Established in 1975 by Trevor Matthews who was joined by Nick Matthews in 1977, Matthews Haulage has grown in size, yet consistently retained its down-to-earth, customer-focused approach to business.
Operations Director, Trevor Brown, says that Matthews Haulage believes in doing the job right. Their impressive track record of winning Pall-Ex’s internal Key Performance Indicator (KPI) awards three years running, as well as being runners up for depot of the year in 2018, definitely supports this.
Matthews Haulage has now been with Pall-Ex for nearly 17 years, joining the member network in December 2002.
When asked why Matthews Haulage initially chose to join Pall-Ex, Nick Matthews explains, “We knew that the industry was changing and goods needed to be delivered quicker and cheaper and joining a pallet network would help with this aim.
“If a customer needed a pallet delivered to a location in Scotland 17 years ago, they might have received their goods within a week, now they are there within a couple of days and at a cheaper price.”
“We decided to join Pall-Ex to ensure the best service possible for our customers in the coming years, enabling us to make deliveries all over the country much quicker.”- Trevor Brown, Managing Director, Matthews Haulage
Trevor Brown notes, “In 2002, Pall-Ex approached us as they needed a new member in our area, Trevor Matthews and his brother Nick accepted their offer to ensure their family-run business could continue to provide the best service possible for their customers.”
Nick continues, “Being a small fleet it was hard to be in all four corners of the country at once! We use Pall-Ex and are proud of it, and enjoy showcasing our partnership with them. We’re also glad our membership with them means we’re able to retain our independence as a company."
The Matthews Haulage and Pall-Ex partnership
Nick notes that the firm has stayed with Pall-Ex a long time, and as such, has seen the technology improve over the years.
“A major impact on our business was the MyNexus application - it’s very, very useful - everybody feels exactly the same. It’s a brilliant move forward into the next generation.” - Nick Matthews, Managing Director, Matthews Haulage.
Nick explains, “The MyNexus IT system is brilliant for all members, customers and our own team members alike. It cuts time chasing other depots for the location of a certain pallet, you know exactly where the consignment is.”
Logistics has always been a sector where member communication and partnerships with other hauliers is key to improving customer experience.
Nick continues, “Over the years we’ve always had relationships with many hauliers and we are extremely well known throughout the country despite being a relatively small haulier. We are always happy to enter into mutual collaboration with our fellow members outside of the network, too.”
“Pall-Ex helps bring hauliers together and we talk a lot more. Logistics has always been a sector that needs to work together, being part of Pall-Ex makes that a lot easier.” - Trevor Brown, Operations Director, Matthews Haulage
The future of Matthews Haulage
According to Trevor, ensuring Matthews Haulage continues to operate into the future and adapting to new technology is key, and plans are already in place to ensure a smooth transition from the founding staff members to the newer operations team.
As Trevor Brown explains, “The two brothers, Nick Matthews and Trevor Matthews ran the company and did everything themselves for 29 years, and I’ve been with the company now since 2004.
“Trevor Matthews died 5 years ago and it left a big hole in the business. Since then myself and Nick have run the company in his memory. With Nick hoping to retire at the end of 2019, we took on Matt Moore as Business Development Manager. Matt came with many years of experience in the industry and can operate in both sales and operational roles.
“We’re proud to be a manageable, family-run company. We don’t want to hurtle out of control and lose the personal touch – any customer can pick up the phone at any time and speak to one of our team, many of our customers we’ve had for many, many years.”
“Our customers know we will always do everything right by them – always in full control and doing the job properly, as it should be done.” - Matt Moore, Business Development Manager, Matthews Haulage
“We’re very proud of our KPI three years on the trot through the network. Internally, week by week, we can also see how well we do compared to the whole network of over 90 hauliers, and we’re proud to say that 95% of the time, we come out on top.”