Richard has spent his working life building up the family business – a company specialising in timber home improvement products – as Non-Executive Chairman (1965-present). He also served as Director at the Timber Research and Development Corporation (TRADA) from 2000 until 2007. Richard also served as trust Chairman of the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic and District Hospital, based in Oswestry, Shropshire (1993-2000) where he acted as Chairman of the Spinal Injuries Appeal, which raised £3.5m charitably for the rebuild of the Midland Centre for Spinal Injuries. He also chaired the Torch Appeal, which successfully raised £2.5m for the construction of a research centre at the hospital.