RecruitMe in Grantham celebrates 10th anniversary

A recruitment company has been helping many veterans and ex-uniformed workers find new jobs for 10 years.

RecruitMe, based in Lindpet House in Market Place, Grantham, celebrated its 10th anniversary on Monday (March 3).

The business was founded by Army veteran Chris Buck and Royal Navy veteran Howard Rudder. Before they set up the business, the pair worked together for another recruitment company. They both enjoyed working together, so they joined forces to launch RecruitMe.

“We saw the opportunity to try and help service leaders and veterans into work,” said Howard.

He added: “Being veterans ourselves, understanding the challenges they sometimes have and with Lincolnshire having quite a large military community, that is why we launched the business.”

The business was initially based in the George Shopping Centre, but within two years it moved to Lindpet House in Market Place.

Chris and Howard also originally aimed it towards helping veterans get back into work, but over the last few years it has expanded to helping other ex-uniform workers, such as police officers and firefighters.

Howard added: “We grew quite rapidly at the start, maybe too quickly in one way.

“We’re doing really well and over the years people have got to know us well.”

Over recent years, there have been some obstacles in the business’s way.

Howard added: “A couple of things happened. Brexit came along and because of a lot of our companies were in manufacturing, we took a little bit of a knock with that,

“Then covid came along and obviously recruitment stopped across the whole of the UK.

“So, during that year in 2020, we lost most of our staff to furlough as well.

“At the start of 2021, we started to grow again but then from the back of covid, we had a global recession.

“We’ve got back to a really good position but it was at the end of 2020 that we got hit by two or three tsunamis!

“So, I would say the business has seen a lot of change.”

Over the years, the team has become more diverse.

Howard said: “Our mindset is still the same as what it was at the beginning but one of the main changes is becoming a more diverse team, which means we have grown our creative capabilities.”

With Lincolnshire having a strong military history, Howard believes a business like RecruitMe is important to have in Grantham and the county.

He added: “We are also trying to educate people. A veteran may have served 22 years, but then you may have one who has served two years.

“It’s about opening that mindset to people that a veteran may have not had a long career, but they bring a huge amount of transferable skills.

“Ovbiously, they spend the whole time effectively training. They work in difficult situations where they have to make quick decisions on the spot.

“So they are very flexible and adaptable.”

Howard says helping someone to get a job is a top highlight of his job.

He said: “You get a buzz from helping someone to get their dream job.

“It’s a really nice feeling.”

Looking to the future of RecruitMe, Chris and Howard hope to see the business grow further.

Howard added: “We are just keen to grow the business and we’d like to become a model where employees have a share of the business as well.

“On behalf of Chris and I, we’d just like to thank everybody who has worked for us.

“Thank you for helping us on the way and for those great organisations and companies that gave us the opportunity to work with them, and also for the candidates that have made our journey fun along the way.”