ABSTRACT
Over a number of years Thistle has expanded to become one of Britain’s largest and most successful electronics manufacturers. Under the chairmanship of the son and subsequently the grandson of the founder, the Thistle group now competes in the defence, offshore, and hi-tech sectors as well as the domestic electrical goods markets. However, the company’s development has not been without incident, the most significant being in 1975, when what is now described by management as a ‘cash-flow’ crisis forced Thistle to go to the Labour government for help. After the necessary injection of government cash a new chief executive was appointed. The government retained an active interest in the group through the National Enterprise Board, holding 50 per cent of stock when Thistle went public in 1978.
