3 minute read

The surprising story of Thorne Fire and Security

from InBusiness Burnley - Issue 21, May 2023

from InBusiness Burnley - Issue 21, May 2023, page 58

In Focus : Burnley - our resil...

The story of Thorne Fire and Security is a great example of this as Hadrian Thorne, the managing director explains: “I founded the businesses back in 2006 after bumping into the managing director of Crow Wood Leisure Andrew Brown. My wife Alison was working at Crow Wood at the time and brought me along to the staff Christmas party.”

After chatting to Andrew at the bar, Hadrian - who was then a fire and security engineer - admitted he didn’t know where his career was heading.

“Andrew just looked at me and said, ‘Well why don’t you just start your own business then?’. And I replied, ‘How do set up a business?’. The next day we met for breakfast, and I came away with a business plan and a business loan and the rest is history. It’s because of Andrew that Thorne is the success it is today,” Hadrian says.

It’s clear the impact this encounter has, as Hadrian tells us that Thorne Fire and Security was born on 6th February 2006 – the exact date cemented in his mind.

That’s not to underestimate the hard work of Hadrian and his team, including Tom Bradley, business development manager, who has worked at the company for four years now.

“I have a new-born daughter and the team have been amazing at ensuring I’ve come back from paternity leave without a huge to-do list. The company treats staff well and our staff growth is all organic and through word of mouth. Similarly, we don’t need to do outbound sales, happy clients mean we are often recommended through referrals,” Tom explains.

Resilience In The Face Of The Credit Crunch

Whilst the business had a rocky start with the credit crunch happening just two years into its journey, it has grown every year since then. Speaking of this time Hadrian says:

“When times have been challenging we try and focus on the simple things that we can control, communication being the most important. Speaking to our team and my network of trusted business leaders has always enabled us to ignore the white noise and focus on the really simple, important things that can be the difference in survival or failure.”

Hadrian’s goal is to increase profit by 20 per cent in 2023 and hit the £1 million turnover mark.

“Most of our clients are local –our motto is we work from our office door outwards,” Tom states. The business is currently on Lomeshaye Industrial Estate, although Hadrian always keeps an eye out for Burnley premises as they’re clear the business is Burnley through and through.

“We joined the Burnley Bondholders in 2012 because why wouldn’t you?

It’s important to champion and mentor other businesses within the borough, obviously I’m passionate about that. I’m really proud of our Burnley roots and I actually don’t want to grow too large. We’re small enough to care but also big enough to deliver,” Hadrian explains.

Indeed, Burnley FC, VEKA, Crow Wood, and Stonyhurst College are just a handful of the local clients that Thorne provides security and fire systems for. Previously it was known as Thorne Access and Security but has rebranded to Thorne Fire and Security to make clear it can offer the complete package to clients.

It has recently achieved accreditations such as NSI – Fire Silver, BAFE – SP203-1, and FIA – Membership.

It’s a fantastic story – but could they ever see themselves based outside of Burnley and the local area at all?

“Absolutely not,” both Tom and Hadrian answer together.

Tom continues: “I used to play for Burnley FC youth team and attended the centre of excellence from the age of seven, eventually playing in the reserve team aged 16-18. When I was younger, my mum announced one day she was considering moving us to Clayton and I told her absolutely not. When she asked me how far I’d consider moving to, I told her Padiham!”

And we’re delighted to hear it!