Brexit Proof Q&A: ‘We are basically as ready as we can be’

Established in 1983, family-run business RGR supplies abrasives, tapes and adhesives to the Irish manufacturing industry.

What was your reaction when you heard that the UK had voted to leave the EU?

I actually couldn’t believe that, in a modern day, a country could actually make a decision like that. I don’t see anything to be gained for the UK They feel, obviously, there is but, from an Irish perspective, there’s not. I was actually astonished that they chose to go down that route.

How is your business likely to be affected by it?

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It's hard to tell how it will be affected. Our main thing is continuity for supply for our customers who are all big manufacturing plants. You can't turn around and say "oh, I can't get that, it's stuck in customs". We've a good relationship with our key supplier, 3M. We spoke to them at length over a period of time and their key hub for Ireland is no longer in the UK – it's now in Germany.

When did you begin preparing for Brexit and what contingency plans have you put in place?

We wouldn’t have started immediately after the vote because, I suppose, at that point you thought this actually might not happen. People were offering you courses and advice on Brexit but there’s no point going on to a course on Brexit when nobody even to this day knows what’s going to happen.

Where it will affect us, and you’ve no idea of the extent, would be customers in Ireland who are manufacturing for export to the UK. Those customers could slow up when Brexit comes in. Rather than us not being able to supply them, they might not be as busy.

Are you examining new markets/suppliers and how practical is it?

We have that sorted in terms of existing suppliers. We should be able to continue buying everything we could buy before. We have our plan in place with 3M and our other key suppliers. Tyrolit, Tesa – they're multinationals so they should all be able to by pass the UK.

When do you expect to be Brexit ready?

We are basically as ready as we can be. Nobody knows what format it is going to take but, if our stock is no longer coming through the UK, the supply chain will still be there, the prices will still be maintained and there’ll be no delay in customs, so we are basically ready. I don’t want it to happen – I don’t think it’s a good thing for anybody – but, if it happens, we’ll just deal with it.

Are you stockpiling goods or raw materials?

Yes, stockpiling might be a bit strong [a word] but we would have increased our stock levels each time there was a deadline by bringing in an extra month’s supply, just to see what would happen. When the first deadline happened, 3M hadn’t the German hub in place but, now they do, I probably won’t stockpile too much if there’s another date.

How might the Irish or British governments, or the EU, help to ease the pain of Brexit for your company sector?

The main thing is that there has to be some sort of a deal between Ireland and the UK. If it ends up that there’s duty and customs etc between Ireland and the UK – it’s going to make everything more expensive and it’s going to slow everything down going both ways.

I actually think the Irish Government are limited in what they can do. They have to wait and see what kind of a Brexit is going to be and nobody knows what it’s going to be.

How do you think that the governments have handled the Brexit negotiations?

The UK could have done a lot better than they did. They implemented this but they didn’t know what they wanted out of it. They still don’t know what they want out of it – they can’t agree internally. The Irish Government has worked as best they can to get the best deal for us and to make sure the Irish case is put forward – that we are looked after.

Looking out five years from now, how do you think your business or industry will have changed as a result of Brexit?

I’m hoping that it won’t have changed enormously. Any slowdown that might have occurred within Ireland will have grown back again and we won’t have lost out. I think that there’ll be an initial drop in business because there are a lot of Irish businesses that are dependant on the UK for exports.

The knock-on effect will be there. It doesn’t necessarily mean that our direct customers are the ones affected – it could be that their customers would be affected.