Sports Direct is in the process of taking delivery of nine new specialist drawbar rigs from Tiger Trailers, part of a 2017 order which also includes six tandem-axle trailers and two double deck trailers – increasing the number of Tiger-built assets in the fleet to 49.
The new 32-tonne drawbar combinations feature a specially designed Tiger Trailers body, mounted to a Scania G410 rigid truck, a customised drawbar hitch system, and a tandem-axle trailer. Each trailer features a bespoke aerodynamically-profiled sloping front roof to lower wind resistance and minimise the chance of accidental damage. Both truck and trailer are also fitted with a Dhollandia tail lift, for easy store deliveries.
Sports Direct took delivery of its first drawbar rigs and 13.4-metre standard box trailers from Tiger Trailers in 2014, and now sources its bodies and trailers exclusively from Tiger.
Jamie Potter, Transport Manager at Sports Direct, explains: “From the outset the team at Tiger worked very closely with us to ensure that the products they built were all perfectly suited to our requirements. The results have always been superb and they’ve never let us down.
“This combination of fantastic build quality and a customer-first approach has kept us coming back. Where other manufacturers would turn you away because their production lines are already full, Tiger always finds a way to accommodate every order. It’s so refreshing to see a company pull out all the stops to put their customers first.”
The trucks are supplied by official Scania dealer, Keltruck, which has worked alongside Tiger Trailers and Sports Direct since the retailer’s first order.
Mike Kelly, Fleet Sales Director at Keltruck, says of the relationship: “The entire build process is always seamless. We supply the chassis, then the team at Tiger quickly and efficiently fit the bodywork, delivering an impeccably finished, expertly built and completely reliable vehicle every time.”
As the UK’s largest sporting goods retailer, Sports Direct operates a large and varied commercial fleet around the clock, 365 days a year, making deliveries to around 670 stores nationwide. Looking forward, the company intends to renew six to 10 trailers a year, eventually leading to its entire fleet being Tiger Trailers-built.
