As the coronavirus pandemic began, Sterling Sinclair Removals & Storage (SSR) agreed to put company vehicles on standby for emergency use by the NHS.
It was an easy decision for owner and Heriot’s Rugby player Adam Sinclair, who has donated £500 to the NHS and made a 25 per cent discount available at SSR for key workers.
Adam will make further donations each week to the NHS from the profits of his business.
Like many, Adam has multiple reasons to be grateful for the NHS, including the care his late grandfather received when undergoing cancer treatment.
‘‘My grandad was really ill. The NHS staff were fantastic with him and basically kept him alive for two years,’’ he said.
During his rugby career Adam has played in South Africa, France, England and Scotland. He stopped playing rugby full-time about four years ago to focus more on his post-rugby career.
When not training or playing, Adam has been building his business alongside teammate and SSR manager Ross Jones.
‘‘I thought removals and storage could be quite profitable. I don’t mind the hard work, I started with one truck, now I have six and 80 self-storage containers,’’ he said.
‘‘A lot of Heriot’s boys have worked for us over the past couple of years. It can be hard to find strong guys for this line of work.’’
Current guidelines have meant postponing 40 removals SSR were scheduled to undertake but Adam and his team of seven have continued to be busy completing jobs across the UK.
Emergency removals have made up a majority of their work for clients left stranded, as far away as Exeter, but other jobs have included removals for NHS offices in Falkirk.
While the rugby activity has been cancelled, Adam has focused on maintaining his fitness around his work schedule and looks forward to life after lockdown.
‘‘I miss rugby in terms of the banter and the social side of it but I have not been bored because I have been busy. I have been very fortunate,’’ he said.