Marc Narbeth, CEO and business owner, shares how a small family key-cutting business grew into the nation’s go-to supplier for office furniture and locker keys – and why the future of locksmithing is going digital.
The company might now be the UK’s leading supplier of office furniture and locker keys, trusted by customers across the country and beyond, but its story started in the most-humble of settings: Marc’s mum’s garden shed.
Humble Beginnings
I got into locksmithing almost by accident. My mum and stepdad ran a small office furniture maintenance business with contracts for British Gas and the BBC and customers in around the M25. My stepdad (he was fed up with spending so much time on the road between sites) wanted to set up a key-cutting sideline in the late 80s, and I lent him the money to buy his first machine. Sadly, he passed away and that’s when I started helping my mum out, cutting keys in her shed at the back of the house.
Everything was mail order back then. All we needed was the key number, and we’d cut and post it the same day. We took pride in that – speed and reliability were everything. Orders came in from schools, banks, and big organisations like HSBC and Lloyds. We sold keys for as little as a pound each, and business was growing 40% year on year.
By 1996, turnover was around £50,000. I’d come from a background in financial markets, but I could see this was a real business with potential. Now, we’re turning over more than £2 million a year, and we’re still sticking to those same principles – quality, speed, and great service.
Built for the Mail Order Market
We’ve always been a mail order business at heart. About 80% of what we do is still online or by phone. We sell tens of thousands of office furniture keys and locks every month. Schools, facilities managers, office furniture manufacturers, and locksmiths themselves are our main customers.
What makes us different is that we’re geared up for small, quick orders. The average order is about £30, but it’s the consistency and efficiency that matter. We dispatch directly to customers (often under blind cover for office furniture and locker suppliers) so it looks like the goods have come from them. That’s a service not many others can match.
We’ve got tens of thousands of customers on our database, and we’re proud of how loyal they are. We keep old customers happy by sticking to what we’ve always done – good service, fair prices, and same-day dispatch – and that keeps new ones coming in.
From Shed to Shop
We’ve come a long way from that garden shed. These days, Fast Keys occupies two units in Essex – a large warehouse and a fully equipped locksmith shop. We’ve got twenty employees, including two experienced locksmiths serving in our busy Trade Counter (that is open to the public) and one apprentice learning the trade.
Around 20% of our business now comes from site work—helping customers with safes, cabinets, car keys, and domestic lockouts across the South East and London. It’s a different side of the business, but it’s all part of the same ethos: getting people what they need quickly and professionally.
Being an MLA-approved company is really important to us, thanks to our trade counter manager and experienced locksmith Stevie Cooke, who has passed the exam. The Master Locksmiths Association is the benchmark for professionalism in our industry. Customers want to know they’re dealing with people who can do the job right, using non-destructive methods and proper techniques. We often get called to fix the damage left behind by people who weren’t properly trained, and that just reinforces how vital MLA standards are.
The Power of Partnership
Over the years, we’ve built strong relationships with some of the biggest names in the industry such as Lowe & Fletcher, Ojmar, Ronis/ DOM, ISEO and Hafele to name a few. Because we buy in bulk, we’re able to offer prices that even some wholesalers can’t match.
It’s a win-win: we can supply locksmiths, facilities managers, and furniture manufacturers with small orders at trade prices, quickly, without them having to meet the manufacturers’ minimum order requirements and lengthy lead times. In fact, we often end up supplying products on behalf of those same manufacturers’ customers.
We’ve also got the largest range of office furniture and locker locks whether it be Keyed to Differ or Keyed Alike, 90- or 180-degree turn, Master Keyed, a specific cam type, we’ve probably got it in stock.
Looking Ahead – The Digital Shift
The locksmithing world is changing fast. I genuinely believe that in ten years’ time, people won’t want to be carrying physical keys at all. Facilities managers, banks, and call centres are already looking for ways to manage access digitally.
That’s why we’re investing in smart locks and electronic systems. We’re still experts in traditional key systems, but we’re positioning ourselves for the future – digital, app-based, and remotely managed access. It’s not about abandoning what we know; it’s about building on it and being ready for what’s coming next.
The MLA Expo
This year’s MLA Expo really impressed me. It’s great to see how much innovation is happening in our industry, and it’s a brilliant place to meet suppliers and locksmiths face-to-face. You get to see all the big names like Lowe & Fletcher, Aldridge, JMA, ABUS and talk about what’s coming down the line.
Events like that remind me that even though we’re moving toward digital technology, locksmithing will always be about the people, the relationships, trust, and craftsmanship. Whether it’s a school needing a replacement locker key or a national facilities company, retrofitting hundreds of lockers with digital locks, the principles are the same: do a good job, do it quickly and do it fairly.
Staying True to Our Roots
Even with all the growth, I still see the same core values that started with my mum’s shed. Quality and precision matter just as much now as they did back then. Every key we cut is done on high-precision electronic machines to the manufacturer’s exact specifications.
Our promise has always been same-day dispatch, no fuss, and competitive prices. If someone finds a cheaper quote for keys elsewhere, we’ll try to beat it. We’re not complacent about competition or technology, we use it to keep evolving.
We’ve built a reputation on trust and reliability, and our Trustpilot reviews show that customers appreciate that. Whether it’s a single key or a thousand, the experience should be smooth, simple, and professional.
About Fast Key Services
From its early days in a garden shed, Fast Key Services has grown into the UK’s leading supplier of office furniture and locker keys and locks. Today, the company serves everyone from homeowners and schools to banks, office furniture and locker suppliers, facilities firms, and locksmiths nationwide.
With same-day dispatch, a massive range of stock, and an eye firmly on the digital future, Fast Key Services Ltd continues to combine old-fashioned service with modern innovation.
www.fastkeys.co.uk
Sales: 01268 562 562
Accounts: 01268 562 572
Trade Counter: 01268 562 592
sales@fastkeys.co.uk