Shop talk

I was born in Macclesfield in 1947. The post-war years were hard, particularly as our family kept growing. My father's two teenage half-brothers and my cousin all came to live with us after their mothers died. It was a tight fit but I know why my father did it. His own mother died when he was 11 and the family went into an orphanage. He walked out at 13 and one by one brought his brothers and sisters out. He even fought in boxing booths to earn for them. I've inherited my capacity for hard work from him. His gift to me was my lovely and loved sister-cousin. One thing was all mine, though. From age four, I spent every Saturday with my uncle at Maine Road watching Manchester City. First team or reserves, rain or shine, I was on the terraces in my bonnet, scarf and mittens. But I'm a turncoat; when I could afford to pay for myself, I became the Man U fan I am to this day. I played football myself at secondary school. It was virtually unheard of in the 60s but our ladies' team, the Corinthians, toured the USA. I've always believed in breaking the mould. When I left school, I started studying Egyptology at Manchester University but my family needed my contribution. My father's painting and decorating work dried up in the winter. You didn't live on benefits – you lived on what you earned as a family. It's made me very aware of the importance of education. My three girls all have professional careers. Instead, I was apprenticed to a lithographic printer. I met my husband during my lunch-break in Manchester Plaza dancing to records by a DJ called Jimmy Savile. Although I had my first daughter at 19, I have worked all my life – first as carer for my disabled grandmother, later at Lancaster Carpets. Starting as a machine operator, I moved up to training instructor and was on the works council throughout the factory closure. My career took off at Stockpack, a co-pack company in Reddish, as head production supervisor and then production manager. It was near home so I could look after my dad, now living with us. By the time it was bought by Nichols in 1995, it had grown from 60 to over 200. Meeting director Gary Unsworth [later instigator of the MBO that returned the business to his family's ownership as Aimia Foods] changed everything for me. "So you think you know about customer service?" he said. "Well, I'll teach you about customer service." He sent me to the US to Southwest Airlines, Stew Leonard's grocery empire, Manco, Cadillac and the Ritz-Carlton. It opened my eyes not just to customer service but to motivating staff. I took everything on board at a relatively late age but I had so much support and training. Today, I'm plant manager for an Aimia satellite site packing for a global blue chip company. I fought every inch of the way myself and that's why I enjoy helping other people with the potential to get on. I want to open doors for them. I may be 65, but what's retirement? I'm not thinking about it and certainly no one here's pushing me. At Aimia, age is no barrier – I did my lean Six Sigma qualification last year. But when I finally decide to retire, I'll get that degree in Egyptology. I've set myself a goal and I always reach those! Favourite food? Italian. My husband does the cooking: I've never made so much as a sandwich. Years ago we split the chores between us. He's my private hero – he's patiently put up with a workaholic wife and I owe him so much. World hero? JFK – his inaugural speech made me think hard about what I could do for my family, my job, my life. It made me think anything is possible. Toughest time? When we moved 31 production lines from Stockpack to Haydock. At one stage we had machines running in both sites so we wouldn't let customers down. I used to get to the first site at 5.30am then drive like a lunatic between the two. Highest point? Winning the contract to build this site. I feel I own it and take it personally if there's a problem.