Ryan Gratrix

Ryan Gratrix

Managing Director - GRX Life, specialists in providing bespoke mobility solutions

Medstead, England, United Kingdom
349 followers 333 connections

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About

As an active wheelchair user I've often found myself on the road less travelled. Having retired from professional sport after Atlanta Paralympics in 1996, I'd already learnt just how rewarding life could be as long as you were dedicated, determined and willing to make the occasional sacrifice for the greater good. To that end I felt like I had a lot of catching up to do.

With the build up to the Sydney Paralympics just around the corner and quite a few friends heading off to compete on the world stage yet again, I picked up a backpack and headed for Oz too. This time it was a solo mission with nothing but a tent and some wheelchair spares. I ended up raising nearly £20K and covered the best part of 6,000 Kilometres for a charity focused on providing the means for others to purchase the mobility equipment they actually wanted.

Having a real understanding of just how important your kit is, so that you can actually have a chance to be the best version of yourself as possible, I found myself honing my skills as a product specialist for GBL Wheelchairs.

Some 20 plus years later I'm just as passionate about helping others find their independence so that they can go off and have their own adventures. All too often people find their mobility equipment to be the biggest stumbling block, even before they've left their house.

I still love to travel and have ticked 50+ countries off the list so far. I have met some of the best people in the harshest environments, normally with a bemused expression on their face due to me sitting next to them in the first place.

Activity

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Experience

  • GRX Life Graphic

    Managing Director

    GRX Life

    - Present 7 years 7 months

    Alton, Hampshire, GU34

    GRX Life is all about providing specialist knowledge and advice to fellow active wheelchair users looking to optimise their mobility. Built on the foundations of over 16 years’ experience in providing bespoke lightweight wheelchairs from the user’s perspective, we know a chair must look good, feel great and perform well.

    GRX Life’s modern and flexible approach quite literally focuses on putting a client in the driving seat from the outset. Appointment times are flexible enough to fit…

    GRX Life is all about providing specialist knowledge and advice to fellow active wheelchair users looking to optimise their mobility. Built on the foundations of over 16 years’ experience in providing bespoke lightweight wheelchairs from the user’s perspective, we know a chair must look good, feel great and perform well.

    GRX Life’s modern and flexible approach quite literally focuses on putting a client in the driving seat from the outset. Appointment times are flexible enough to fit into anyones busy schedule.

    GRX operates in the south east of England

  • Sales Director

    GBL Wheelchairs

    - Present 23 years 8 months

    Hanworth, Middlesex.

    GBL Wheelchairs specialise in providing bespoke mobility solutions to a diverse client base.

  • Treloar's Graphic

    IT Administrator

    Treloar's

    - 2 years 2 months

    I worked within a team responsible for the development, maintenance and troubleshooting of an IT system that spanned the entire organisation. I specialised in access technologies such as building bespoke roaming profiles that enabled powerchairs and communication aids etc. to interact with the academic IT environment..

  • Founder

    The Wheel Oz Experience

    - 2 months

    The Wheel Oz Experience was a fundraising expedition that I created to help raise money and awareness about how important having the right wheelchair is. I completed a solo expedition to backpack across Australia with nothing but my chair, a tent and a few wheelchair spares. The project was supported by Fat Face, Canon, Psion, and various schools, including Eton. After covering over 5000 kilometres I'm proud to say that £15000 was donated to the IMPact charity at Treloar College.

  • SAP Accounts Trainer

    Unigate Dairies Limited

    - 1 year

    South East England

    I was handpicked to join a team of 12 people from across the business within the UK. I was responsible for delivering training and support at multiple locations during an SAP accounts system role out. I specialised in the area of General Ledger and had to acquire new skills in accounting principals, software implementation and 'Train the Trainer' certification.

  • Accounts Administrator

    Unigate Dairies Ltd

    - 1 year 7 months

    Aldershot

    I reconciled 26 remote depots bought ledger accounts using a paper based journal entry system. After identifying, designing and implementing a more efficient spread sheet based system I streamlined the amount of data entry required across the department. Productivity went up and the human error factor during data being input and evaluated was dramatically reduced.

  • Paralympic Swimmer - Atlanta 1996

    British Paralympic Association

    - 4 years

    My main event was the 100m backstroke in the S6 disability category. Throughout my career I set a number of British Records and held the top spot as GB No.1 for the best part of 6 years.

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