What’s the background of the owners? 

Matt started at Ideal Furniture after he left school back in 2003. At the time Ideal Furniture was one of the UK’s only companies to specialise in a combination of Manufacturing, Importing and Wholesale home furniture.

He started off working in the yard unloading 7-10 bed lorries a day by 8 am and then continued throughout the day reloading all the beds, mattresses, manufactured furniture and imports onto all the incoming customer’s vans. For them, it was great working with their family and they can say that their grandad, the founder Joseph Spicer was a tough boss. 

It was at first difficult to try and separate the loving grandad from the driven hard-working no-nonsense boss. Just like other families who run a business together, it is often harder to manage and organize everything and work with your own family. But family is family so as time went on they learned that this is a different workplace with different lunch rules. 

Shortly after this at the age of just 17, Matt found himself in the large lorries and attics delivering all their manufactured furniture around London on his own most of the time. He was not sure how at this age he was trusted but his father had faith so he proceeded with confidence. 

A few dents and years later he began to climb the ladder and start taking more control within the business. He began to help manufacture the products and learn a bit more about the machines and manufacturing side. 

In 2007 Daniel entered the business and he came with a lot of great ideas and changes which at the time give the business some fresh ideas and the boost it needed in places. 

Established as a family business in 1957, they have continued that tradition and have been run by the Spicer family ever since. They are now the third generation which has probably had to deal with the most testing times in recent years. Then based in Bow, East London, Ideal’s factory and warehouses were well placed to help deliver great quality wholesale furniture across the whole of the United Kingdom.

In 2017 the business was great and both of them are now in joint charge of the manufacturing plant. It was difficult at a young age to manage many different types of people of all ages and with different mentalities. However, they believe this is what helped them learn quickly how to manage and run a business by managing staff. They’ve always seen that as the key to success as staff make or break a business. 

The ideal is now supplying some of the UK’s largest retailers. New to the business is their bespoke furniture designs. 

As Director of Ideal Furniture, Matt is always on the lookout for new opportunities to grow the business, work with and supply market-leading companies and provide the best customer service experience possible.

Since Matt became a Director, the business at Ideal has grown from strength to strength, with over a thousand new customers added to their existing client base. New designs have now been created for the ever-growing furniture market.

Many other areas of the company have improved over the last ten years since my employment, helping to create several new opportunities for the business. Matt also championed an initiative employing young job seekers, which has provided the company with new staff with great energy, drive, determination and new ideas. 

What are the values that drive the owners? 

Family is their first and most important. They want to make their family and children proud. 

They want to also achieve and create products and businesses that tell a story and offer more than just a normal piece of furniture. 

What do the owners enjoy doing when they are not working? 

Mainly spending time with their children. Playing golf and when there’s time, going on holidays. Eating good food with good people.

What are their typical responsibilities as business owners? 

Managing the staff, factories, warehouse and day-to-day decision-making, motivating the team, chasing new customers and designing new products.

As owners, they are responsible for the overall operations of the company. They are in charge of managing and motivating the staff, while also making sure that they are working efficiently. They make sure that the company is making enough money to cover its expenses and keep it afloat. They also ensure that the company has a good reputation in the market and is seen as reliable.

They are skilled and they have a good understanding of these fields so they can make sound decisions on behalf of their company.

For them, managing the staff is one of the most important tasks in a factory. They take care of their needs and motivate them. They believe that this will reflect on their being creative with their day-to-day decisions and chasing new customers.

How would you describe your company's workplace culture?

They believe that It’s a real mixture as every day is different. They are quite a young team with many ambitious thoughts and designs. They are trying to use all of their experiences, expertise and contacts in the furniture industry their family has gained over the past 60 years.