Listening Practice #3

LISTENING PRACTICE #3

Cooking is business

SCRIPT AND ANSWERS

Interviewer: Now, as you know, on 'The Food Programme' we don't just talk about food, we also talk about the food business. And today we have with us Maggie Waters, owner of Food and Waters, one of Britain's biggest catering companies, which supplies food and drink to over 150 businesses in the south of England. Maggie, how did you start in the business?

Maggie: Well, I'd always been interested in cooking so I went to catering college to do a management course. At the time, I had no idea of starting my own business.

Interviewer: So, what did you do when you left college? What was your first job?

Maggie: Well, I left college with some big ideas and I managed to get a job with a well-known catering company but actually my first job was at a school doing the washing up. After a year or two, I became a kitchen manager but I started right at the bottom.

Interviewer: So, you worked your way up through the company?

Maggie: Very much so. Then I found myself in a very good job but with no chance of promotion - not for some years anyway. So, I started to look round for something new. I had a few interviews but it was difficult. It was the early eighties - I felt people looked at me and thought 'She's going to want children soon' - not a nice feeling. Anyway, I finally joined a transport company - and that was a big mistake.

Interviewer: Oh, why?

Maggie: Well, it was a difficult time for many businesses to make money and people were losing their jobs. In my case, the whole company went down - it closed about six months after I started.

Interviewer: So, what did you do?

Maggie: I talked everything through with my husband and decided to start up on my own. There were two plans. An expensive one: rent an office, get a new car, employ some staff. And a cheap one: no staff, keep my old car, and start working from our dining room. We chose the cheap one.

Interviewer: How did it go?

Maggie: Difficult at first. I worked a couple of days a week for other people to get some money. The other days I looked for possible clients, which wasn't too difficult. Talking to the right person in those businesses was usually the hardest thing of all.

Interviewer: Mmm.

Maggie: Our first contract was with a publishing company. Then contracts came in slowly. We got one with International Computer Systems - ten offices in the south of England. And then, after only four years, we got our first government contract.

Interviewer: And how's business now?

Maggie: We're continuing to grow. About 600 people work for us but we're still not as big as we could be. The best thing is that all our early clients are still with us.

Interviewer: Your husband works with you now, is that right?

Maggie: Yes. He's always helped part-time as well as doing his own job but he's wanted to stop that for some time. So, he's full time now. I look after the cooking and he does ... well, everything else really!

Interviewer: Do you work well together?

Maggie: Yes, we do, although we almost never have holidays together. We don't want to be away from the business at the same time. Fortunately, we enjoy the work and don't feel we need a holiday.

Interviewer: Maggie Waters, thank you very much for coming to talk to us.

Maggie: My pleasure.

1
Maggie Waters went to college to do a course in ...
a) catering
b) business.
c) management.
d) cooking.

2
Her first job was ...
a) managing a kitchen.
b) washing up.
c) teaching.
d) cooking.

3
By the early eighties ...
a) she did not want to wait for promotion.
b) she wanted to have children.
c) someone had offered her a great new job.
d) she was offered promotion in the company.

4
After six months ...
a) the company still hadn't paid her.
b) she decided to leave.
c) the company closed.
d) she had made a lot of money.

5
She started her own business ...
a) from her dining room.
b) with her husband.
c) in a new office.
d) with only one employee.

6
At first the most difficult thing was ...
a) getting money coming in.
b) talking to the right people.
c) finding possible clients.
d) cooking without a lot of money.

7
After four years she got a contract with ...
a) a publishing company.
b) the government.
c) International Computer Systems.
d) ten offices around the world.

8
According to Maggie, today the company ...
a) employs 600 people.
b) is too big.
c) has lost some of its early clients.
d) is not growing anymore.

9
Maggie's husband ...
a) wanted her to stop work.
b) now works full-time for Food and Waters.
c) never had anything to do with Food and Waters.
d) helps her with the cooking.

10
Maggie and her husband ...
a) have lots of holidays together.
b) need a holiday together.
c) rarely have holidays together.
d) are away from the business at the same time.