It aims to marry up retired or redundant business people with small companies who could benefit from their years of expertise.

The Angels are always recruiting

It was originally known by the more apt name of Grey Angels, but now aims to reflect the fact that the angels give companies time and space to get on with running their business.

One company that has benefited from a visit by a Space Angel is A H Precision Plastics (AHPP).

Sent from above

It produces plastic injection moulds for use in industry and employs about 16 people at its factory in Sittingbourne.

It had originally been involved in the government-funded TCS scheme, which enables graduates to work at companies on specific projects aimed at developing businesses.

Ivor: "You don't do this for the money but it's good to be able to help these companies"

That led to AHPP becoming involved with Space Angels, which is run by Business Link Kent.

Space Angels put them in touch with Ivor Francis.

Ivor, 51, most recently worked as sales director for a telecoms company.

He has since done a bit of consultancy and about a year ago signed up as a Space Angel, hoping his years of sales and marketing expertise could help someone.

A host of help

Ivor is one of 30 angels looking after up to three companies each.

AHPP has recently started to diversify.

As well as making mouldings it is now buying in other components and doing assembly work.

Alan: "We're not acquainted with marketing, so we needed to get that expertise."

It has also expanded the design help it gave to its clients into a full Computer Aided Design (CAD) operation.

"It's that growth of the business that we needed to get out and market to a wider audience than our existing customers," says Alan Hawkins of AHPP.

"Being engineers, we're not acquainted with marketing, so we needed to get a Space Angel for that expertise."

Two way

Ivor has been working with AHPP once a week for the 20 weeks of the Space Angel project.

He doesn't get paid but his expenses are covered.

As well as understanding the relationship with existing customers he's looking at ways to develop the business.

The arrangement has worked well so far and suits both parties.

"You can get to your early 50s and you don't want to spend all your time on planes, but you want to do something interesting that keeps the wolf from the door," says Ivor.

"You don't do this for the money but it's good to be able to help these companies. They appreciate it and it also helps you to make new contacts."

Alan is now able to look to the future with a new vision.

"It's given us a comprehensive report on who are customers are and what they want from a company like ourselves, and also a profile of what we can do as a company and how we can do it better," he says.