Sophie Garrad – Depot Manager at Wernick Hire

Sophie’s interview

My name is Sophie, and I am the Depot Manager for Wernick Hire’s Bury St Edmunds depot.

I have been with the business since November 2013 when I started working as an Assistant Hire Controller at the Bury St Edmunds depot. Since then, I have worked my way up to Hire Controller, then to Assistant Depot Manager and, as of January 2021, to Depot Manager.

As Depot Manager I am involved with everything that goes on in the depot, I am responsible for the running of the office and the workshop. Part of my role is to ensure that all the depot’s KPI’s are met and that all the Health and Safety policies are adhered to.

The best part of my role is the variation. As much as I enjoy being in the office and managing the day-to-day activities, I really enjoy being involved in different aspects of the business. I like the camaraderie of the workshop and the yard, and I like being able to visit sites.

This year marks one of my biggest achievements with the business so far as I have won my biggest job to date which was an order for 26 AV flex bays for Farrans Construction, this project by Farrans will be part of an iconic structure in Lowestoft.

Over the last 7 years, I have been able to watch the company and my depot grow. When I started at Bury St Edmunds, we had three Yard Operatives in the yard and now we have seven which is great to see.

I have been well looked after since joining the Wernick Hire team in 2013, this is a good company to work for and the team here in Bury St Edmunds are great, they are very supportive. I would definitely recommend working at Wernick, there’s a lot of opportunities available if you wish to progress here.

Outside of work: 

Since lockdown, my gym classes have been stopped. Normally, I would attend several classes a week with Body Pump on a Monday evening being my favourite class. Until they open back up, I will make the local my new hobby and make up for lost time!