How Kerry Dusi CEO of HD Forwarding started her business empire from a single laptop

"I fell into a job in logistics,’’ she said. “I originally worked in recruitment, which was another role I fell into.

"It did help me pick up sales skills; a lot of recruitment is about selling, although you are selling the talents of people rather than a product.”

A light-hearted comment proved to be the catalyst for a sudden change of career direction.

"One of the recruitment company's clients was a business that worked at Doncaster Sheffield Airport,’’ she said. “The director told me he could use a PA, so I decided to take on the job, which introduced me to the logistics sector.”

She developed a deep affinity with the world of logistics and the processes surrounding the movement of goods around the country. She also picked up a management qualification which gave her the chance to develop leadership skills, which were soon to face the ultimate test.

"After being made redundant from this role, I took on another jobs within the sector but I decided it wasn't for me and I struggled to fit it around life at home,’’ she said. "I thought, 'I can do this myself'. So I set up the business on a dining room table with my laptop.”

She was about to face a very steep learning curve. However, Ms Dusi refused to be daunted by the colossal challenges ahead.

"I had no real business knowledge,’’ she said. “I didn't for example, have detailed knowledge of corporation tax, and found that potential customers wouldn't work with me without additional financial backing.

"My mum and dad lent me £10,000 to get the business off the ground. I set up the HD Group in November 2019, just before the pandemic struck.”

Many businesses struggled to cope with lockdown, as parts of the economy simply ground to a halt. But Ms Dusi’s dedication soon started to pay off.

“I learned to take the rough with the smooth,’’ she said. “We soon had around 50 articulated lorry loads delivering goods such as toilet paper and pasta to major retailers.

"Through cold calling I've managed to establish relationships with customers. We collect and deliver goods to customers, using hauliers who bid for the chance to take on the work online.”

As many firms prepared for contraction, Ms Dusi’s enterprise really started to take off.

"I employed my first staff member in April 2020,’’ she said. “During the pandemic we found ourselves inundated with requests for delivering Covid tests. We were very much in the right place at the right time.”

She places great emphasis on building a strong workplace culture, which focuses on teamwork and customer service.

"I managed to recruit the right people to support me,’’ she said. “We have a really strong management team who are all pushing in the same direction. We don't have our own fleet of vehicles and act like a company's procurement department, but secure better rates than if you went to the hauliers directly.

"We have got customers joining us every day because it is so easy.”

Logistics has traditionally been male-dominated. Ms Dusi is determined to encourage young people from a wide variety of backgrounds to consider taking up jobs in a sector which often struggles to fill roles.

"Fifty per cent of our workforce is female,’’ she said. “That's a big issue for our industry; there are simply not enough women in it.

"We also need to attract more young people to the sector. I like to go to local schools and talk to them about the things they want to do when they leave education. A lot of them don't understand how we get things from A to B.

"I'm always keen to invite students into our workplace. They pick up an understanding of the importance of punctuality, dressing smartly and other skills. They build up an understanding of how we conduct ourselves at work.”

The business will soon have 19 staff and the most recent annual turnover was £3m, which is expected to rise to £5m this year. Ms Dusi is determined to ensure her company’s growth benefits the local economy.

She added: "In terms of our expansion plans, we have opened a 100,000 sq ft storage facility in Cheshire and plan to open another warehouse closer to home on this side of the Pennines.

"It may be close to Doncaster,’’ she said. “I'm a big advocate for Doncaster as a place. It's where I was born and raised and it has just achieved city status. It's got great transport links and an active chamber of commerce which holds events to promote women in business.”

She enjoys speaking at events which inspire women to set up their own business. Above all, Ms Dusi believes business leaders must take pride in the communities that sustain them. It’s vital to think long term and give something back.

"I've got a 15-year-old son and I hope he will go on to work in the fulfilment side of the business. I want to go on creating jobs for local people in my home city."