THOMPSONS Group was one of the first bodybuilders to go back to work after the Covid-19 lockdown was introduced, reopening its doors on 1 April. Although it has since proved to be the right move, Thompsons director Simon Shields (pictured) said the decision to reopen so early certainly wasn’t taken lightly.
‘When we put an announcement on LinkedIn saying that we were planning to return to work, the reaction was mixed,’ he explained. ‘Half the people were saying ‘I can’t believe you are bringing people back’, and the other half were saying ‘hooray, the economy is getting back on its feet. Well done and good luck’.’
First to open was its Blackburn based eParts division, which was a reaction to constant phone enquiries. ‘The phone didn’t stop ringing from day one,’ he recalled. ‘Then someone asked if we could fix a tailgate, and that brought the service guys back.’
