffolk !!....that was fun !!!
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Get to know... Richard
Name: Richard HanwellPosition: MDTime at MorePeople: 2 years & 6 months1. Describe your job in three words: Exciting, Fun, Strategic 2. What’s the coolest thing you’re working on right now: The growth of the team and overall business in order to hit our 2025 goal. 3. Which famous person would you love to meet: Sir Alex Ferguson 4. Favourite drink: Erdinger Alkoholfrei 5. Best holiday destination so far: Boracay 6. What are you currently reading? Think Again, Adam Grant 7. Current favourite song: How Does It Feel – Tom Grennan 8. If you weren’t a recruiter, what would you be? – Broke 9. If you had to watch only one tv show over and over forever, which one would it be? Probably Friends although I can finish nearly ever joke that they make already.. 10. Where were you born? Stamford 11. What’s your proudest moment? Becoming a father – I now have four children and I am done! 12. Dogs or Cats? Dogs 13. Which football team do you support? Manchester United 14. What skill do you wish you possess? Patience or the ability to not get embarrassed! 15. What’s your guilty pleasure? Stalking houses I cannot afford on rightmove (daily) 16. What did you want to be when you were a kid? Professional Cricket Player or a photographer 17. What three things are you taking to a deserted island? Tough one as I have four children and a wife so can I take five things please…. 18. Do you have any phobias? Snakes, they freak me out. 19. Where are you next going on holiday? Caribbean 20. What’s your least favourite household chore? Ironing, I have NO patience. 21. Describe MorePeople in three words: Dynamic, Progressive, Fun 22. What do you love most about your sector? Everyone has an affiliation with it as we all eat. The industries resilience is second to none. 23. Who inspires you? My parents and brothers 24. What is the worst job you ever had? I haven’t had any shocking jobs but prior to driving I used to have to get a 5:30am bus to one of my first jobs which sucked!
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RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023
Horticulture Team Manager Sarah attended her first Chelsea shower show this year, along with other members of the YPHA.It sounded like a great, jam pack day, complete with finding herself on the future of horticulture board!“We started our day early, having been invited to the Chelsea Breakfast for Young People. We listened to talk from the RHS Director General, Clare Matteson and others who gave the YPHA a shoutout. We had the opportunity to get into some gardens and meet the volunteers before the show opened to the public. We steped into the Samaritans Listening Garden, which was all about the journey of struggling with mental health challenges, reaching out for help (through Samaritans and others) and then what life can look like as you work through these challenges. We also got to meet Manoj Malde, who is an award-winning designer and was able to get married on the garden he created! We then went into an entomology-inspired garden, which was covered by a dome and gave us an insight into what fly’s and other insects see, as well as how gardens support the ecosystem.The rest of the day was taken over by walking, meeting other people and continuing to be inspired by the industry.One of my favourite things I got to do was visit the Flora and Fauna Gorilla Nest gardens. A huge thanks to Chris Moncrieff (RHS) for getting us some VIP tours into some gardens, but this one was inspiring. It was a tour of a forest environment including many beautiful varieties of plants, a gorilla nest and a waterfall! It was highlighting the story of endangered species and their habitats. As a wildlife conservation charity, it was great to hear about their aims and what they do!We saw lots of new varieties of plants and one thing that stood out to me, was how ‘weeds’ were encompassed into a lot of the gardens. It felt like there was a big emphasis on biodiversity and ecosystems, and also making the gardens seem more ‘real’ to an amateur gardener, much like myself! We also got to spend a bit of time with Mike Opperman from Tropical Plants UK, who talked to us about British Grown Houseplants, and living walls. He also gave us some top tips for caring for your houseplants, including how to get the most out of water!”
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Get to know... Andy
Name: Andrew FitzmauricePosition: CEOTime at MorePeople: 13 years1. Describe your job in three words: Dynamic, Interesting, Fun 2. What’s the coolest thing you’re working on right now: We’ve just built and ran an Assessment Centre for our internal recruitment. It’s been great to be at the point in our growth where we can do these now. 3. Which famous person would you love to meet: Tiger Woods 4. Favourite drink: Peroni probably. 5. Best holiday destination so far: Gold Coast, Australia. 6. What are you currently reading? The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell. 7. Current favourite song: Make it look Easy, Dita. 8. If you weren’t a recruiter, what would you be? Pro golfer. 9. If you had to watch only one tv show over and over forever, which one would it be? Tough one. It’d be Peep Show, Succession, House of Cards, Billions, Yellowstone, The Office? 10. Where were you born? Blackburn 11. What’s your proudest moment? My kids being born. 12. Dogs or Cats? Generally, I’d say neither, but a miniature Dachshund (Fendi) has joined the household and we’re building a little bond. 13. Which football team do you support? I’m generally happy as a neutral but if pushed, I’ve probably got to say Blackburn Rovers 14. What skill do you wish you possess? Patience. 15. What’s your guilty pleasure? Singing in my car or the kitchen when there’s no one around. 16. What did you want to be when you were a kid? Fighter Pilot 17. What three things are you taking to a deserted island? My wife, my son and my daughter. 18. Do you have any phobias? Nah. Pfttt. 19. Where are you next going on holiday? Crete 20. What’s your least favourite household chore? Hanging out the washing 21. Describe MorePeople in three words: Exciting, Inspirational, Special. 22. What do you love most about your sector? That we’re involved in real tangible things. We all need to eat. We play a real part in making a difference. 23. Who inspires you? My parents. 24. What is the worst job you ever had? I’ve been lucky, I think. Even the boring ones have been ok, and I look back all dewy-eyed about the charm of a paper round in the rain or cutting grass on the golf course at 5am.
