UK Transport Awards 2021

36 | Transport Awards 2021 refocus her efforts on building Evo Supplies and its team, looking to recruit new members either from Mersea Island or further afield. It has been an immensely challenging few years for Juliet, Greg and their team, owing to Covid-19 in 2020 and a successful year of cancer treatment for Juliet in 2019. The team at Evo Supplies therefore considers itself very fortunate to be able to look ahead and make plans for the future, beginning with the addition of a range of larger wheel-base skates for larger items and further collections also in the works, all the way to the team’s projected expansion and development over the coming year. As such, having survived a remarkably difficult few years largely unscathed thanks to careful planning and unwavering determination, there is little doubt that Evo Supplies and its close-knit team are well- deserving of their award for Best Furniture Moving Equipment Supplier 2021 at the UK Transport Awards. Contact: Juliet Dunn Company: Evo Supplies Ltd Web Address: www.evosupplies.co.uk Having overcome a challenging economic period that has only been compounded by personal adversity, the team at Evo Supplies Ltd has earned recognition and praise for its successes over the last few years. We find out more about the family-run business and its evolution into a market-leading supplier of furniture skates, trusted throughout the UK transport sector. Evo Supplies Ltd is a family-run business that was transformed from a removal supplies business into one of the UK’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of furniture skates (or ‘dollies’). Juliet and Greg Dunn purchased the existing removal supplies company based on the small Mersea Island in Essex in 2013, with a vision to incorporate a new company that would design exceptional furniture skates made using refined production processes. Today, ‘The Skate People’, as the team at Evo Supplies are affectionately known, have achieved their mission to become one of the best manufacturers and suppliers of furniture skates in the UK. The team supplies its equipment to a number of industries within the UK transport sector, including domestic and commercial removals, man and van services, logistics specialists, office relocation companies, and international art shippers. Many within the Evo clientele rely on the firm for bespoke, custom- sized skates that meet their unique needs, and Evo Supplies is also able to personalise its equipment with the corporate branding of clients, an option that is highly valued by larger clients who manage vast fleets of vehicles. Having earned a reputation for UK-made skates that were lauded as the ‘best in the business’, ‘industry standard’, and ‘best quality we’ve ever seen’ in client testimonials, Evo Supplies introduced a range of imported skates from China as a cheaper alternative for customers in 2018. The Hello Dollies range weas instrumental in increasing Evo Supplies’ market share, and immensely beneficial to clients with tighter budgets. The firm’s partnership with the Chinese team behind Hello Dollies meant that Evo Supplies was forewarned in January 2020 of the incoming Covid-19 pandemic, and was therefore able to prepare for the inevitable impacts on international supply chains. Consequently, Juliet, Greg and Best Furniture Moving Equipment Supplier 2021 their team built up extra stocks of components and materials for their UK-made skates, putting Evo Supplies in a strong position for the reopening of businesses following the first lockdown. Business has been busy for the team since then, with the removals sector free to continue trading throughout the pandemic and equipment therefore remaining in high demand. Despite the surge in activity that Evo Supplies has enjoyed over the last few months, Juliet is waiting until the end of the current lockdown to begin hiring additional production staff to join the team. While this does mean that the current team is working at full pace for now, Evo Supplies is adamant about finding individuals that are a perfect fit for the team which it cannot do without aptitude tests and a period of closely supervised, hands-on training. As a small, family company that is primarily run by Juliet, occasionally with the support of her children but mostly with her two managers and one to three junior production assistants, it is vital that new recruits comfortably fit into the company culture of communication, quality and ambition. Teamwork is integral, and Juliet and Greg regularly go above and beyond to ensure they are supporting their team at all times, especially when business is at its busiest. Thus, as business activity across the UK resumes and lockdown regulations ease, Juliet is able to Feb21264

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