About

ABOUT ME

WHERE IT BEGAN

I first got involved in print back in the mid-late 90s. I think I tried to avoid it at first by chasing a career in mechanical engineering but it wasn't meant to be. My stepfather was from a reprographics background and was keen for me to follow on in an industry he knew he could help me in.

Following a 3 year stint at Glasgow College of Building & Printing, I was lucky enough to land a job as a junior estimator with a great upcoming Glasgow firm called CCB. From there I moved into production and then back into customer service and eventually sales.

It was a great opportunity for me to understand the full process of a print job from start to finish and be involved in all aspects of the print company.

COLIN SINCLAIR MCDERMOTT

THE ONLINE PRINT COACH

In 2004, I decided to enter the world of self-employment and over the next 13 years would go on a roller coaster journey with the many highs and lows of running a printing company.

From bringing investors on board, sourcing the right kit, finding the premises, the challenges of managing staff, franchising to have 12 UK locations, bad debts, making good and bad financial decisions, and landing big blue chip clients, I bought the T-Shirt as they say.

I wouldn't change a thing though as it has brought me to be doing what I do today, a job role I truly love and one I know is making a real difference to print business owners around the world.

BECOMING A CERTIFIED COACH

In 2022, I trained with The Business Coaching Academy to become a fully certified corporate coach with the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches.

Having experience in the printing industry is one thing but the structure and framework I have gained from going through this framework has most definitely made me a far better business coach.

FEATURED IN...

FUN FACTS ABOUT ME

FACT ONE

As a late teenager, I worked on a Norwegian fishing boat for 2 months. The boat was docked in Egersund and I was helping prepare it for going back out to sea.

It was a great experience and to this day I think played a massive part in the strong work ethic I have today.

Despite being offered a lot of money to stay onboard and go out to sea with the crew, I decided to come back to Scotland and focus on building a career in the printing industry for a lot less money 😂

FACT TWO

In 2017 I traveled to the town of Ooty in Southern India to train as an Animal Assistant. I'd been on a couple of trips previously with my wife who's a vet and wanted to be able to contribute more and assist her with her work abroad.

Since then, I've been able to put this training to good use both in Nepal and Tanzania on subsequent volunteering trips.

It's nice to take a small break from printing every now and again and helps me recharge the coaching head.

FACT THREE

A few years ago I stumbled across a guy on the internet called Mr. Pumpy who had created a travel blog cycling across Asia. Thinking that it sounded fun, I bought a road bike, did a 20-mile training run, and hopped on a plane to Bangkok.

Over the next 9 days, I proceeded to cycle up through Thailand, 900KM until I reached my destination of Chiang Mai. This was done as a fundraiser and we raised enough funds to build a new dog shelter called 'New Hope' in Hang Dong on the outskirts of Chiang Mai where it housed around 50 dogs.