In The Spotlight - Ron Brunwin
In this series, we pull back the curtain and step inside the minds of the many good folk who make Tempest tick.
And, to get the ball rolling we have a real treat in store. Meet Ron Brunwin, a man whose connection to the Tempest name goes deeper than his employment. Ron is family, and something of a family historian, whose passion for the business is matched only by his knowledge of the many characters and stories that have lined the walls of Tempest’s long, illustrious history.
Oh, and he builds Daleks.
Welcome, Tempest Strategic Sales Development mastermind, Ron Brunwin…
Neil: Hi Ron, and a huge thank you for being patient zero in this new series! To begin, could I get a brief overview of your own time with Tempest?
Ron: During the 1990s I spent the odd School Holiday in the framing workshop at the Causeway. It wasn’t until the Summer of 2011 that I joined the ranks long-term as a Marketing Coordinator principally to provide marketing support for the Baby’s First Portrait and prestige markets; Graduations, Military.
Initially under Julie Hodder’s supervision and then Jay Maros. In collaboration with Jay, we soon added the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award then developed the Graduation Gowning service which launched in 2014, and more recently still, the equally successful Cruise Ship photography pitch.
In 2020, just as the Pandemic was closing in, I migrated from the Marketing team to the Sales team, to provide general, analytical and strategic support to the newly appointed Sales Manager, Peter Dance, with whom I’d worked closely in his previous capacity as Head of Tempest Military.
Neil: It sounds like a wide and varied career to date. Do you have any favourite memories?
Ron: 10 days in China visiting a supplier and witnessing some of the more hair-raising culinary offerings, though the steamed dumplings filled with broth were excellent.
On another occasion, ahead of our debut as photographers for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, receiving an impromptu tour of St James’s Palace, including the Throne Room (which came with the warning that if one even ventures to approach the Throne itself, a team of armed security personnel would spring out from a concealed room).
On a less recreational level, but no less memorable; toiling away with Jay Maros on a draft proposal for the cruise ships contract, on a day when everybody else at Head Office had been sent home due to heavy snow (an Overlook Hotel moment if ever there was one).
But my favourite memory of all predates these by decades: when I was around 3 or 4 years old and would accompany my mum as she photographed at nurseries and playgroups, coaxing a warm smile for the camera from even the most solemn little faces with the aid of a pop-up Winnie-the-Pooh puppet.
Neil: I’m mildly disappointed you didn’t check if the armed throne room guards line was a bluff, although potentially that could have led to my next question…Any days you’d rather forget?
Ron: I’m not sure I necessarily want to forget it, but certainly the most demanding and pressured episode of my Tempest career to date revolves around the preparations and delivery of our Gowning debut at the University of Essex in 2014. I was tasked with organising - within a matter of mere months – all the miscellaneous robes required for the several hundred university staff.
Logistically, for a company coming at that with effectively zero gowns of any kind and zero knowledge of the esoteric lore of robe design and history, that’s a tall order, necessitating exhaustive and repeated inventory checking at every step of the way. A task made all the more challenging when new orders would continue to trickle in well after the deadline.
The night before our departure for Essex I was still rattling around the lab at nearly midnight, moving stock around, checking stock off…nothing could be left to chance. And then, once we were onsite at Essex, it was another case of all hands on deck for late nights steaming the thousands of student gowns to ensure they were wrinkle-free for the ceremonies the following morning. Long days and long nights.
Neil: It sounds exhausting! When the day comes that you call time on your Tempest journey, which song is playing as the end credits roll?
Ron: ‘Good Bye-ee’ – Peter Cook and Dudley Moore
Neil: A wonderful choice! So, moving away from the day-to-day for a moment, when not busy working, what do you like to do with your days?
Ron: In the last couple of years I’ve become a dad, so my days are filled with nappies and laundry - whether I like it or not. But once upon a time, I used to like writing stories and screenplays and building the occasional Dalek.
Neil: That sounds…Wait what! Dalek building, please tell me more.
Ron: I’m a life-long fan of what’s now termed ‘Classic’ Doctor Who – i.e., the original run of the show spanning 1963-1989. I often watch the modern show too, and I’m delighted it’s there casting its spell over new generations but, for me, the purest magic is found in the original 20th-century episodes.
As a kid, I often visited Doctor Who exhibitions; Longleat; Llangollen; Blackpool. Those halcyon days made a big impression, especially seeing the Daleks up close. The most famous monsters of all, and with good reason – a British design classic, up there with the Mini Cooper, red telephone box…the Police Box!
With the passing years I’ve become increasingly aware of the extensive communities of like-minded fans, all sharing their knowledge and expertise, most of them far more talented, creative and dedicated than me. In Dalek-building circles, it’s standard practice to name one’s Dalek. My Dalek is called Dudley and he was built about 20 years ago – he’s currently undergoing a refurb.
Neil: I love how Doctor Who has had such a positive impact on you. This is the power of TV and film where, at times, viewing proves a truly profound experience. And sticking to that line of questioning, what was the last film to make you cry?
Ron: Not a film but the Amazon series ‘This is Us’ was a wall-to-wall blub fest for me during Lockdown.
Neil: And the song that always gets you moving?
Ron: Except to amuse my kids, I don’t move. I’m like Drax in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’.
Neil: Ahh, Drax, every non-dancers icon of dance! Or non-dance…anyway…Is there a book you can never forget?
Ron: The Outsiders by S E Hinton
Neil: Another strong choice! On a different track now, If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
Ron: Cornwall suits me fine.
Neil: How about, your perfect meal and location to eat?
Ron: A roast lunch with all the trimmings – ideally with my parents at their place, or in a traditional oak-beam pub with a crackling fire.
Neil: Who can argue with a roast dinner and a crackling fire? Vegetarians probably…quickly moving on to another leap of subject matter. What superpower would you choose, and would you be a superhero or supervillain?
Ron: Mind Reading/Mind Control. Naturally, I’d start out with the intention of being a hero.
Neil: Naturally…until realising the scope for anarchy is huge! And finally, the old favourite…If you could choose four people to join you for a dinner party, who would they be?
Ron: John Lennon, Stanley Kubrick, Tom Baker and Horace Tempest.
And with that, Ron...was gone. Back to the innards of Tempest Photography, a place teeming with magical memories, historic significance, and a single Dalek...named Dudley.