Wiles Contractors in Acton reflects on 50 years in business as anniversary arrives
This month marks a special occasion for Acton business owner Joe Wiles of Wiles Contractors – it’s the 50th anniversary of his highly-successful firm he has built with his wife Jenny and their son Mark.
Recalling the time he started the business in 1970 with just £150 in his pocket, Joe says he is most proud of having completed – in time for Wiles’ 50th anniversary year – the company’s new £1.2m premises at Crestland Business Park in Acton.
The firm also retains its former premises at Chilton Grove Works in Waldingfield Road.
With 30 staff, Wiles has diversified from it building company roots into a business which not only offers building expertise but property maintenance and management, plant hire, surfacing and groundwork, and undertakes substantial civil engineering projects.
The company’s latest addition to the business is Crestland garage and MOT centre.
“We do the lion’s share of work in East Anglia and we work on projects for Suffolk and Essex county councils. We’ve built many houses and done lots of extensions as well as built roads and carried out surfacing projects,” said Joe.
“I am very proud when I’m out and about and see the work we have done.”
At 74, Joe says he is not ready to retire as he loves his job – even though he’s seen a lot of his “old bricklayer” friends and colleagues retire.
He says he likes to look after those who have worked and looked after him – and many have over the years, as Joe reckons most builders in the area have worked for Wiles at one stage or another.
Joe’s son Mark joined the company after leaving school 35 years ago, and he will eventually take it over, says Joe.
Born in Bury St Edmunds, Joe moved to Sudbury when he was eight and has stayed there ever since.
When he left school at 15, he worked for a few local building companies, learning his trade, before joining the Merchant Navy.
After a spell as a long-distance lorry driver, Joe decided to start out on his own as a builder and his building business was born, becoming Wiles Contractors Limited in 2004.
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