It all began with a chance meeting one Saturday morning in Netley Abbey. Florist Katie Mawson was walking out of her shop with her hands full of flowers, and she was unable to open the door of her van. Neil Peattie, who happened to be walking past at that moment, simply offered to open the van door for her, but one thing led to another and Katie was soon telling Neil all about how she was preparing for one of her busiest days of the year: Mother's Day.
Neil listened with interest and offered Katie some advice. Two hours later, with a series of notes written on the back of paper normally used for wrapping flowers, Katie Mawson had been given a crash course in a couple of Lean Tools:
- 5S - A spontaneous and continuous improvement of working environment and working conditions
- 7 Wastes - Identifying unprofitable activity within your organisation
"At first, I was struggling to see how what Neil was telling me could be applied to a florist's shop in Netley Abbey. To be honest, I thought that he was slightly crazy! After walking Neil through a couple of processes such as making a bouquet of flowers, Neil was able to show me how some simple visual management tools could help me - I'm now confident that no time will ever be lost again looking for lost scissors! We'll also be using some of the techniques to help make beautiful bouquets in the most efficient way in the run up to Mother's Day."
- Katie Mawson, Owner of Katie Mawson Floral Design
If you are interested in learning more about Lean techniques and how they could benefit your business, please contact NPT Management Systems today.
Alternatively, if you are looking for a beautiful bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day (Sunday the 26th of March 2017), visit Katie Mawson Floral Design at 30 Station Road, Netley Abbey, Southampton, Hampshire, SO31 5AF.
Image Source: facebook.com/KatieMawsonFloralDesign
