Family owned business SSO Logistics is growing and at the same time doing its bit to save the environment after receiving support from Local Growth Hub broker St Helens Chamber.
The company has received specialist advice and guidance after accessing the Chamber’s Business Growth Programme and Access to Specialist Services grant funding.
Peter Draper, Director at SSO Logistics, said: “SSO Logistics is a family owned haulage, logistics and distribution company based in St Helens. We deliver everything from single pallets to full loads all over the UK and Europe. We also provide warehousing, storage and container offloading.”
SSO Logistics realised that a solid marketing strategy could help the company to use its assets to their full potential and with help from a specialist consultant accessed through St Helens Chamber, started to advertise storage opportunities.
Peter said: “We had limited warehousing at our previous depot in Warrington, but we had a lot more in St Helens which was sitting empty. We undertook a marketing exercise to promote the space to customers and generate more revenue for the business. We have also done some rebranding and have a digital marketing plan in place.”
The company has been granted permission to take part in a trial organised by the Department of Transport which will involve trialling the use of an extra-long trailer on haulage trips.
Peter continued: “We have an extra-long, double deck trailer which we use for nightly trunking. On our calculations we get an extra 12 pallets per one way trip which means it will save 10,000 miles a year on UK roads. If we got more freight coming back it would be 20,000 miles per year. This will benefit our customers and reduce the impact on the environment.”
St Helens Chamber’s Access to Specialist Services Programme is also enabling SSO Logistics to obtain an industry accreditation, which gives the company access to a range of quality business opportunities.
Peter said: “We are going for a Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) accreditation for haulage and truck so we can gain access to better tenders and bigger customers. Some customers require the FORS accreditation as it involves training with staff and drivers. We’ve also taken on a permanent member of staff to get us to that level.
“Help from Access to Specialist Services and the Business Growth Programme has allowed company to grow. We now have a sales and marketing strategy in place and we know where we need to be with better budget control.”
The Business Growth Programme, which is funded by St Helens Council and the European Regional Development Fund is designed to help businesses who want to grow and take on new staff. It is part of the Liverpool City Region Integrated Business Support Project.
Access to Specialist Services is also available to SMEs operating in a business to business capacity and is part of the New Markets 2 programme, which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
To find out more about SSO Logistics visit www.ssologistics.co.uk