An industry-leading businessman has praised the ‘Kenilworth mum’ who set the company he runs on its way to success.
Clint Wilson, Chief Executive of ParentPay, hailed the company’s founder Lynne Taylor for the idea which sparked the creation and success of the online school payments business which now dominates the market across the UK.
Their success was highlighted at the Coventry and Warwickshire Champions event to a group of 200 business leaders in the region at the Ricoh Arena, which is now the headquarters for the company.
He outlined the growth of the business from the initial idea formed in Lynne’s conservatory to the business’s current position as the market-leader in school payment systems.
“Lynne’s simple but effective idea came from her own experiences as a parent and the lack of a convenient solution for sending money to school for trips and lunches, other than children carrying cash,” he said.
“She realised parents had to find the cash, children had to carry the money to school, staff then had to collect it before taking it to the bank.
“It was so inefficient and inconvenient, there had to be a better way.
“And so, ParentPay was born: a simple solution for securely sending money to school, that has grown to become an industry-leading company.
“Continuous investment and a lot of hard work has seen us expand to the size we are now, with 13,500 UK schools and 5.5 million pupils using our service.”
The Champions meeting also heard from three other major names based in the region.
Mike Platt, from Meggitt Aerospace Engineering, which specialises in aerospace, defence and energy, outlined the £130 million ‘super-site’ at Ansty Park which will base around 1,000 highly skilled staff in the region.
The National Farmers’ Union, based at Stoneleigh Park, supports the 40,000 people working on farms in the West Midlands, with £38 million generated in income in 2017.
NFU President Minette Batters outlined the role of the organisation across the county and spoke about the need for the farming industry to see an orderly Brexit.
Stuart Cain, Managing Director of Wasps, opened the meeting and outlined the role of the Ricoh Arena in the visitor economy.
Les Ratcliffe, Chair of the CW Place Board added: “Our spring Champions event was able to bring together the top business leaders from the region to promote Coventry and Warwickshire as a great place to do business.
“Our influential speakers perfectly highlighted how the region is at the forefront of so many industries and it is really positive to see how CW Champions continues to grow and attract such large numbers to our events.”
For more information about how to get involved contact Champions Manager Nic Erskine at nic.erskine@cwlep.com.