In business, there can be no success without first learning what not to do, according to a Gloucestershire business owner.

For Tricia Hay, a baptism of fire into the recruitment industry highlighted a real lack of values that she wanted for her own business.

She founded First Base Employment in September 1997, aged 26, based on her desire to treat people fairly and create a recruitment agency that genuinely shows care and attention in its everyday communications.

Today, First Base Employment is celebrating 25 years, during which it has placed more than 16,000 people into employment nationally.

Tricia Hay said: "I previously worked for a recruitment agency based in Cheltenham and Cirencester (no longer in existence). I loved the industry, but they treated people appallingly.

"Staff were treated poorly, and management displayed aggressive behaviour to both candidates and clients."

Tricia, who previously completed an apprenticeship at Lister Petter in Dursley and worked as PA to Peter Morris at Howard Tenens in Stroud, knew she wanted to do things differently.

She launched First Base from a rented office in Palace Chambers, Stroud and worked round the clock to ensure clients and candidates were looked after. Her first signing was Bottle Green Drinks, and she has continued to look after the company as it has become a household name.

Today, First Base Employment is run from offices she owns in Rowcroft and has a multimillion-pound turnover, working with the region's key players.

First Base Employment finds temporary and permanent staff for the engineering, industrial and commercial sectors, and places roles ranging from mechanical design engineers to lab technicians, quality engineers and finance staff to HR directors and office managers.

Tricia continued: "Because we cover all three sectors, it means clients don't need to go anywhere else for staff.

"We don't over promise and under deliver. We treat people with respect and work together to ensure people are supported throughout the recruitment process - candidate and clients alike."

Karl Moon joined as head of operations 18 months ago and the business now employs nine staff, with plans to add significantly more over the coming year. The company is going through a period of rapid expansion and has plans to treble in size over the next two years.

"We have a comprehensive database of candidates born from the last 25 years and we also advertise on job boards, as well as our own website. A lot of our success, however, comes from word of mouth.

"We network with people considering a change in employment and grow genuine long-term relationships. We look after the careers of many of our candidates and they return to us again and again as they look to move job roles."

Tricia said that a hands-on approach has stood them in good stead during the upheaval of the last two years.

"Even before we knew the term 'furlough', I had clients ringing to ask if they could continue to pay staff to support them and us, which is truly amazing.

"Things took a bit of a dip and the first week we thought it could be the end of the world, but actually it was fine, because of the trusted relationships we hold, and that's the secret of our success."

For more information, telephone (01453) 755330 or go to www.first-base.co.uk.