Leading car interior firm Premier Products needs a logistics partner it can rely on for its delivery needs.
So the company, which sells car seat covers, mats, covers, and other accessories, turned to Parcelink for a reliable and personalised service after years with a large carrier.
The two business have now been working together for two years and are a key part of each other’s expansion plans.
Mark Ryan, Managing Director of Premier Products, said: “Parcelink is genuinely interested in our business.
“As well as cost savings, there is a level of professionalism I like.
“We want simplicity and we want to know we can ship a parcel and 99.9% of the time it’ll be there with no problems or excessive customer calls – Parcelink provides that.”
Uniquely, Parcelink operates without a hub and has instead invested in a fleet of 14 vans that collect from customers.
Staff then manually sort the goods and then take them on to individual Yodel depots for the final mile delivery to end customers.
This innovative method means the operation is streamlined and requires minimal handling – while damages, mis-routes and mis-sorts are virtually non-existent.
Mr Ryan added: “It really does work. Before, when our products were taken to a hub, we had a lot of lost or delayed packages.
“Now we know our products are being handled correctly. The drivers are flexible too, and often make changes to accommodate any situations that may arise.”
Parcelink also offers customers complete transparency to allow customers to see their delivery in real-time on the website – all the way from point of order through to delivery.
“Tracking is crucial. We know where the parcel is and we are able to find everything quickly,” Mr Ryan added.
“It’s brilliant.
“Our customer service team is able to contact Parcelink and get a quick response to any issues – we’ve formed a great relationship with them.”
Sarah Squire set up Parcelink in September 2015 and quickly identified that customers needed a cost-effective choice for awkward long and thin deliveries – such as curtain poles.
The firm aims to double its turnover and became a major UK logistics player in 2018.
Sarah drew on the experiences of her five years at City Link, which ceased trading in January 2015, to come up with an effective business model that does not make customers pay a surcharge for lengths up to 2.4m.
Now she has overcome numerous obstacles to build up the Derby-based firm and compete with more established carriers.
Parcelink has dozens of loyal customers – including a high street boutique shop and a sporting goods retailer – and employs 27 workers.
