Grow Your Courier Business Without Buying New Vehicles

Many small business owners will be familiar with the desire to grow their business without having to commit to the serious expense and responsibility of new staff and equipment.

Today I’m looking at sub-contracting as a solution; how it can enable a business to grow, complete more courier jobs and increase profit.

Go2Day’s Story

Today, Go2Day Ltd has a fleet of three 3.5 tonne curtain-siders with tail lifts and assists with an eight-vehicle fleet for the recycling company Ecosystems. However, when Andy Littlewood began it was with a rented long-wheel based transit van in 2005. He kept the business in the family with his brother Tim as a Director, and with their other brother Chris as the owner of Ecosystems. Though they now run a successful transport business, the brothers have no plans to expand through purchasing more vehicles. Andy said, "Our growth plan is all geared around sub-contracting, and the Exchange is a vital tool to enable us to cover work anytime".

• The Exchange’ Andy mentions is Courier Exchange. Go2Day uses this service to look for sub-contractors to carry out jobs when Andy’s own fleet are in use. The Exchange also allows his drivers to pick up courier jobs when they have spare capacity.

Staying Mobile

For Andy, the Courier Exchange Mobile App is essential. The app shows where members are and where they are heading in real time, allowing work to be offered and accepted and deals made in minutes. Andy said, "Instead of ringing around people the first thing I do now is look at the Live Availability Map, and if we are really lucky one of our regulars will be close to us and we will give him the job."

Andy’s own drivers can also pick up work easily, though they need to remember to show themselves as available for courier jobs and to change their status when they can’t pick up extra freight.

A benefit of the App for Go2Day is that they can accept smaller courier jobs confidently, knowing that if a bigger job comes along they can easily use the App to find a sub-contractor for the smaller job. This kind of flexibility seems to be the most attractive feature for the company.

Serious About Security

Having built up his business from the ground, Andy knows how important reputation is in this industry. "If you are delivering a ‘line-stopper’ consignment to an automotive company", he explains, "you don’t want to sub-contract that job out to someone unknown. If you hold up a production line for even three or four minutes, it’s your reputation on the line." Fortunately, Courier Exchange thoroughly vets all its members.

TomTom Tech

The Littlewoods have just decided to integrate the TomTom Telematics WEBFLEET system with Courier Exchange, making the most of real-time tracking data. An enthusiastic Andy said, "We now possess complete visibility of our vehicles through the Exchange in terms of location, status and availability, which will help increase completed jobs and boost revenue".

Go2Day have successfully harnessed the potential of the Courier Exchange to maximise efficiency and grow their business without having to deal with the expense of expanding their fleet.

Author Plate

Norman Dulwich is a correspondent for Courier Exchange, the world's largest neutral trading hub for same day courier jobs in the express freight exchange industry. Over 4,500 transport exchange businesses are networked together through their website, trading jobs and capacity in a safe 'wholesale' environment.