What Users Tell Us I
Page 21
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Interview 12
Dickens and Jones--" 156,000 Miles Without a Breakdown Is Our Record."
We must admit that we regarded the interviewing of Mr. Charles Dickens, a director of Dickens and Jones, Ltd., the well-known Regent Street milliner and ladies' supplier, as a very agreeable task.
The company has now been established for upwards of 100 years, and has attained very extensive proportions. The English Royal house has graced this establishment with its patronage from time to time, and our readers will quite understand that we were naturally anxious to secure the views of a responsible member of Dickens and Jones on the general utility of the modern motorvan.
Our first question was in the shape of a request for information as to the primary inducement for the purchase of motorvans.
"To us," was the answer, "the commencement of motor services was something of a heart wrench. For upwards of a century our horses and vans had been much admired as well equipped and maintained turnouts ; we have always prided ourselves on the attention which we paid to these vehicles. It was really no desire on our part to abandon the use of horses which made us purchase our first motor van ; the whole thing was a fullyconsidered business proposition. We had arrived at the conclusion that our goods by this means could be delivered over a much wider radius than with the older and slower method of delivery."
"Your experience has borne this out, we presume? "
"Quite," was the answer. " We now go much further into the country, and cover a greater area than ever was possible before by means of our horsed vans. We deliver much quicker now, and you can quite understand that, to our average customer, a well-equipped motorvan standing outside the door is much preferred to the sometimes shabby, if utilitarian, horse carrier's van."
"What machines do you use?" we then asked?
" Napiers, chiefly," was the reply, that is, at the moment. We have just disposed of some other machines which gave us in their day very good service. Our present machines, however, are of a more modern type, and, naturally, are more reliable chassis. Of course, we expected that this would be BO, or where would he the advan tage of purchasing machines on which all the latest ideas and improvements have been incorporated. The governing factors in the selection of the machines were these. Firstly the make, and secondly that the works, in case of repairs being required, should be situated somewhere in the London district. The engine and transmission we demanded should be accessible, and also the control bad to be quite easy to understand.
".1 drove the first Napier which we took over, to Ripley, on the first day on which the machine was in our possession, myself, and I was charmed with the easy way in which it was handled."
"And now as to costs?"
"A high-class horsed van such as we use," was the answer, "costs about £80. The upkeep of each home is, I should say, about 25s. per week. With these vans our delivery area is often only a fivemile radius from this house. But with the motors during the day 70 or 80 calls will he made, and 120 to 140 parcels delivered, and 80 to 100 miles covered. In fact our vans ran last year 156,000 miles—that is our record. By the way, did I mention that we have in our service a small Auto-Carrier, which we use for express delivery, and which is giving us the greatest satisfaction?"
We are much pleased to hear it Now, as to the advertisement value of motor vehicles."
"We maintain our vans at the highest possible state of perfection," was the ansWer. "They are well turned out, the bodies are clean and attractive and well lettered ; in fact, we have taken your advice, so often given in THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR, as to big lettering and little of it.
"Here is a point which has been brought to our notice," continued Mr. Dickens. "Before we used motorvans, a parcel which was destined for a customer living in some outlying town situated a few miles from a town would be delivered to the station nearest to his house. This might easily be four or five miles distant, and it is often the case that the railway companies will not deliver outside a given area. Of course, this procedure meant that the parcel lay at the station until the customer could arrange to have it collected or go down for it himself. That is now avoided to a very great extent ; we deliver our parcels straight to the doors of our customers.
"some little time ago during the railway strike in France our vans proved themselves of the greatest value. You know, of course, that the French railway services were held up entirely, and, in order to keep our London house supplied with the latest French fashions in headgear, dresses, and so forth, we organized a raotorvan service from Paris to Dieppe, which enabled us to continue our business relations with the French capital throughout the whole of the strike.