2024 has been one for the books here at Espace! Almost at the end of a year of hard graft, we have finally gone live with our shiny new TMS system— which will make life smoother for us and, more importantly, for you. But that’s just a glimmer of what’s been an all-round epic year.
Big News! We’re now offering 3PL services at our new Central Birmingham hub!
With 30,000 sq ft, 24/7 access, and rates from just £1.85 per pallet, we’ve got your storage & logistics needs covered. From pallet supply and restacking to cross-docking and container loading—it’s all here!
• Low-Cost Pallet Storage: Rates from £2.50 per pallet per week or as low as £1.85 for regular churn on FMCG or larger volumes – flexible pay-as-you-go options, both short and long-term.
• Always Open: Our 24/7 operation means you can handle inputs and outputs morning, noon, and overnight.
• Large Facility: 30,000 sq ft with 2,500 pallet spaces ready for your needs.
• Stock Management Made Easy: Our Warehouse Management System (WMS) keeps stock locations, inventory, and replenishment under control.
• Full Pallet Services: Pallet supply, wrap, build, rework/restack, pick & pack, and labelling – whatever you need, we’ve got it covered.
• Dock Levellers & Modern Equipment: 20 dock levellers, VNA and reach trucks with slip sheet attachments, plus a Sovex conveyor system for quick container devanning/ loading.
• Cross-Docking & Sameday Solutions: Need collapsed loads rebuilt, restacked, and reloaded fast? We’re on it!
• Competitive Distribution Rates: Great rates on distribution and haulage from door, ports and more – with even better deals for existing clients.
We’re proud to be members of the UK Warehousing Association, offering trusted 3PL warehousing solutions nationwide. In addition to our Birmingham facility, we can support your warehousing needs across the UK.
Our dedicated account managers work closely with you to deliver a bespoke service tailored to your business requirements, making us a critical part of large supply chains.
Warehousing
RHD (Receive, Handle & Distribution)
• 0-500: £2.50
• 501-1000: £2.25
• 1001-2000: £2.00
• 2001-5000: £1.85
It’s been a action-packed 6 months for the famous bear, Erik, as he’s travelled alongside Espace co-owners and customers. His adventures have taken him across Europe, back to China and India, and even up to Mount Everest! (Findmoredetails onpage7.)
Check out some of Erik’s adventures, and remember to follow @erik_the_space_bear on instagram!
(ContinuedonPage5)
(ContinuedfromPage4)
Erik’s adventures are far from over, so keep an eye out to see where he’s off to next. Word on the grapevine is that Erik is cooking up something exciting for Espace’s big 25th anniversary next year... what could it be? Stay tuned to find out!
As always, we’re here to help!
The Espace Team
Over 2 decades of proven experience moving premium freight
Certified WCA time critical network members
Specialist Services
Key milestone updates
Dedicated in-house UK customs team
Bespoke Air Express, On Board Courier (OBC) and Charter services available
Access to all commercial and cargo freighters
All-Earth freight coverage and worldwide customs clearance network
Instant pricing & commitment
Spot and contract rates
Dedicated UK team
Full UK coverage
Instant pricing & commitment
Spot and contract rates
Dedicated European express team
Full UK and pan-European coverage
A van onsite within 120 minutes
Full range of vehicles from vans to artics
Instant POD
A van onsite within 120 minutes
Full range of standard and specialist vehicles
Bespoke solutions; 2 man, white glove, HIAB
Instant POD
Over the past 6 months, the Espace co-owner spirit has been on full display as we’ve come together to support some truly meaningful causes. Whether through baking, trekking, cycling, or sponsorships, our team has been making a difference in every way possible.
We kicked off with a heartwarming Macmillan Coffee Morning, where co-owners contributed delicious homemade treats—including branded Espace brownies! Thanks to everyone’s efforts, we raised over £200 for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Next, our beloved mascot Erik the Espace Bear went on an adventure with the Stan Bowley Trust, which raises funds for CyberKnife cancer radiotherapy treatment. In October, the Stan Bowley Trust cycling team tackled the Cycle Rajasthan challenge, journeying through historic forts, painted houses, palaces, and finally the iconic Taj Mahal. Erik was there every step of the way as the team smashed their donation target, raising over £40,000 for this life-saving cause.
A particularly poignant cause this year has been raising funds in memory of our beloved Peter Allen, who sadly passed away in May. His close friend Karen undertook the extraordinary challenge of reaching Mount Everest Base Camp to raise money for Blood Cancer UK, climbing to an incredible 5,364m over a 100km trek.
Karen is continuing to fundraise for the Bromsgrove District Branch of Blood Cancer UK, and we’d love your support for this vital cause
(Continuedonpage8)
(ContinuedfromPage7)
But that’s not all! Closer to home, Espace has proudly sponsored two local football teams: Burntwood Dragons & Phoenix U14s and U7s. This partnership is especially meaningful for our Sales & Marketing Director, Kelly Vasey, whose father co-founded the club back in the 1990s.
“Burntwood Dragons have always held a special place in my heart,” says Kelly. “Seeing the club thrive and make such a positive impact in the community is fantastic. Espace is thrilled to support the Dragons and contribute to the incredible work they do for young footballers.”
From local football to life-changing treks, it’s been a year of giving back at Espace, and we couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve accomplished together.
Q1 What do you like best about working at Espace?
The People.
Q2 What is your personal philosophy?
Do good to receive good.
Q3 Best country you have ever visited? America.
Q4 What would you do for a career if you didn’t work in freight?
A pilot.
Q5 What is your favourite meal?
Burgers.
Q6 Who is your celebrity idol?
Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ed’s moved more vans around Europe than Ronaldo has scored goals!
Our own GOAT of express freight!
The 26th and 27th of November saw an Espace delegation attend the Employee Ownership Association (EOA) Annual Conference in Telford.
As the employee-ownership sector has grown (it’s doubled in size to over UK 2000 companies in the last year alone) the conference has grown with it. Five Espace co-owners from all areas of the business attended both days, each choosing from over 200 break out sessions of personal interest to them. Attendees included current Espace EO Trustees as well as co-owners considering putting themselves forwards in our upcoming elections in 2025.
Oliver Dyas, Espace Marketing Executive and first time EOA Conference attendee commented, “Seeing the growth of the EO sector in the past few years is beyond expectations. There is real potential in this model, one break out session had representatives from the government suggesting the country is keen to see EO grow. Right now the word just needs to be spread near and far! I think in the next decade we will see employee-ownership appear in more even more surprising places, it could be an answer for questions the current government is struggling with.”
Espace has always been an employee-first organisation so our move to legal employeeownership in 2017 was less of a shift than for most companies. We’re seven years into our EO journey now and we’re constantly learning and making improvements. The willingness of the EO community to share their success stories and lessons is so refreshing - as is the willingness of our co-owners to engage and offer improvements to the business. With 73% of EO businesses reporting increased employee engagement and motivation, our customer experience levels are unrivalled in the freight forwarding sector. You can read more about what Employee-Ownership means to us here
On Friday 22nd November, Espace went live with our new Transport Management System (TMS) provided by SoloPlan, a German logistics software specialist.
We reviewed many of the leading TMS packages out there, most of which were little different from our legacy system. We chose CarLo from SoloPlan due to its flexibility, it being fully customisable in house, and its connectivity – allowing us to link via API to third party specialist software as well as to customers and hauliers.
Our Commercial Director, Geoff Yates said of the decision to purchase CarLo, “When I started looking for a new TMS, I quickly realised there was no such thing as a one-size fits all. Each has benefits and weaknesses. What CarLo offers is the best TMS on the market which is API open to link to satellite software. We’ve built a superb package to include the best customs, accounting and CRM programmes available. CarLo gives us an ever-developing platform for us to build on for the future from a company which shares similar values to our own.”
Whilst some such as Amazon use technology to remove personal interactions and boost profitability, the Espace digital roadmap plans to free up more time for our customer facing staff to spend more time doing what they really enjoy doing – servicing customers!
After go-live and initial shake down and corrections, phase two includes implementing further API connections, development of the customer portal and introduction of carbon measurement for all transport types.
