Terry established Simworx in 2005 with a continual innovative R&D strategy. Simworx is a world leading specialist in the turnkey design, manufacture and supply of immersive media based attractions (AGV Dark Rides, Flying Theatres, Dynamic Motion Simulators etc). They have supplied 125+ installations used by 60+ million people/ year to theme parks and visitor attractions worldwide, working brands including Dreamworks, Ferrari, Sony Pictures, Marvel, BBC and many more.
Personal journey: from financial director to founder of Simworx
After initially training as an accountant, Terry began his career working in a firm of architects in West Bromwich. He then took various roles with several engineering firms. One day, a friend approached him, mentioning that a startup making entertainment simulators was looking for a financial director. He took on the role and eventually went on to form Simworx.
From a humble background, he always sought ways to make extra money. He sold computer games, distributed leaflets, and took part-time jobs, which became integral to his entrepreneurial development. One valuable lesson he learned from launching into business was the importance of bravery and relying on others for knowledge and support. He acknowledges that these were calculated risks, but he emphasises the need to step out of one’s comfort zone, as exemplified by taking a personal guarantee on his house to purchase the business.
Business strategy
Terry believes his financial background is a strength, providing him with a broader perspective on how everything works. When you understand the balance sheet, you understand what makes things tick to drive the business.
While this background has always been crucial for running and growing the business, there are other key elements. For example, understanding your market. At a very early stage, Simworx embraced exports and received significant support from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). This support allowed them to attend trade shows worldwide and grow the business.
His financial background was also instrumental in understanding the importance of having a strong working capital. Their business involves projects with varying timelines, ranging from six months to two years, resulting in a lumpy cash flow. To address this, they embraced private investors, collaborating with Midven and Business Growth Fund (BGF). These supportive investors provided invaluable guidance and fostered a culture of innovation. As a result, they transitioned from one product to developing 14.
He emphasised the importance of having a brilliant team behind him to help develop and implement his ideas. He also stressed the importance of working collaboratively, with a shared common goal of being the best they can. For instance, projects can take years from the initial client meeting, and the entire team must come together to produce a compelling bid. When they secure an order, it’s not just the salesperson who takes satisfaction; the entire team does. They then have to work collaboratively to deliver the project. There’s no better feeling than opening day – a great feeling that the team shares.
International markets
The company conducted market research not only in terms of regions worldwide but also different types of customers, analysing where their target audience was located. While their primary focus has been theme parks, they also researched museums, zoos, and aquariums and developed products tailored to where they believed market demand was highest.
At the moment, their biggest markets are the Middle East and North America. They see the Middle East as incredibly buoyant and have invested a significant amount of time and resources in the UAE. They have already completed four projects in Riad, Saudi Arabia, and currently have nine bids for new developments. Terry has been there twice since December alone.
As a company, they believe it’s crucial to attend the right trade shows and acknowledge the support provided by DBT in helping them achieve this.
They’ve also installed quite a few attractions across the UK, including Derren Brown’s Ghost Train in Thorpe Park, Surrey. This ride features three replica underground metro trains that move on tracks. You step into what appears to be a Victorian carriage, suspended in mid-air, and wear virtual headsets to embark on an incredible journey where London is invaded by demons. The experience was quite challenging, as VR wasn’t as commonplace at the time. Consequently, they became a sort of prototype tester for HTC Vive.
Competition
They have a lot of patents across where they possibly can. But for Terry, as they have fallen into a niche market, they don’t really have UK competitors. Consequently, they’re more focussed on producing high-quality concepts and ideas.
However, regarding patents, he acknowledges that they’ve lost projects in China. For instance, they presented a ride concept to a theme park that was adamant about Simworx, but it was twice the price of what a local manufacturer could do. Consequently, two years later, they discovered something similar and saw a ride that looked exactly like their concept. However, they wouldn’t have won that project anyway, as it was clear they were merely used as a pricing and technology learning opportunity. So although patents are important, in his view, you don’t need to get too stressed about them within certain territories.
And if it does happen that they loose an order to someone who came in cheaper, they don’t worry too much as they are confident their quality is usually far superior. And when they do loose to mainstream competitors, Terry will ofter go their attractions and have a ride – as they also do some amazing things.
Navigating lockdown
The lockdown was tough on the theme park industry. They had a strategic cooperation agreement with a company in China developing multiple theme parks, working on eight projects at the time. Unfortunately, the company went bankrupt, forcing them to adapt quickly and utilise available support. They explored other areas that were reopening and managed to secure some new orders. While things have taken time to recover, the last couple of years have been the best overall in terms of growth and projects.
Innovation in the West Midlands
For Terry, Simworx being based in Dudley is a perfect fit. The region is such an amazing area for innovation, manufacturing, and they can get everything they need right on their doorstep. One of the key things is that, whilst 95% of orders are export, their supply chain is local – around 90% of their supplied chain is basically 25 to 30 miles in the West Midlands area. Also, from a logistics perspective, not only are they able to travel and get to most places from Birmingham Airport, but also it’s quite easy for some customers who are coming in to see them. So, it’s a great place to be located.
What’s next
For the past two to three years, they’ve been working on an incredibly exciting project. They were introduced to former professional footballer and England manager Glenn Hoddle, who had an idea about revolutionising the way people view events in stadiums.
Glenn’s idea was that, despite stadiums evolving over the years, fundamentally, people are still stuck in the same seats and divisions. He wanted to reinvent this concept and came up with it after visiting a restaurant where the seats moved around. However, he had no idea how to design it. A few inquiries led him to Simworx, and they reviewed the concept and designed it for him. Last year, the concept was launched to various events worldwide and has received interest from football and American football teams. They’ve also started discussions with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation.
C360 offers unique viewing elements, but it also brings financial returns to the team. The premium seated ticket price is just one element. Advertising revenues can be generated on the fronts of pods, seats, logos, and the sides of the pods. And the individual touchscreens also provide numerous advertising revenue opportunities.
Simon Spink, Innovation Alliance for the West Midlands
Slingshot