They say sharing is caring, but when Edgar Chibaka and Jamal Tahlil co-founded First Response Group in 2007, sharing was their only option.
Running their security firm out of a “cold, run-down office” above an internet cafe in Leeds, the immigrant entrepreneurs had just one laptop to their name, which meant implementing a rota for researching contacts and sending emails.
Fast forward 15 years and the duo not only boast 80 computers and laptops, but also a top corporate gong, having been crowned businesspeople of the year at the Black British Business Awards in October.
The annual event, for which The Telegraph is a media partner, celebrates the achievements of some of the UK’s leading bosses and business owners.
The pair could not be happier to receive the award. “We’re humbled and feel empowered by the whole process,” says Chibaka, who dedicates the win to his “colleagues in the BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) community”.
He hopes that winning will inspire the next generation: “It shows that if you’re determined and put in the hard work, the time will come for you to be recognised.”
Chibaka and Tahlil first met while working as security guards for separate firms. They would often swap stories when their paths crossed on a job. Through their regular catch-ups, the co-founders discovered their respective employers suffered from the same problem: a lack of hands-on, compassionate management. “There wasn’t much care about what we were doing and who we are as people,” recalls Chibaka. “It was very much: get on with it.”
Thinking they could be better managers, the pair looked into climbing the corporate ladder at their companies, but the opportunities and encouragement were not there.
“I said to Jamal: ‘we can do a better job if we do this on our own’ – so we took that gamble,” explains Chibaka.
The entrepreneurs have not had an easy ride turning the venture into an operation with sales of £25m and more than 500 staff.
The company offers a range of services, from security guards and keyholding to CCTV and fire alarm installation, to high-profile clients such as Axa Insurance and HS2 infrastructure developers. But in the beginning, the founders’ list of contacts and customers was non-existent.
“We were new to the country, and had no friends or family in the business world – you need those contacts to help you get started,” says Tahlil, who was first to quit his job to launch the business. “That was really nerve wracking, especially as I had a very young family at the time.”
The key, they say, is persistence. “We had so many doors closed to us because we didn’t have the client references back then,” says Chibaka. “But you keep going. Just because one door is closed, doesn’t mean they all are.”
And when a client does take a chance? Throw “everything” at them to deliver the best product or service you can, he says.
