The work has only just begun
Graham Jagger and his team at Sheffield worked up to 18 hours a day for three weeks to get their newly-built depot open on time, but now that it is up and running he says the work has only just begun.
“It was fun, and it was exhausting,” he says, “but we are only at the start.”
The job now is to make sure the hundreds of retailers who visited the depot on its opening day become regular customers, and to attract new business.
After two weeks, he says, customer throughput is growing every day. And the secret to winning customers’ business is quite simple, according to Jagger. “You need good customer service and a good pricing policy.”
It also helps that Parfetts is a family-owned business so it understands more closely the needs of the many family-owned businesses it serves.
One of the biggest challenges before opening the depot was recruiting and training the 65 staff to run it, says Jagger.
Many members of the new team have no previous experience of working in a cash and carry and received training at Parfetts depots at Somercotes in Derbyshire and Halifax.
In addition to learning about the processes involved, new staff were also introduced to Parfetts’ culture. “We impress on them that the customers have a choice where they spend their money, so customer service is crucial,” says Jagger.
A big part of everybody’s jobs is getting to know customers, he says. Some customers want to be in and out as quickly as possible, but for others, visiting the depot is their only leisure time.
“If the customer wants to have a chat with a member of staff for a few minutes, even if it’s just about football, then that’s fine, although obviously a balance has to be struck to ensure their work is done,” says Jagger.
Parfetts also has a canteen for customers at its depots, so they can sit down and have a chat with other retailers if they wish.
Meeting the customers has also provided some surprises for Jagger. He previously managed Parfetts depot at Somercotes for 10 years, and says he has met some familiar faces since the new depot opened.
A lot of Somercotes customers were travelling down from Yorkshire to shop at the depot and are delighted Parfetts has now opened closer to them, he says.
Recruitment of new customers began well before the new depot opened on November 22. Mailings were sent out to local retailers detailing the opening offers, and these were followed up by visits from Jagger and other representatives from Parfetts to pre-register those who were interested. Jagger says he always finds it valuable to visit retailers stores to keep in touch with his customers’ businesses, and he was very pleased with the interest they showed in Parfetts’ plans.
Graham Jagger and his team at Sheffield worked up to 18 hours a day for three weeks to get their newly-built depot open on time, but now that it is up and running he says the work has only just begun.
“It was fun, and it was exhausting,” he says, “but we are only at the start.”
The job now is to make sure the hundreds of retailers who visited the depot on its opening day become regular customers, and to attract new business.
After two weeks, he says, customer throughput is growing every day. And the secret to winning customers’ business is quite simple, according to Jagger. “You need good customer service and a good pricing policy.”
It also helps that Parfetts is a family-owned business so it understands more closely the needs of the many family-owned businesses it serves.
One of the biggest challenges before opening the depot was recruiting and training the 65 staff to run it, says Jagger.
Many members of the new team have no previous experience of working in a cash and carry and received training at Parfetts depots at Somercotes in Derbyshire and Halifax.
In addition to learning about the processes involved, new staff were also introduced to Parfetts’ culture. “We impress on them that the customers have a choice where they spend their money, so customer service is crucial,” says Jagger.
A big part of everybody’s jobs is getting to know customers, he says. Some customers want to be in and out as quickly as possible, but for others, visiting the depot is their only leisure time.
“If the customer wants to have a chat with a member of staff for a few minutes, even if it’s just about football, then that’s fine, although obviously a balance has to be struck to ensure their work is done,” says Jagger.
Parfetts also has a canteen for customers at its depots, so they can sit down and have a chat with other retailers if they wish.
Meeting the customers has also provided some surprises for Jagger. He previously managed Parfetts depot at Somercotes for 10 years, and says he has met some familiar faces since the new depot opened.
A lot of Somercotes customers were travelling down from Yorkshire to shop at the depot and are delighted Parfetts has now opened closer to them, he says.
Recruitment of new customers began well before the new depot opened on November 22. Mailings were sent out to local retailers detailing the opening offers, and these were followed up by visits from Jagger and other representatives from Parfetts to pre-register those who were interested. Jagger says he always finds it valuable to visit retailers stores to keep in touch with his customers’ businesses, and he was very pleased with the interest they showed in Parfetts’ plans.
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