August, 2008

Rising Costs

In the face of rising fuel and material costs as well as the Euro strengthening by 20% many of our manufacturers have had to increase pricing. We obviously knew we had to do something if we were going to keep retail pricing down.

Bulk Purchasing

Fortunately manufacturers gave us some notice before pricing went up even if for most it was only a couple of days. We therefore bulk ordered before pricing increased - in one case ordering two 40' shipping containers of a single product line. We refilled our 40' shipping containers in the North East, rented additional space in a local warehouse and have even started using space in the disused stables on a family farm!

Improved Packing

We have always strived to reduce our carbon footprint by ordering in bulk and rising fuel prices have helped us convince our manufacturers to rationalise how they package their goods. One factory was persuaded to do away with their external packaging and nest their product. Even small changes take a lot of time to implement in factories but the change has resulted in our being able to make incoming deliveries hugely more efficient.

Payment Terms

When Chris founded the company he sold his house to finance the business and ever since then we haven't had to rely on borrowing from any third party. This not only means that we always have plenty of stock but also that we can get even better pricing terms by paying in advance for goods.