 Broadview Blinds can trace its history back to 1969 when David Pratt, recently redundant from his job as the manager of a DIY store in the Poole area, started to sell venetian blind kits. David already had some experience of the blinds market from his contact with Hopsons in Axminster, Devon whose venetians he sold in the DIY shop, and he contacted them again in his new, self-employed, capacity and became an agent for their made-to-measure venetian blinds.
The business in the early days was not easy - David initially had no telephone and used an answering service to take the calls in response to his advertisements for 'venetian blinds at factory prices'. He would then make appointments with customers, measure up, send the orders to Hopsons, collect the finished blinds from Axminster (stacked on the roof of his Mini), and then fit them himself.
Business carried on in this way for about a year, during which time he employed his wife and got his own telephone. David then started looking for premises locally and, coincidentally, found a DIY store that was closing down. He took over the lease and kept the shop running but converted part of it into a blinds showroom. After another year the DIY side was becoming less profitable so that side of the business was run down and the space used to manufacture venetian blinds using machinery and components from Perma.
By this time, David was employing several people to help with the manufacture and installation and had expanded the product range to include Dutch canopies and some awnings. In those days canopies had painted wooden frames and he asked a local paint manufacturer, Farrow & Ball, to make him a quick-drying paint, which would speed up the whole process.
By 1973, the business was ready for further expansion and a further site was acquired for venetian and roller blind manufacture. This site was rapidly outgrown as the name of Broadview Blinds became better known in the locality, and a further site - this time of 4000ft2 - was taken on. In 1979 David opened his second showroom in a prominent position at Christchurch, believed to be the first specific blind showroom in a High Street position in the UK. was obviously a big step, and a major investment, but fortunately it worked from day one.
Around this time Broadview became involved in selling the Window Dresser product which was advertised nationally on television by Larry Grayson. It consisted of a telescopic roller tube which could therefore fit any window and used a vinyl fabric with a choice of several colours and designs and available in four sizes. The advantage was that a roller blind could be trimmed to size on a special machine while-you-wait, and the vinyl fabric made the blinds particularly suitable for kitchen and bathrooms.
The business expansion that this generated encouraged David to open a further showroom in Broadstone and by now the company was manufacturing its own venetian, roller and vertical blinds as well as Dutch canopies. At that time, vertical blinds were in their infancy and mostly used in commercial situations but they started becoming increasing popular for homes by the mid-eighties and have remained a staple product for Broadview since then. It was soon after, that the company started to manufacture Pleated blinds mainly for conservatories, thus increasing its share of the market place even further.
David's two sons have, fortunately for him and the business, always had an interest in the company, and by the late eighties had joined their father in the blinds trade. Mark and Ian Pratt are both still actively involved and now run the operation as joint managing directors, with David now taking a back seat as Chairman and looking after marketing and advertising. During their time with the company two additional showrooms have been opened in the area at Ferndown and Westbourne.
A decision was taken to set up a wholesaling operation supplying a wide range of blinds and awnings to soft furnishing shops and blind specialists all over the country. A sales rep, Martin Rayner, was taken on to build up the business which has now grown to become one of the leading suppliers of awning systems and external fabrics in the UK, managed by Martin Rayner and Graham Curtis who are now both directors with many years experience in the industry. A new digital printing service will be launched at the forthcoming Blinds &_Shutters exhibition at telford for both PVC and acrylic exterior fabrics.
Broadview has also been appointed as the exclusive UK distributors of the new Brustor B-28 and B-28XL with optional lighting, an easy to fit fully enclosed cassette awning (based on the B-25). Other new models in the Brustor range include the new B-35 with a massive 4 metre projection, and the new very compact fully enclosed B-50.
One of Broadview's more unusual diversifications, however, came more by chance than design. David's younger son Ian had been involved in moto-cross from an early age and, like all keen parents, David would drive him to race meetings in his Iveco van, which came complete with workshop and accommodation. The more they travelled, in all weathers, the more they realised that if their van had an awning they could live and work much more easily. Research showed that an American company had a suitable product so they became an agent - after installing one on their own van. Promotion was quite easy; other moto-cross enthusiasts that they meet at each race meeting would ask about their awning and sales soon followed.
The Belgian company Omnistor took over the operation of the American firm and Broadview Blinds thus became their UK agent. The whole product range was redesigned by Omnistor and manufacturing was switched to Belgium and expanded to include a wide range of van and campervan accessories including awnings, side panels, roof boxes, cycle racks etc. Broadview started to market these in the UK more widely and now is a regular exhibitor at motor caravan and outdoor shows throughout the country. Where they offer an on site fitting service from their mobile exhibition unit.
The concept of awnings on vans has recently been taken on a step further with the introduction of the Broadview "Anexe-Room". A heavy duty weatherproof awning system converting an awning into a room, available up to 6.5metres wide with up to 4.0metres projection with detachable side and front panels including windows and doors. The "Anexe" is suitable for exhibition & hospitality units, motor sport transporters, horse boxes, mobile workshops etc. The "Anexe" can also be installed on the sides of pubs, clubs and catering establishments to create additional seating or a smoking area. There is also a model with arched windows suitable for the home patio.
Also in demand is the Broadview "Promo-Barrier" for outdoor events, exhibitions, motor-sport etc. restraining the general public without shutting them out. A unique modular designed free-standing system that can be supplied branded with your logo or left blank. The "Promo-Barrier" will remain taught and clearly visible but can be quickly dismantled and stored away an a carry bag. The "Promo-Barrier" can be built up in seconds and can be coupled to as many as you require from end to end.
Broadview supply blinds and awnings to companies and organisations around the UK. The new RNLI headquarters based in Poole, recently opened by the Queen, required the building to be fitted with all types of blinds. Several hundred were made and fitted, some with motorised controls amounting to some £50,000 of work. The RNLI also required part of its training area to be pitch black to simulate a night-time environment, black-out roller blinds with remote control were installed to facilitate that simulation. Sunseeker, the exclusive luxury power-boat manufacturer, install one of Broadview's awning systems over the cockpit of one of its models.
Broadview Blinds now employs approximately 40 staff and operates from a 12,000ft2 modern industrial unit consisting of production areas with offices on two floors and a large factory showroom. They also have four local showrooms in High Street locations. Broadview Blinds core market remains with window blinds and awnings for both the domestic and commercial user, as it did from the beginning back in 1969.
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