MI reviews the most ‘important’ release of the week.
Coming soon – Emanuel in Wales
One of my pet hatreds (and I have a fair few) are people who work in the fashion industry. Yes I know we must have clothes because it would be pretty cold without them but do we really need the ‘darling brigade’ flouncing around wearing sailor’s hats with their backsides hanging out? I don’t think so.
Neither do we need couture – hugely expensive 1980s cast-offs only bought, and one would assume worn, by women who’ve had 18 face-lifts.
But, it’s true to say that we do need clothes to go to work in otherwise we’d be arrested for indecent exposure. What most of us don’t have to do though is dress exactly like the rest of the people we work with. If that was the case I’d be wearing shirts and trousers with unknown stains on them everyday. And not just on Fridays.
In a bank or building society branch it’s all a bit different. Staff must not only put on a united front but also the same shirt, blouse, skirt, suit, etc. I think it highly unlikely that the world would spin off its axis if building society staff wore different clothes but some companies obviously think so.
So, step forward the Principality Building Society which can’t wait to tell us about its new uniforms, designed by none other than David Emanual. You remember David, he co-designed Princess Diana’s wedding dress.
The man of course is a fashion genius. Having learnt that the Principality was a Welsh organisation David came up with unique idea to have the uniforms in [can you guess?] red. Wales and red – who would have thought of that?
I’m a bit disappointed that David did not opt for the same number of creases in the uniform as he did for Diana’s dress, but he is still a legend and this is certainly not a case of money for old rope, or old suits.
“We decided very early on that red was the colour,” says David. “It ties in wonderfully with the new brand identity and looks very professional.” It certainly does David but what do the poor buggers who have to wear it actually think?
“Staff members throughout the Principality are delighted with the final look,” says Julie Evans, head of retail network. “The scarf, which has been specifically designed with the Principality’s signature print, is a big hit.”
I’m sure it is Julie. I like nothing better than wearing a scarf in 30-degree heat. I’ll bet the ‘big hit’ is the sound of Principality staff passing out due to heat exhaustion.
Hero to zero
Each issue we ask an industry expert to pick out the good and the bad in the industry. The ugly know who they are. This week Jeff Knight of GMAC-RFC dishes out the brickbats and bouquets
Hero
Those lenders that take the intermediary sector seriously and are fully committed to it and invest in services that meet their needs. This includes investing in technology which has to be the real hero this year. It has made the lives of intermediaries much easier and has given them a powerful tool at the point-of-sale, allowing them to sign-up more customers on day one and enhancing their competitiveness.
Technology has also meant intermediaries have saved time and reduced the amount of paperwork – at a time when regulation has increased it – so it really does have to be a hero.
Zero
A big fat zero has to go to decisions-in-principle. These are
clearly wasting intermediaries’ time and should become a thing of the past. It leaves doubt in the minds of the brokers and more lenders should be investing in providing binding decisions – not those that are merely in principle.
Other zeroes are those lenders who say they are interested in intermediaries, but aren’t really. Also, the national press who try to destabilise the market by suggesting that a market crash is imminent. Anything that can falsely knock consumer confidence – the real driving force in the market – is an anti-hero in my book.
For the love of our staff
A quick word about our friends at Focus Solutions Group plc in Leamington Spa. As you can see the Focus team were out in force in the car park to celebrate its ten-year anniversary.
And what better way to celebrate than with what can only be described as a tatty bit of tarpaulin with the company name on it and a load of empty glasses. Take my word for it not one of the glasses contains any champagne – I assume the management were quaffing it all in the boardroom.
The ‘brains’ behind this pictue has also made a man on crutches (far right) struggle out of the office for the photo and if you look closely at the back there appears to be another man with a banana on his shoulder.
I suggest Focus Solutions staff take the afternoon off – you clearly need it.
