Profile - Malcolm Myers: On the route to success – by way of a ford and a dodging deer . . .

THERE are times when it’s hard for a rally driver to be an animal lover.

If a deer steps out in front of you, when you’re going at full throttle, there’s only one option if you want to get home safely.

You drive straight on and reduce the deer to venison.

But Malcolm Myers couldn’t do this. It was a decision that could have cost him his life.

Sitting in the calm of a Leeds restaurant, he recalled his brush with death in the hurly-burly world of the Lombard RAC rally.

It was clearly more than a casual pastime.

Mr Myers is a man who prides himself on bringing a single-minded intensity to all he does. His latest business venture is built around the resurgence in the letting market, as mortgages become harder to find. His experience as a rally driver taught him a great deal about the importance of focus and self-discipline.

“I had an Escort RS 1600 which I totally rebuilt,” Mr Myers said: “That was a great passion for me.

“I had a navigator, Jeremy Brown, with whom I had a love-hate relationship.

“When he used to tell me to go left, I used to go right, and vice versa.”

Which brings us to the deer incident. The animal stepped in front of Mr Myers’s car as he was trying to gain ground on his rivals.

“When you’re rally driving, you’re told that you’ve just got to go for it,’’ said Mr Myers.

“Unfortunately, I couldn’t do that because I’m an animal lover. Instead of going straight ahead I took a tight left and went straight into a ford. The deer escaped safely.”

Thankfully, Mr Myers and his navigator also escaped unhurt.

Rally drivers aren’t a timid breed. There’s no room for self doubt when you’re negotiating a tight bend at great speed.

Although he’s only 52, Mr Myers has already clocked up a 35-year business career, in sectors ranging from clothing to property.

His working day starts at 7.30am and can go on until 9pm.

As a child, he was a gifted footballer, who had a trial with Leeds United during the Don Revie era.

Although the trial went well, his heart was already set on longer-term business goals.

He added: “I left school aged 17 because I knew I was going to work in the family business.”

His family owned Sydney Green (Leeds), a clothing business that employed 100 people during its heyday in the 1970s. He recalled: “I learned all about the industry, moving from the cutting room to the machine room to the dispatch room. I then broke out into sales.”

He’s never lacked self belief. In the early 1980s, he was promoted to a sales position, and given a task that would have brought most people out in a cold sweat. He was sent from the dispatch room to a street synonymous with the world’s finest tailors.

“My first appointment was in Savile Row in London,’’ he said. “I was given an Austin Allegro motor car, with a square steering wheel, and £100 in cash for my fuel. So off I went to Burlington Uniforms.”

Mr Myers calmly strolled down a street which had once been visited by the likes of Winston Churchill and Lord Nelson, as they hunted down the perfect suit. Mr Myers had done his homework. He was even happy to do a spot of modelling in order to secure a contract.

He said: “I had already made samples and took those along with me. They included airline uniforms, and men’s suits.

“These samples were made to fit me, so I was able to put them on and secured the order.

“A lot of it was about preparation, but I’ve never been a nervy person. You can’t have nerves if you’re in a selling environment.”

A natural entrepreneur, he spotted an opportunity which took him into the airline industry.

“We had an office near Heathrow airport,’’ he recalled. “We got the contract for Pan-Am airways to provide the uniforms for all the cabin crew. It grew to include other airlines.”

During the darkest days of the 1980s recession, he decided to fly the flag for Yorkshire business.

“The industry was going through a very tough time,’’ he recalled. “I decided to buy a Bedford van which came from JCT600 (the Bradford-based motor group). They put the Union Jack on it for me. It had the words ‘Sydney Green: British Made Clothes’ all over it.”

It soon became a familiar sight around Leeds, and Mr Myers still has a fading newspaper cutting which shows the van in action.

In 1986, the family business was sold and Mr Myers didn’t fancy working for somebody else.

Initially, he set up a company called MSM Clearance which sold “overmakes” of clothing. He set up his latest business venture, MSM Properties, four years ago, at a time when the property market was about to tumble into the abyss.

Ever resourceful, he’s managed to find growth during a time of economic upheaval.

The company, which has grown entirely by referral and recommendations, provides property management services. It recently moved into new premises in Kirkstall Road, Leeds, Today, it manages 50 properties in Leeds and Bradford, and Mr Myers hopes to have 100 on his books before the end of the year.

Essentially, Mr Myers offers a “hands on approach” that enables clients to sit back and let MSM deal with the day-to-day running of the property. So Mr Myers will, for example, check tenants’ references and collect rents.

He will also make sure that the properties aren’t allowed to deteriorate during the term of a tenancy.

The company’s website contains words of praise from landlords and tenants.

“My values are very simple. They revolve around three things – and those are loyalty, honesty and integrity,’’ he said. “And, at the end of that, there’s a passion to succeed.”

These are torrid times for first time buyers, but people still need places to live, which can be good news if you’ve got a property to rent.

“The property market place is very difficult,’’ said Mr Myers. “Young couples can’t get mortgages from banks. You’ve got to put down a huge deposit.

“They don’t have that type of collateral so they look to the letting market which is growing substantially.

“2012 is going to be a difficult time,’’ he added. “I see the letting market growing for the next five to eight years. We can help landlords to find the right tenant.”

His rallying days may be over, but he still finds “thinking time” while driving a classic car.

He said: “My most exciting car is my Jaguar XK8, which I love to pieces. My next goal is to own a Bentley Coupe.”

But the iron self-discipline hasn’t deserted him. He won’t think about buying a Bentley, until the money is in the bank to pay for it.

“You’ve got to keep a level head, treat your staff fairly, and keep your reins tight,’’ he said.

Malcolm Myers Factfile

Name: Malcolm Myers

Date of birth: September 20 1959

Title: Managing director MSM Properties, which is based in Kirkstall Road, Leeds

Education: Allerton Grange High School

Favourite film: James Bond: The Man With The Golden Gun

Favourite holiday destination: Madeira

Favourite song: Shirley Bassey: Diamonds are Forever

Last book read: I don’t read books. I just love classic car magazines.

Thing you’re most proud of: It has to be starting my successful business and also having a wonderful partner.

Car driven: Jaguar XK8