On the way up, at a very young age, he took himself to America, taking advantage of all work opportunities as they arose, becoming a very successful travelling representative/salesman for a horticultural company, before coming back to the UK. He worked for Rochfords for a number of years, and with his, obviously exceptional, organisational abilities eventually became one of the directors of the company. When he left Rochfords he decided to start his own garden centre, which became a great success and he won a gold medal at the Chelsea Flower Show!
Roger's story was really inspiring. It showed what can be achieved with hard work, and although it was clear that he had very good business mind and great interpersonal skills which made him such a successful salesman, he also had the courage to grasp any opportunities, both work and educational, that came his way, and made the very best of them.