They say that charity starts at home: in the case
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of Kent Link Transport that also holds true for success. Unlike many hauliers, Kent Link has a policy of concentrating on its home ground...
ICent Link is a transport operator which is firmly based in the county from which it takes its name, although it will move loads dow-n to the size of a single pallet anywhere in the country. The company does not actively court backloads and its vehicles often return empty to pick up more loads from its local customers.
Generally the company's sphere of operation is Kent and the London area but it makes nightly runs to a pallet network hub in the West Midlands, from where goods are taken by another carrier to their final destination. Kent Link also picks up goods from London-based hauliers and brings them back to Kent.
Joint director Carol Ford says: "A lot of people say that Kent is such a difficult place to get deliveries made in and if this is the case we are keen to step in to fill the gap." Pallet network deliveries account for around 25% of the firm's trade but it is still prepared to take oddball loads anywhere in the country."
Transport manager Stephen Ford adds: "We try and deliver loads of between two and five pallets ourselves generally, but for single pallets we tend to use a pallet network system." However, pallet network systems are rarely used for transporting goods for one of the firm's largest customers, Coty UK Kent Link has been working for Coty for ahnost as long as it has been in operation—and for each of the past five years it has picked up an award for the excellence for its transport service. Most deliveries are handled from the firm's Ashford manufacturing base to a number of distribution centres.
Despite its proximity to the Channel, Kent Link rarely sends vehicles to the Continent. "We might take a 7.5-tonner abroad every month or two but generally we leave it to the bigger operators," says Ford. "We have good relationships with the bigger operators in the area. If we got an order to transport 100 tonnes we would use another local firm but we are given the driver's cabphone number and to all intents and purposes he is our driver for the day."
The firm's founder, John Ford, adds: "This way we can be small one day, big the next and then revert with a minimum of hassle. He points out that Kent Link also picks up work from other operators in return.
This is very much a family firm, but it did not start that way. Kent Link came into being when national carrier Atlas International closed its Ashford deport, making John Ford and depot manager Joe Bailey redundant.
The business started with three vehicles: Ford and Bailey alternated on day and night shifts with another driver handling multi-drops. Unfortunately four years into operation Bailey contracted multiple sclerosis and Ford was faced with closing down or finding another partner. With the help of a bank loan, he was able to buy Bailey's share and install his wife Carol as director.
The business expanded to run a fleet of 12 before it was hit by the recession. "Fortunately I had a good bank manager who saw the recession coming and advised me to get rid of a number of vehicles," says Bailey. "The fleet was reduced to five but we still managed to hold on to our major clients and managed to win good prices for the work we did."
Since then the fleet is back up to eight with another likely to follow later this year. There are also plans to move to a larger site—but any expansion will be slow and cautious.
Computer lmowledge
The Fords' son Stephen is being groomed to take over the business. Partly because of the recession he did not start work in the family firm but worked for other hauliers "The knowledge he gained, especially computer knowledge, has been invaluable and we use a lot of it in our business today," says Ford.
Kent Link's local connection extends to its drivers. They all live locally and the firm likes to employ drivers who have mortgages and families in the area. "We carry out intensive interviews before we appoint anyone and one of the questions we ask is if potential drivers have a nickname. Sometimes you can learn more about a person from their nickname than from any formal interview," says Ford. "Competition for drivers is intense with many national hauliers snapping up people as soon as they have got their HGV certificate. Generally we find people who have been lured by the 400-500 a week on offei from the large firms but reject them for the stability we can offer plus the fact that they live locally. We offer training towards ADR, HGV and forklift qualifications and do take some of our staff direct from the Labour Exchange."
The Fords are confident the firm will be able to develop and they are not worried about the effects the new Government will have on the industry. "We will welcome legislation outlawing late payment but sometimes I am worried that the Labour Government might encourage the growth of unionism and strikes. But if major carriers were affected by strikes it could boost our business," addsJohn Ford with a smile.
If he had his way his Kent Link would rarely travel beyond the Kent county boundary. The company has shown that local roots can still be good for business.
17 by Mike Sherrington