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Post Covid-19: A brave new world? By Andrew Brown, Sales Director (Doncaster
Post Covid-19: A brave new world?
By Andrew Brown, Sales Director, Doncaster
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Had you been walking down a street in May 1945 and asked the average man or woman if the carnage of the last six years would lead to massive and irreversible changes in society, the chances are they wouldn’t be able to tell you. Twenty years on, historians would point to massive social change; the NHS, nationalisation, the cold war, a nuclear arms race and much more. As we hopefully reach the end of the pandemic, we could ask the same question... and again only history will tell. However, we live in unprecedented times. Covid-19, Brexit, the disruption of global trade and a tilt in the balance of power to the east have all combined to create the perfect storm. Whether its cement for your patio, fence posts for your boundary or microchips for manufacturing, it seems everything is in short supply. The combined result is a massive hike in prices and inflationary pressures not seen in the world since the late 1970’s.
In the automotive sector, we watch aghast as raw material prices rocket on a daily basis. Long term price security is a distant memory. As steel, aluminium and other related prices spiral out of control, one does not dare to think what will happen when currently dormant giants like Boeing and Airbus fire back into life and add more demand to the already overstretched material supply industry. At the same time, our logistics providers are facing a serious shortage of drivers, putting up wages and therefore cost at an unsustainable rate. One thing is for sure, all our weekly shops will be rising in price by £15 to £20 per week – not good news for a nation with many of its population already reliant on food banks to make ends meet.
At Gray & Adams, we are not immune from these global storms. Demands for our products are unprecedentedly high... but so is the pressure on raw material prices necessary to produce the product at our manufacturing sites. We face many difficult challenges and decisions over the coming months, but rest assured we will work closely with our customers to meet these new challenges and try to navigate this new world together.
For this edition of our BIG interview, we were thrilled to be able to sit down with Paul Marrow, Operations Director at Samworth Brothers Supply Chain (part of the Samworth Brothers Group).
1. Can you tell us a bit about your role at Samworth Brothers Supply Chain? I’ve worked in the Transport, Logistics and Supply Chain industry for over 30 years and have been with Samworth Brothers for the last four years. As Operations Director, I look after around 560 staff as we work to distribute Samworth Brothers Group products to chilled food retailers, manufacturers, and other distributors across the length and breadth of the country.
2. What services do Samworth Brothers Supply Chain provide? Samworth Brothers is a fourth-generation family business with a range of businesses and brands, operating from well invested and modern food manufacturing and retail sites across the UK. Since 1998, Samworth Brothers Supply Chain has been in operation, providing high quality, cost effective, temperature-controlled distribution services to companies within the Samworth Brothers Group, including brands such as Melton Mowbray, Ginsters and Soreen. The business operates out of four chilled distribution sites (Leicester, Penrith, Callington and Bristol), seven days a week, 24 hours a day. We have a reputation with retailers for providing the highest levels of on-time delivery performance within the chilled food market. Our figures speak for themselves: 97% on-time service levels; 70% of our volume is day one for day one; 99.9% pick accuracy. Each week, our warehouses handle over 25000 pallets and pick 950,000 cases.
3. How long has Samworth Brothers Supply Chain been working with Gray & Adams? The Samworth Brothers Group has been working with Gray & Adams for over 30 years, whilst SBSC has probably been working with them since around 2001. I’ve got trailers on our fleet which are at least 12 years old, which says a lot about their reliability and build quality.
4. What have been the impacts of Covid-19 for Samworth Brothers Supply Chain? Apart from the obvious closures, furlough, and changes during the pandemic, we have had some interesting learnings too. Although fresh food sales declined a bit, we found growth in other areas of the business, such as baked goods and products which sustained cooking at home. Overall, we were able to remain very consistent in our operation. We were also extremely fortunate to have great processes and mechanisms in place to protect us - our team really came together and adapted well to the new safeguarding measures to ensure it was as straightforward as it could possibly be.
5. How do you feel your business aligns to the Gray & Adams business? Samworth Brothers is a family company, and our values are really important to us - It’s hugely valuable to find businesses which are similar. Gray & Adams and some of our other longstanding partners have worked alongside us for many years and that really tells you something. For us, it’s simple - We ask for honesty and transparency. If it’s not going to be good, tell me. The world isn’t perfect, and we don’t need it to be, it’s that trust that’s the main thing for us.
6. What are the key innovations in the industry in 2021 from your perspective? I think we’re on an interesting journey towards sustainable innovation now. Electrification is undeniably part of the solution, and the ambitions are admirable, though I don’t think there’s enough research into large commercial vehicles
