When Size Matters
By Steve Carter
For the last 3 years I have had the pleasure of working alongside the management team at Exertis Supplies and when I say pleasure, that is exactly what it has been and continues to be. In the roles that I had previously held, I had spent a lot of time working inside both Vow and Spicers and in both there were some very talented and personable people, many of whom I had great working relationships with and still do. The one thing that I felt was missing was a real bond of togetherness, the feeling of more than just a supplier and customer relationship, the feeling where you are in it together side by side, warts and all. That is exactly the feeling that I have had for the last 3 years, and working alongside the team at Exertis is like a breath of fresh air. I know where Exertis’ strengths lay and equally they know where the dealers and dealer groups strengths are and when you combine the two and work closely together, you end up with a very strong and harmonious relationship.
If I had a pound for every time somebody said that Exertis are great, but they don’t have the range, I would be able to buy a season ticket at Spurs. So, let’s try and put this one to bed once and for all. In my opinion having 10,000+ business supplies lines, 4000+ ink and toner lines and 8000+ lines in the tech category; that is a healthy range of products. The range is added to on a weekly basis, but the one slight hindrance has been a lack of warehouse space in the Exertis Supplies division, which leads me nicely on to the main point of this month’s column.
When I was told that Exertis Supplies had taken the decision to move to far bigger and more modern warehouse premises at Interchange 26 near Cleckheaton it was music to my ears, as I am sure it is to the whole Exertis customer base. Coming from an operational background myself and having visited the Exertis Supplies site in Elland several times, I could see that the next logical step would be a move to a bigger warehouse site, as Elland was full to bursting. If truth be told I wasn’t expecting it to happen quite so quickly but that is Exertis for you, they just get on with things in the background and don’t make a big song and dance about it.
I can see many advantages in the move to Interchange 26. First of all, Exertis supplies has been operating out of two warehouses, those being Elland and Raunds, so the move will allow everything to be stocked and dispatched from one single location. Further additions to the range can then be made, as and when needed, without worrying about space constraints. Having worked closely with the Exertis team, additions to the range are generally made after consultation with customers, as opposed to just putting lines in that may or may not sell. There will also be less of a reliance on drop ship items, as many of the faster moving lines can be pulled into stock.
For me though, the one overriding positive is that DCC, the owner of Exertis and a £22bn business, is fully supportive and willing to invest in the industry. They will have seen the huge strides that Exertis Supplies has made in recent years in becoming a leading wholesaler in our industry and have quietly supported that growth.
There is now a meticulous plan of action to follow in order for the move to begin with the new site being operational from October 2023.
From a personal perspective, I will refer back to my earlier comment, it is a real breath of fresh air working alongside Exertis. Until March 2023 they had never worked with a dealer group and at that stage were probably viewed as a long way back in 3rd place in terms of being an office supplies wholesaler. What Exertis Supplies have achieved in the last three years is quite remarkable and I know that they won’t be resting on their laurels, they will keep pushing on. In my personal opinion, Exertis Supplies are no longer the 3rd placed office supplies wholesaler.
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