“Pirtek used to come in, doing hoses for us. I’d never heard of them but I asked one of the engineers ‘Are there any jobs going at your place?’ He said someone was leaving so I put my CV in and got the job. That was in 2004.” There are now five members of the Wood family working at Pirtek Cleveland – Harry, his wife Linda, sons Jamie and Rikki and now his nephew Jonathan, who has recently started at the centre. Rikki says, “Working with family has its ups and downs but we know we are all on the same team and we have to provide the best possible service.” He clearly has self-belief, saying he could imagine being a franchisee one day. “I look after the centre when my dad is away and I know he can rely on me.” One thing is obvious when visiting the Pirtek Cleveland depot – Harry’s love of Elvis. He says he grew up listening to The King before eventually getting married at Graceland. Just inside the centre is a shrine dedicated to Elvis, including images, LPs, other memorabilia and at its heart a shirt signed by the self-styled Clothier to the King, Bernard Lansky, who once said “I put Elvis in his first suit, and I put him in his last.” Asked about his favourite Elvis track, Harry says, Suspicious Minds. And is there anyone else in music, does anyone come close? “No. The King is the King.”
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