T he history of Pickfords (or NFC Moving Services, as its
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enlarged portfolio of companies prefers to be known these days), is almost as long as the history as organised UK road transport. Pickfords' forebears survived a close call with Cromwell's roundheads but although Martha, Matthew and Thomas Pickford outlived the threat of Napoleonic invasion, they lost ownership of the company in the recession which followed.
Their successors endured the economic hardship created by two World Wars only to be consumed by nationalisation and subsequent integration into what eventually became the National Freight Corporation. Later custodians of the Pickfords mantle returned to the private sector during the "Thatcher's Britain" era. Together, under an NFC management-led employee buyout, Pickfords and its NFC associates confounded the critics by surviving the postgovernmental interference years. Indeed, Pickfords in particular prospered and expanded its business around the globe. As Pickfords' business services and marketing manager Chris Bryant says, you'd have to search long and wide for a more experienced road transport operator than Pickforcls. Old in experience it might be, but it has not grown long in the tooth.
In October this year Pickfords moved into a new headquarters. This 20,000m2 site accommodates 4,500 palletised storage containers for household goods and racking storage for 2.1 million data files. By most standards that's a major site but it's just a small addition to the 180,000m2 Pickfords offers at its 104 UK depots.
Outside the UK the company has depots around the world, from the USA and Russia to Australia and the Pacific Rim.
The Pickford name has become synonymous with removals but this reputation hides earlier, more adventurous activities.
By 1803 it already had 11 road and eight canal-side depots; by the turn of the century it had a flourishing intermodal road-rail operation. Many milestones were passed literally as Pickfords grew: its first meat consignments were moved in temperature-controlled vans from Aberdeen to London as early as 1932. It introduced its first parcels service in 1946. Pickfords' activities extended far beyond its pantechnicons to include liquid and powder tankers, fiats and eventually low loaders. But it has never neglected the removals sector, acquiring many famous removals names. In recent years these have included Hoults, and Bullens in the UK, and Allied Van Lines in the US, all of which have since become brand-leading names within the Moving Services Group.
Lost September NFC stablemate Exel Logistics formed Tradeteam, a 2.90m drinks distribution joint venture with brewer Bass. That deal was confirmed exactly 198 years after William Bass used the sale of his small beer-carrying business in Burton on Trent to launch his brewing empire. Bass sold his carrying business to an established family-owned competitor with an enduring thirst for success. The name was Matthew Pickford.
FACTFILE PICKFORDS—NFC MOVING SERVICES
BASED: Enfield, Middlesex with 104 UK depots and 4,500 staff. FOUNDED: 1695, Poynton, near Manchester. Specialised in quarrying, carrying munitions and household removals and storage. After nationalisation became part of BRS. PROPRIETOR: Mike Tarrant, group managing director; Sir Christopher Bland, NEC chairman. UK FLEET: 722 vehicles. SPECIALITY CONTRACT: Household removals and storage. TURNOVER: £100m {UK).