| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| Blacksmith |
Couriers ?Anyone recommend one that is willing to collect/deliver, when they they say they will ?(Without insisting 3mm thick walled 25mm square square box section be wrapped in bubble wrap/200gsm double wall corrugated in case it gets "damaged" in transit like parcelforce  )
I might ship one or two units a moth or 3 in a week, weight around the 35kg mark. |
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| Helen_A |
You're near the Reading area aren't you?
If you are going down the M4 corridor etc, then have a look at Post Haste. Local and good. Helen_A |
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| tahir |
I'd try Helen's recommendation, irregular collections are almost always dealt with poorly in my experience | ||
| Maxwell Smart |
I use interlink and have been reasonably happy with them. But with most couriers 35kg or greater is a kind of magic number which they are loathe to take unless it is split into multiple consignments. | ||
| pheasant plucker |
Citylink Undergoing some serious changes at the moment and would not be good at delivering what they would class as outsize freight.
Interlink not having similar service problems but they do not like outsize (above 25 kilo's per parcel) It may be worth talking to Nightfreight 01902 604000 They are specialist in outsize freight and home deliveries. 
If you are still having issues let me know where you are and I can put some one local in touch with you |
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| Helen_A |
TBH, I think that Citylink is completely up the thingy generally atm if you need irregular pickups of any size... (we're currently looking for another courier, and getting other a lot of things drop shipped where we can instead)
I've heard good things about nightfreight, but haven't ever used them. |
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| gil |
FWIW, Citylink was what put me off doing national mail order, so I need to find another, more reliable courier too. | ||
| pheasant plucker |
Are these home deliveries if so how many per delivery and what is the packaging. Let me know and I may be able to put you in touch with someone. 
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| Blacksmith |
Ta for the advice.
As you can see from the image (on the left) My spit roasts are not any easy thing to package. Luckily I can get as much corrugated board as I need, just the 3 rolls of tape and time taken to wrap it all. The prices seem quite good at interparcel, roughly half of parcelforce. |
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| Rob R |
That's because it's the cut off point for a one man lift, so they'd need two men per delivery & so higher costs. Our courier will only take 25kg, which is, I believe, is the maximum HSE guidelines for women to handle as a one person lift. |
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| @Calli |
Yes Rob that is true. Its the same for blokes too - equality 
Companies offering two man deliveries naturally cost more 
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| pheasant plucker |
FYI Financial times report COMPANIES - UK: Rentokil warns of dividendcut as City Link reverses By Jennifer Hughes Published: May 03, 2008 Rentokil Initial said its troubled delivery business was a big drag on its overall performance as the business services company warned it was likely to cut its dividend. City Link, the express parcel delivery business, saw lower revenues and suffered a £15.4m operating loss while its parent reported first-quarter operating profits of £28.7m (£54m) and pre-tax profits of £14.6m (£35.4m). The news will come as little surprise to Rentokil's shareholders. The company replaced its chief executive in March and the new incumbent, Alan Brown, has been candid about City Link's problems with a warning last month that the division was likely to make a significant full-year loss. On Friday, Mr Brown said a turnround would "take some time". City Link's new management team had already made some progress, he added, with service levels showing early signs of improvement. The division is in the process of implementing a seven-point plan. "The group agenda is now to focus on operational excellence and efficiency, with improvements in customer service being the primary indicator of success in the short term," said Mr Brown. Revenues at Rentokil rose 6.6 per cent to £553.6m. Excluding the effect of City Link, sales increased 8 per cent. Mr Brown also warned that the 7.38p dividend investors received last year was not sustainable, based on performance to date this year. He said the board would review the level before the company reported its interim results in August. There was no change in the 2007 pay-out. Shares in Rentokil, which have almost halved in the last year, rose 2p to 96½p. Kevin Lapwood, an analyst at Seymour Pierce, said in a note to clients: "There are two ways to look at this. Either things are so bad that they cannot get any worse and there is operational upside, or the group requires radical restructuring. Either way it should be good for shareholders." |
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| pheasant plucker |
Latest info the new chairman has asked the City for three years to turn things around the city have not replied yet although feeling is that in the current financial climate the required time to turn the business around will not be authorised.
Citylink last year purchased Target Express, both of these companies seemingly profitable, with revenues of over 350million pound per year. Since the take over Citylink have tried to merge the two companies in stratigic locations South coast, West country, South Wales and North West. Also Merging the IT into a single solution. In the opinion of many insiders this was too quick and has lead to confusion resulting in huge losses and a depreciating service level. |
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| Mary-Jane |
I can recommend Interlink. I've always had good service from then and they're pretty reasonable. http://www.interlinkexpress.com/ | ||
| Barrelman |
Apparently, those Man-With-A-Van types offer courier delivery at around £0.50 / mile | ||
| mr olive oil |
courierstry interparcel www.interparcel.com i use them maybe 3 times a week and they are always on time, they also give you a number of optionsthe one time they did let me down they phoned as well as emailed me hours before they were due to collect wish you luck mem |
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| @Calli |
Its worth remembering that the national service is only ever as good as the local depot!
A pleasant attitude works miracles too - you spend long enough listening to rants that are totally unrelated. A deep misunderstanding of the whole process of the next day delivery service is essentially at fault. 
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| Blacksmith |
Re: couriers
I used interparcel to send a cider press, they were half the price of parcelforce, When I got a quote for sending a complete spit roast they were twice the price ? |
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| RichardW |
Re: couriers
Thats often the way. You need to know all the rules each one uses & "play" the system to get the best value or get your own "rate card" done so that one company gives you best value. You will fine that most will negotiate rates if you use them enough. Richard |