“You can’t run too many scenarios or run too many ‘what if’ assumptions,” he says. “So we’ve just been making sure we’re doing all the right things with our suppliers, credit insurers and the banks. That’s been absolutely critical.

“We’ve tightened up on the peripheral things such as travel, stationary and staff uniforms. It’s about being smart and effective, and managing the process to eliminate waste. “

Household goods retailer BrightHouse, however, hasn’t tightened up on people. David says: “We absolutely make sure we’ve got service and retail people where we need them, and we keep on training them”

The work has paid off as during the Christmas period, like-for-like revenue increased 13.5 per cent. Revenue jumped 18.7 per cent to £41.7m and arrears figures have barely moved. David says: “That’s testament to the effort of the people in the stores delivering customer base and service.”

Giles David is one of the judges for this year’s Real Business/CBI FDs’ Excellence Awards. The FDs’ Excellence Survey is still running so cast your vote! You could win champagne or an Aston Martin V8 for the weekend for your trouble.Related articlesBrightHouse FD gets among itTurning risk into rewardPicture source`

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