Member Article

Land Rover puts Jonathon in a spin

Bicycle specialist, The Land Rover Outlet Store, has put Jonathon Lyon into gear as the first apprentice at its facility at Royal Quays, North Shields

20-year-old Jonathon, from North Shields, was selected by Scott Hillyard, the company’s Sales Director to take up the position, after impressing with his enthusiasm and ability.

Land Rover, the world famous British brand, has been designing and producing bicycles for the past eight years and, in 2012, chose Newcastle’s only outlet centre as the location for its first cycle and accessories standalone store.

The store features a range of city, mountain and trekking bikes and accessories and clothing that are suitable for small children through to experienced cyclists.

Scott Hillyard, said: “The centre is proving to be a fantastic location for us as we develop our offering. As a store, we wanted to offer customers a workshop service, with the aim of training an apprentice in the art of ‘spannering’, so that we are able to offer on-the-spot help for servicing or bike repair.

“With the help of Royal Quays Centre Manager, Judith Ramshaw, we hired Jonathon at the start of June and he is proving to be a great asset to the company. He stood out as he is very mechanically minded and had a real flair when it came to the retail aspect of the job and engaging with customers.”

Jonathon, who had been unemployed for six months was referred to Ingeus for specialist support. Delivering the government’s Work Programme throughout the North East, Ingeus provides a free of charge recruitment service to employers in the region, and works with recognised training providers to ensure the skills and aspirations of jobseekers like Jonathan are matched to vacancies.

“I am in the store four days a week and the fifth day is spent at college where I learn Bicycle Mechanics at a Level 2 stage, it is a great way for me to develop a solid skill set,” said Jonathon.

Royal Quays Centre Manager, Judith Ramshaw, said: “At Royal Quays we greatly support the development of local talent. I was delighted to work as a ‘go-between’ for Ingeus and Land Rover to help put forward my recommendations for a suitable candidate.

“It is great that Jonathon is getting the opportunity to gain real hands-on experience by interacting with customers whilst learning a trade.”

Royal Quays has 50 stores which employ around 500 staff, making it an important employment hub for the North Tyneside area.

It is home to a number of top brands offering up to 60% off RRP such as Marks & Spencer Outlet, Nike Factory Store, Gap Outlet, Collectables Outlet, Clarks, Next, Hallmark Outlet and Mountain Warehouse, along with a vast range of local, independent retailers specialising in areas such as sport, fashion, jewellery, music and electrical items.

As well as attracting famous brands, since it was opened in 1996, Royal Quays has achieved great success in assisting local retailers looking to get to the next stage of their development.

Packages include competitive and flexible rent agreements that can be linked to store performance as well as expert advice from the on-site management team on marketing, shop design, presentation and sales.

For more information, please visit www.royalquaysoutlet.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Royal Quays Outlet Centre .