Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
After six-year tenure on the board of Made in Britain, the CEO of County Durham-based luxury showering solutions manufacturer, Roman, will make way for a new appointment.
Osborne has completed two consecutive three-year Board terms as a non-executive director of Made in Britain, playing a crucial role in the governance and evolution of the organisation into an influential trade association of close to 2,000 members across dozens of manufacturing sectors.
Joining what was then a fledgling group of a few hundred manufacturing members in the spring of 2016, Osborne and his pioneering team of design professionals and marketers recognised the need in British manufacturing for a unique, designed identity mark that would help glue the many thousands of successful makers in the UK together – officially.
Made in Britain helps a huge variety of British manufacturers sell more in the UK and abroad with the use of the official Made in Britain mark. It was Osborne who seized the opportunity to use the famous ‘red arrow’ design device of the collective mark, pointing customers to quality products made by responsible manufacturers.
Sue Peacock, designer at Roman, said: “I often wonder if we use the mark more than any other of the 1900 businesses that are members. As everything Roman sells is made here at our factory in Newton Aycliffe, we make sure everyone who comes into contact with our business knows we are a member and sees the mark prominently as a sign of British provenance and quality on the products we make.”
David Osborne added: “The Made in Britain mark just makes great business sense. The more you embed it into your business, the more you benefit from the recognition, the collaboration with people making other kinds of products and the trust that comes from the transparent way the organisation is run. The modern sustainable future of British manufacturing looks a lot brighter now we have nearly 2000 firms across every county, proudly displaying the mark on products and within their corporate communications.”
