Our story.

“At sixteen, I trained to be an electrician at a company called Escott Brothers in South Woodford. Completing my apprenticeship in 1965, I worked on a variety of projects having received extensive training associated with controls and motors for the printing, laundry and bakery industries, and in later years would be responsible for the design and installation of electrical services within major superstores, hospitals and other high-profile projects.

I stayed with Escott Brothers until early 1974 before taking the next step in my career. With the ever-present support of my wife Diane, I formed my own business, Essex Electrical Services (Rayleigh Ltd) and by the following year alongside Clive Allard we had set up a small working office in Benfleet, Essex. The cramped loft space we occupied offered what we needed to carry out general tasks, designs and accounts. This was the start of my journey, building the company ESG are today.

Like any new start-up, we needed to provide a focused and trusted service to grow. Operating seven days a week, we began to see a steady flow of work come through the business and by 1975, the supermarket chain Cator Brothers became our primary client. This family business was an early competitor to Sainsbury’s and Tesco and although later disappearing in 1979, this would be the first of many retailers that we would provide services for.

Although still in its early days, we were aware that our new venture needed to be better structured and supported. A relative, Stan Muffitt had agreed to invest, helping with future progression and for a short time became our first Managing Director alongside myself, Clive Allard, Mike Wood, Brian Sampson and Malcolm Cluness.

Our initial work within the retail sector had expanded into banking and commercial developments, thanks in part to the emergence of Canary Wharf’s regeneration plan and alongside major projects we established a special works department to support our larger contracts. This team remains an integral element of our company today as ESG Prime, delivering fast-track specialist fitout services, maintenance and aftercare.

Throughout the years as our business grew, we operated from various premises, moving from Manor Park, Redbridge and onto Ley Street in Ilford.

The 1990’s saw more changes, with the departure of Mike Wood who was instrumental in winning many of our early major projects, and the promotion of Barry Quinnell to Director who continued to run our retail sector projects for many years. We concluded the decade with another relocation to our current home in Danes Road, Romford.

Operating from a much larger head office and with annual turnover increasing, I knew the next step in our development was the task of becoming a single source, multi-services contractor.