Brewers Paints a Sustainable Future with Podfather Delivery Software
Overview
Brewers is the UK's largest independent decorator's merchants. As a family-run business with a proud 120-year heritage, the company currently operates over 200 stores across England, serving both trade and retail customers with a vast product range.
The company offers next working day delivery on more than 90,000 products using an extensive fleet of more than 150 vehicles, ranging from 7.5-tonne trucks to Transit-type vans. To keep the operation supplied, stock is seamlessly moved from a central distribution centre in the Midlands to regional hubs which service the broad branch network.
200
Stores
150
Vehicles
90,000
Products
Challenge
Prior to the full software rollout, Brewers faced a highly fragmented operational structure across its vast branch network. Without a unified system in place, managing fleet logistics efficiently while simultaneously aiming for nationwide company growth and strict environmental goals presented a major challenge.
- Lack of standardised workflows across the business, with each store maintaining its own individual way of doing things
- Limited big-picture visibility across all locations, making it difficult to understand fleet usage and minimise unnecessary miles
- The administrative pressure of managing delivery queries without easily accessible, comprehensive proof of delivery evidence
Solution
To overcome these challenges, Brewers initiated a full system deployment of Podfather's advanced logistics planning and optimization software suite. The rollout was preceded by an analytical phase a few years back where the two companies worked together to deeply examine fleet usage across all retail locations.
The fully integrated solution provides a centralised platform that unifies the entire decorator centre network under uniform delivery processes. The system features advanced automated planning and route optimisation tools, digital tracking dashboards, real-time customer notifications via email and SMS, and comprehensive electronic Proof of Delivery (ePOD) capture.
Results
The rollout of Podfather has allowed Brewers to realise immediate operational improvements, notably reducing the total number of miles travelled across the fleet. It has given central operations the "bigger picture" insight required to deploy resources more effectively, driving efficiency while directly supporting the business's core sustainability aims.
Customer communication has been heavily enhanced, with clients now receiving automated alerts once their goods are out for delivery. Furthermore, the integration of comprehensive ePOD data, complete with date, time, and location-stamped photographs and digital signatures, has elevated the customer experience and is expected to drastically lower the volume of incoming delivery enquiries.
It supports all four of our sustainability aims, which are to decarbonise, consume less and eliminate waste, improve lives, and develop the next generation, and, as we move forward, I am sure it will help us achieve our vision 'To Play Our Part in Making the World a Brighter Place'.
Sarah Lanius-Roberts
Digital Content Developer, Brewers
