Monarch Transport

In addition to its head office in Glasgow, Monarch Transport has branches in Nottingham and southern Spain, where it has access to large fleets ranging from 3.5 tonne vans to 44-tonne articulated lorries.

But as a freight forwarder, it’s not access to large fleets that separates it from others. Instead it’s being able to call upon a wide and varied nature of its mixed managed fleet that really counts. In Monarch’s case, it has a vehicle for just about every heavy haulage scenario you could imagine. For example, articulated lorries, rigids, flat-beds and specially designed vehicles that cater for abnormal and hazardous loads.

But John Weir and Derek Anderson, who bought the company a year ago, say that access to a large and varied fleet has “little value without the skilled and experienced people who are tasked with keeping it moving”.

Like any successful business, we believe that strong customer service skills go a long way. That doesn’t just mean demonstrating good manners, it’s about ensuring that our customers are always satisfied.

John Weir, Owner at Monarch Transport

Mr Weir continues, “Therefore, when we train staff we try to get across a different mindset. We tell them that our customer’s businesses are not separate entities. Instead, we see ourselves as an extension of them.”

“Not only do our people need to have the foresight to see a potential bump in the road before it becomes a problem, they must have the confidence to act too and always be able to communicate a changing situation back to the customer in a timely manner. That’s what our clients – many of them Blue Chip companies – have come to expect and we must ensure that we are always able to deliver their goods in the designated time frame set.”

But in addition to nurturing his workforce in the strategic and soft skills needed to succeed, both Mr Weir and Mr Anderson are firm advocates of developing staff who are comfortable around technology.

“It’s not an optional requirement these days,” Mr Weir explains. “We serve several blue-chip companies and a basic requirement of working with them is that our operational and administration systems work in harmony. Incorporating these systems into our business and ensuring that our staff can use them has benefited the company. Over the years, for example, I’ve come to the conclusion that the best results are achieved when people embrace technology. As they say, you can’t make people faster, but technology can make them quicker.”

Against this backdrop, Monarch uses Transport Exchange Group’s two largest platforms – Courier Exchange and Haulier Exchange – to promote great efficiency and productivity.

Overseeing the day-to-day operations is Monarch’s Transport manager, Neil Morrison. Neil, who has worked for Monarch for three years, manages nine members of staff in Monarch’s busy HQ. All of them are plugged into Haulage Exchange and Courier Exchange platforms. So how do Morrison and his team use HX and CX?

“As a freight forwarder, we have a very large client base, and while we have access to a sizeable managed fleet, sometimes we need extra capacity to fully meet the needs of our clients. The Exchange greatly helps us in this respect because it helps us react much more quickly to our customer’s needs.”

“By using CX and HX, we’re able to post loads and when we do we always receive a quick response – whatever time of day – from drivers that we know that we can rely on. We usually have ten to fifteen loads on CX at any one time and so that gives you an idea of how frequently we utilise the platforms.”

“The other great thing about the Exchange is that it helps us to source a wide range of different sized vehicles for our customers. So whether, it’s a transit van, a curtain-sider, or a 26 tonne lorry, we know that there’s a compliant Exchange member out there who we can always subcontract the load to.”

The Exchange also help power Monarch’s thriving courier business too, which provides same day and next day courier services to Glasgow and to the rest of the UK.

CX gives us access to thousands of compliant owner drivers. Whenever we receive a request from our clients, we quite often post it on the Exchange, as we know it will be allocated to a trusted trade-only transport business.

John Weir, Owner at Monarch Transport

And like so many other large operators, Morrison says that the Exchange, which covers 10 percent of the company’s work, has also helped to extend its reach.

“We often get calls from customers based hundreds of miles away, who require a flat-bed truck. Although our Nottingham branch can cover most of these jobs, there are times when the vehicles are over-subscribed. However, nowadays, when this happens, we simply subcontract the load to a driver on the Exchange. Loads heading south of the border account for a growing percentage of our business these days and the Exchange helps ensure that we remain agile in a crowded market place.”

The more I used CX, the more I discovered that it wasn’t just a platform for backloads. With a consistent source of hotshot loads, I realised after my first month that I could rely on the platform for my entire living.

Terry Price

Signing up to CX is probably one of the best decisions that we have ever made… the platform adds around 70 percent to our annual turnover.

Becoming a member of CX has made growth easy for Eezehaul. In fact, they give us the credit for achieving ISO 14001 status. With our help, they’ve been able to increase their back loads which, in turn, has cut down on waste and reduced their carbon footprint during deliveries. Go green!

Mark believes being a member of Courier Exchange has played a vital role in the phenomenal growth of Eezehaul by allowing them to accept more more loads as it expanded. Access to the network of 6,000 plus CX member companies gave the Sussex-based company the ability to meet customers’ demands at short notice – even at its busiest times.

CX vets its members, giving us reassurance that we can be confident doing business with any of them.

It has also helped the company achieve the coveted ISO 14001 status, which it was awarded recently, by ensuring that wherever possible vehicles do not run empty on return journeys, thus cutting down on waste and reducing the average carbon footprint on deliveries.

“At Eezehaul we have always had a clear idea of what we wanted to achieve, and CX has certainly helped us on our journey,” said Mark, who acts as Managing Director. From the beginning we could see the benefits of CX and it hasn’t let us down. There are other exchanges out there but I’ve never found anything that matches the overall offering of CX.”

“It’s easy to use, well thought out and, most importantly, offers security. CX vets its members giving us reassurance that we can be confident doing business with any of them.”

CX has grown to become one of the world’s largest trading hubs for the sameday courier and express freight industries, enabling its members to fulfill orders and complete journeys in the most efficient way possible.

“It’s invaluable, as here at Eezehaul we often need to make things happen at short notice,” said Mark. “CX’s offering is getting stronger and stronger. Developments are progressive and user-friendly.”

“The days of putting things in the back of a van have long gone. People are now looking for service partners who can manage their logistics. Eezehaul is also proud of its green credentials and using CX means we’ve reduced wasted journeys. It’s a win-win – good for customers and good for the environment.”

CX has helped us to serve our customers well, and I am certain it will continue to do so.

Customer service is paramount for Eezehaul, which moves an average of 5,000 consignments a day. Working to high standards also gives staff job satisfaction – the company prides itself on having a low turnover of employees.

“We are also picking up a lot more work for our vehicles. It does however need drivers to remember to make sure they show themselves as available and equally to change their status when they become unavailable.”

The new App gives him the confidence to accept smaller jobs, secure in the knowledge that if a larger job comes up he can juggle priorities by using Courier Exchange’s Mobile App to find a sub-contractor at short notice to carry out the smaller job, who is already in the right location to pick up.

The fact that Courier Exchange vets its members is very important to him. “If you are delivering a ‘line-stopper’ consignment to an automotive company, for example, you don’t want to sub-contract that job out to someone unknown. If you hold up a production line for even three or four minutes, it’s your reputation that’s on the line.”

Go2Day has recently taken the decision to integrate the TomTom Telematics WEBFLEET system, used by all of its 3.5-tonne curtain side and tail lift vans, with Courier Exchange to access live vehicle data via the freight trading platform.

“We recognise the benefits of both TomTom Telematics WEBFLEET and Courier Exchange, so it made sense to make the most real-time tracking data to help make the most of our vehicles,” explains Andy Littlewood. “We now possess complete visibility of our vehicles through the exchange in terms of location, status and availability, which will help increase completed jobs and boost revenue.”

HSP Couriers carry everything from tractor and engineering parts to staging and lighting equipment for movie sets on blockbusters such as Twilight. They first joined CX just one month after the business started in August 2008, and even won the Transport Exchange Group’s Best Newcomer Award in their first year as a member.

It’s a business which has gone from strength to strength having first joined the Exchange just one month after the business started in August 2008. It even won the Transport Exchange Group’s Best Newcomer Award in its first year of becoming a member. Then three years later the firm got the top accolade – the ‘Company of the Year Award’ at the annual Transport Awards.

Before launching HSP Couriers, Hiten Patel worked as a Marketing Executive at 3663. It was then that he recognised that there was a market for sameday courier operation which was driven by high levels of customer service. Hitten started out as an owner driver and has since grown the business substantially and the company now operates a fleet of 13 vehicles ranging from small vans to long wheelbase sprinter and has 11 employees.

There is no denying that the Courier Exchange has made a massive difference to our business and has played a pivotal role in our continued growth.

Hiten Patel

He puts much of this success down to joining the Exchange. He said: “having just launched the business I took the decision to join the Exchange as not only as a means of gaining work but also to provide me with a greater insight into how the business worked.”

It was a formula that worked as within just a short period of time Hiten built up a reliable network of drivers through the Exchange, giving him nationwide coverage.

Hiten commented: “The fact that we had access to thousands of member businesses gave us a huge kick start. Even though we had customers based around Northants, they have connections all over the country and the Exchange has allowed us to handle these on behalf of our customers.”

“We often have vehicles across the UK but can’t always call them off route if a new job comes in. So we simply post the job on the Courier Exchange – it’s a win win for all concerned. The facts speak for themselves. In the early days of joining the Exchange the work generated represented 60% of turnover. It gave us the lifeline we needed and provided a strong platform on which we have continued to build.”

ICD is a great example of how our platform can help you to expand into new niches in more locations across the country, using features such as the Live Availability Map. Take a look at their story.

Life started in 1984 when Europe’s oldest and largest consular agent, Blair Consular Services, decided to set up its own in-house courier service to deliver documents to consulates around the world.

Starting with just one man and a car, ICD, as it is popularly known, rapidly expanded. Today it manages a number of other specialities, including exhibition logistics, hanging garments, and warehouse and storage.

While delivering documents to consulates and to their agents at airports is a mainstay of the business, the company ships anything from single envelopes to helicopter blades, and can move loads of up to 10 tonnes in weight.

Whatever we do is based on trust, and with Courier Exchange we can trust the members. That’s important.

Guy Dodds, Managing Director

The company provides the highest levels of training, and drivers have Aviation Security Level 4 (Air Cargo Agents) that enables them to deliver directly to an aircraft’s steps if necessary.

Their first driver, Guy Dodds, has risen to become Managing Director of the company, and is in charge of logistics for its fleet of four vehicles and pool of around 25 sub-contractors. ICD joined CX after he recognised its potential to help find sub-contractors for individual jobs.

Guy said: “We use the Live Availability Map to look for carriers. If we have a job, say, in Liverpool, we’ll look at the map and see where all the carriers who are in Liverpool are, then ring them and ask if they’re available, and get quotes.

“I put work on the Exchange that I can’t cover. It gives us an extended field. The majority of our work is in London, but we cover the whole of the UK.”

Stewart has always known he’s wanted to be a courier and, since downloading the CX app, he’s been able to find his ideal work/life balance. He can choose his own hours and, with the app’s technology, ensure that he makes a decent wage each month. We’ve made self-employment that much easier!

“I consider myself very lucky in that I’ve always known what I wanted to do. I love driving, love vans and love logistics. I’ve been in the courier game for almost twenty years now, have delivered to every London postcode, and have absolutely no regrets.

I think perhaps the most rewarding aspect of my job, is that on a personal level, customers value the work that I do, and rely on me for their deliveries. But it’s good to feel part of something bigger too. I may be one man in a van, but, when I jump into my vehicle each morning, I’m proud to be one of the hundreds of thousands of drivers who keep the UK’s freight transport supply chain on an even keel.

However, it’s a tough gig. Van drivers are some of the hardest working people in Britain. For the last 18 years, for instance, I don’t think that I’ve had a Saturday off, and some parcel delivery companies will even fine you for being ill.

With a partner and two young kids, I decided to make a change. I was fed up with the long hours and frustrated that I was often doing the lion’s share of the work for little reward. I wanted more control, more flexibility in my working life. I found that when I started my own business, SB Same Day Couriers, a move which I owe largely to Courier Exchange (CX).

Why? Because CX has immediately given me a much better work/life balance. The App gives me the flexibility to choose my hours, and most importantly, its smart loading matching technology, ensures that I win enough loads each month to always earn a decent wage.

Stewart

Today’s Friday – the busiest day of the week on CX. Suddenly my phone rings. It’s a large logistics contractor from Peterborough. They’re inviting me to quote on a multi-drop load -picking up in Rochester -which is only a 20-minute drive from my house in Greenhithe -and delivering to various addresses in Croydon. I know most of the Croydon postcodes because I used to do regular collection and delivery drops for a large parcel carrier for many years.

I quote for the job and my bid is accepted. After saying goodbye to my kids, I grab my flask of tea, my phone and jump into my Citroen Relay. Before leaving, I click the ‘on my way to pick up’ button. This allows the contractor and its Croydon-based customers to check my real-time position on the Courier Exchange’s Live Availability Map, which means I don’t have to field any needless calls when I’m driving.

I then head out of the drive and switch my radio to LBC. A couple of hours later, I’ve finished my deliveries. I take a sip of tea from my flask, update my status yet again on the app and wait. I’ve programmed the CX app to let me know about any load that falls within a 30-mile radius of my home, and this always seem to generate quick results.

It’s 11.30 am and as LBC discusses Brexit, another one of my regular clients, Red Spot Transport, calls. They ask me to quote on a multi-drop delivery in London. Thanks to my 18 years couriering across London, I know every inch of the capital, and jobs like this are meat and drink to me. I put in a quote and get it. It takes me several hours to complete all of the delivery drops, but luckily for me I manage to finish before the rush hour really begins to kick in.

Every day I set myself a target to earn at least £200. Today, the two jobs have made me much more than that and so I decide to head back home. However, I set my status on the CX app to ‘going home’ in the hope that I can land a backload. My phone finally rings. However, it’s not a business call that I was expecting. Instead, it’s my partner. She seems a bit flustered. She says she’s struggling to make the school run. I tell her not to worry and assure her that I can easily cover it.A quarter of an hour later, I’ve picked up my eldest daughter and am asking her about her day.

Okay, so I missed out on the backload today, but CX has given me something much more precious -the freedom and flexibility to work on my terms and no one else’s, which means I can always put my family first. That, for me, is the greatest selling point of Courier Exchange membership…”

Logistics is Vincent’s passion – and the CX app is helping him do what he loves most in the world (not to mention find the most fulfilling and interesting work). He can get his goods to their destination and find his next job quick as a wink… perfect for the man who owns Jet Speed!

Logistics has always been my passion. I’ve never wanted to do anything else and it’s what I do best. There’s something very satisfying about moving goods – particularly when I know that the parts in the back of my van serve a higher purpose.

A few years ago, for example, I began working for a contractor which supplies emergency parts to the RAF’s fleet of Search and Rescue helicopters. And while I’m only a small part of the supply chain, every time I switch on the TV and see a brave crew scooping a sailor up from angry seas, it gives me a thrill.

I remember the phone call that woke me at 3am on a Saturday morning, the one asking me to travel down to Truro, pick up a part and take it wherever it was needed. When I’m on the road, it’s quite humbling and inspiring to know that when the vital component I’m delivering is fitted to the helicopter it will be back in the air saving lives.

But if you’re a courier, how do you find interesting and fulfilling work like this? Firstly, having a good support network around you it crucial. In this respect, I’m particularly grateful to D.W Cook Transport, who really helped me to find my feet in the early days.

Secondly, while I’ve always been fairly resourceful, and pride myself on having quite a large network of contacts, there’s no way in the world that I could have found these opportunities off my own back. As an owner driver, I’m fully focused on getting goods from A to B and then finding my next job.

To win a plum contract like this, requires time – and it’s time that I don’t have. For instance, I’d have to be vetted by the contractor, by the Ministry of Defence and my skill set and suitability assessed. That process could take weeks or even months and all the face-to-face meetings would take me off the road.

Just as well then that Courier Exchange allows me to have my cake and to eat it too. It’s one of the biggest freight exchanges in the UK and in my view the best because it gets me access to some of the largest logistics companies in the UK. They can see all the feedback posted about my same day delivery business, Jet Speed Couriers.

In fact, they can examine the feedback for every job that I’ve completed in the seven years that I’ve been a member of Courier Exchange. If you treat every job as if it’s your first as I do, and your feedback from those companies you work for backs this up, then you maximise that opportunity to work with interesting people, on exciting projects that would be virtually impossible for an owner driver to secure on their own.

As well as putting me in front of some of the largest transport businesses in the country, CX gives them access to businesses like mine. You may think big logistics operators with dedicated despatch teams don’t need the little guy. But believe me they do. It’s reliable and trusted SMEs -that’s small and medium-sized businesses to you and me -that give them the confidence to take on large contracts in the grocery or manufacturing sector.

Why? Because by using the Live Availability Map (LAM) they know exactly where we are and when our vehicles are likely to become empty. They take it for granted. But imagine if suddenly that visibility was taken away from them. Imagine if they were unable to access the extra capacity and experience and professionalism that we provide.

It’s fair to say that some of them wouldn’t be able to operate, and those still able to would most likely incur much higher costs. But the Exchange ensures that we all get our fair share of loads.

Another point worth mentioning is that the Exchange lets me be me. In other words, it allows me to run my business the way I want it to be run. Working through the Exchange means that I can choose who I work for, and who works for me when I post loads, which I do around thirty times a month.

And while I love the flexibility that CX gives me – in that I can work the hours that I want – it also allows me to create a profile telling my customers who I am and what I do best.

In my case, before joining the Exchange I spent many years working in warehouse distribution Before the recession hit a decade or so ago, I was a warehouse manager for a large manufacturing company. So when I moved into freight in 2011, I was able to use that experience to my advantage.

Leicestershire, where I’m based, is a hotbed for logistics. Two of the largest distribution centres in Europe – Magna Parkin Lutterworth and Dirft in Rugby – are close by and much of the work filters through them. But they can be confusing places to be for inexperienced couriers, as they’re as big as small towns.

So to know them inside out like I do gave me an edge. Why? Because I had a good understanding of their layout, and how they worked, I was always able to guarantee that that collection or delivery -which is the single most important part of a job -was always smooth and efficient. It may seem a small thing, but first impressions really count. Proving that I could deliver a professional service really helped me to build my reputation in the early days.

Nowadays, that’s not so much of a concern. I’ve built a large network of clients that I trade with, and win around 70% of my loads from direct bookings. If you’re not familiar with the term, that’s loads that go from member to member without ever touching the Exchange. For me, they show the Exchange and those who belong to it at their most dynamic. For those who benefit most from direct bookings are also the most agile members and most trusted members.

Okay – so CX’s tracking technology can greatly improve your chances of being in the right place at the right time, but on the other hand, no amount of technology can build a reputation. That’s up to you. And so when contractors place direct bookings, it’s feedback record that counts. That means demonstrating energy, enthusiasm and commitment for every job.

As the famous saying goes, you don’t have to love logistics to deliver a professional service. But to do it well, it certainly helps.

I know if we can’t cover a load at short notice, we can post it on the Exchange and make sure it gets done.

Kevin Matchan, Co-owner

With the regular earnings I received from working through CX I’ve been able to turn Lost & Found Couriers into a profitable business. Since joining the Exchange, customer foot-fall has risen by 95%, while demand for the company has tripled.

Darrin Armstrong, Managing Director of Lost & Found Courier Services

But how has the Exchange helped us? Firstly, their technology has opened new doors. How? Well, as there’s just me and one other self-employed driver on the books, without CX we’d have to turn down a third of the job requests that we receive each week. However, with Courier Exchange giving me access to 43,000 vehicles in the UK, we can simply post the load on the system and within twenty minutes of doing so the lost item is on the road with a driver, who’s been fully vetted.

Secondly, as we’ve got bigger, the Exchange has given us the confidence to broaden our horizons, and has given us the capability to do so too. For example, if we didn’t have the Exchange, we might have to turn down a job-say from Heathrow to the Manchester – because as much as we’re passionate about reuniting sentimental items with their owners – it just wouldn’t make economic sense for a London-based courier to take this job on. However, with the Driver App we can now win a backload home, which covers all fuel costs and makes the round trip pay.

Thirdly, the Exchange has helped us to change the pattern of demand, in the sense more jobs no longer originate in Heathrow, where we’re based. Again, if we didn’t have the Exchange, there’s no way we would contemplate taking a lost item from Manchester to the Lake District. But if we post it on CX, the smart load matching system will find us a driver based in the north-west who is able to make the delivery to Kendall on our behalf.

With CX behind us, we’re excited about the future. But who wouldn’t be? After all, what area of logistics can you return a phone or tablet to its relieved and grateful owner, and at the same time reunite them with memories that they thought they’d lost forever?”