Following previous communications, I would like to reiterate that VOW Wholesale remains OPEN FOR BUSINESS. As we continue to face the challenges presented by coronavirus and the lockdown of much of the country, I am delighted to report that our service is holding up very well and we continue to maintain our support levels to you. With our support teams now being based from home, 95% of telephone calls are still being answered within 25 seconds and 100% of non-portal queries receive a reply within 4 hours. So, we thank you for your patience and understanding as we battle through and to the VOW team for the outstanding effort that they are making to carry on business as usual across all departments.
It is a dynamic situation and we are constantly reviewing and adapting our working practices to deliver the best service that we can in the circumstances. I am pleased to say that we now have all deliveries where we have geographical reach being made on VOW’s Truline vehicles. This is giving us greater control over distribution and reducing the risks associated with using third part services.
However, as you would expect, our trading volumes are reduced from normal levels and we are having to take some difficult decisions to ensure that we serve you in a way that is sustainable economically.
We will continue to service all customers, both dealers and end users on behalf of dealers, with the aim of delivering next day where possible. Regrettably, given the fall in volume and the necessary reallocation of van routes, we can no longer deliver to dealer premises in the guaranteed time slots as we do in ‘normal’ trading conditions.
This will particularly affect customers who are continuing to deliver using their own vehicles and drivers, as we can no longer promise a delivery within any specific time frame. If this is the case for your business then we would suggest you consider using VOW’s Wrapide direct delivery service. Wrapide is a long established and proven process that reduces duplication of handling, effort and cost. Distribution is from the ADC warehouse and we have capacity to handle this business for you.
The Government scheme to furlough staff who cannot work through the COVID19 crisis, would allow you to ensure that your drivers could retain their jobs and income until business recovers. From a health and wellbeing perspective, it will also reduce journeys and the risk of exposure to or spreading of the coronavirus.
As always, thank you for your continued support.
Kind regards,
Adrian Butler
VOW Wholesale Managing Director
