Setting up the Daneway workshops
Gimson took over sole responsibility for the Daneway workshops early in 1903 and found the first few years a struggle because of lack of capital.
He wrote to Sydney Gimson in 1904 to arrange for the sale of shares in the family business:
‘I am finding that Daneway can’t get comfortably along without a capital of £2500 so that I should like another £500’s worth of shares to be offered for sale.
I now have eight men and four boys and my orders including furniture not yet paid for come to £1000. … Until these shares are sold could Gimson & Co advance me £150 to be going on with do you think? I may not want it, but my a/c at the bank is so low that I am not easy about it and I would rather not ask them for a further advance if it can be avoided.’
When his elder brother somewhat reluctantly arranged for the sale of the shares Gimson sent an account of his business. The letter is dated May 1904:
‘Thanks for your letter. I wish too that it were possible to scramble along without selling so many of G & Co. shares. But how else can capital be found?
For my first innocent calculations as to capital required no allowance was made for money owing or for the value of the incompleted work in the shop. At the present time these two items come to £500. Besides this I should like to have a balance of about £200 in the bank.
This is how my capital has gone
£
Repairing Daneway & turning farm buildings into shops 250
Shop fittings 75
Furniture in stock 650
Stock of locks, handles etc. etc. 50
Seasoned timber 200
Timber seasoning 450
Furniture in workshop 150
Furniture delivered & not paid for 350
Capital for Blacksmiths’ shop 100
Capital for Chairmaker 25
____
£2300
and then there is the balance of £200 that there should be in the bank making £2500 in all.’