Evoca UK: Changes made in response to the needs of a different kind of customer meant that the role played by its in-house Transport Department had to be reviewed…
For many years, the Transport Department – or more accurately the people in it – was a feather in the cap of N&W Global Vending’s Bilston based operation. The drivers, many of them long-standing employees, earned their enviable reputation over many years by providing N&W customers with a guarantee of top-quality service. They were safe in the knowledge that, if a little extra help was needed during the delivery and installation process, nothing would be too much trouble for the fella driving the truck.
But times change, businesses change – and Evoca Group is as good an example as any of a company that is constantly evolving.
The name change, in 2017, from N&W to Evoca Group, made an unequivocal statement: the company saw its future in the coffee machine market. The move last year, from the grim old factory shell to a modern, brand-new Head Office dominated by a stunning showroom, was another indication that change was afoot: but by assimilating a slew of established and respected brands into the Evoca stable, most notably Gaggia, the organisation revealed its vision of the future.
The company’s new generation of customers tend to want things to happen ‘tomorrow’.
Consequently, the size and shape of the machines in the Evoca loading bay today are completely different compared with, say, ten years ago. The majority of them are more compact now and lighter in weight. What’s more, their destinations are also different. A decade ago, N&W delivered largely to industrial estates, business parks, and large institutions such as universities and hospitals. These days, the customer is just as likely to be in a busy town’s High Street or a congested city centre. Furthermore, the company’s new generation of customers tend to want things to happen ‘tomorrow’. There are still some installations that are planned well in advance and executed with military precision but, alongside them, are the demands of those that are adamant that their new coffee machine has to arrive ‘tomorrow.’
Changes made in response to the needs of a different kind of customer means that the role played by its in-house Transport Department has had to be reviewed. ‘We had to find a different route to market’, Evoca UK Sales Director Craig Jukes confirmed. ‘Volumes going out of the door have changed; the type of boxes we’re delivering has changed. There’s no need for a great big van. It’s all about quick delivery and we can better achieve that by using couriers. We wanted to become more responsive, to be in a position to get any box, anywhere in the UK, the next day. When we had our own transport, we operated a system of regular routes. The routes alone dictated when a customer could expect delivery and, in this day and age, that’s not the best solution.’
The decision to close down the Transport Department was thus an easy one to make: However, there was nothing easy about informing a group of dedicated employees that they were no longer needed. ‘That was as painful a task as it was poignant’, Craig said.
COVID has forced the hands of business leaders the world over and at Evoca, too, jobs have had to be cut to reflect the current trading conditions. Fortunately, the staff that remain have willingly embraced the reality that ‘flexibility’ is the modern imperative.
The Transport Department at Evoca UK was not, itself, a victim of the pandemic: but it was the end of an era – and the beginning of a new one.
Read more about Evoca Group HERE on Planet Vending
