Home comforts boost

James Oliver Conservatories, which has invested over £250,000 into its new showroom on Crofton Road in Lincoln, has taken on two new apprentices as part of a recruitment drive that has seen employee numbers rise from 35 to 50 since the end of lockdown.

Part of the Conservatory Outlet retail network, the company has taken on Lloyd and Zack as apprentice bricklayers.

Interest has risen across all the firm’s product lines, including replacing conservatory roofs with solid roofs, complete living spaces, conservatories, orangeries and individual windows and doors.

“The last 12 months have been some of our busiest in our 40-year history and we’ve seen orders from all over the region, from the Lincolnshire coast across to Mansfield and parts of north Nottinghamshire,” Simon Ahearn, general manager of James Oliver Conservatories, said.

“We’ve found we need more staff in all parts of the business to make sure we can complete existing projects and deliver new work in timescales the clients are happy with.”

He continued: “We’ve taken on a lot of experienced people, but also recognised the need to grow our own staff, and this has seen us invest in Lloyd and Zack, working with Lincoln College to help deliver a mix of practical and theoretical training, boosted by an internal mentoring programme with senior colleagues.”