Case Studies
Ocado Case Study
The Client
Ocado was established in the UK over 23 years ago and is the world’s largest dedicated online grocery retailer with over 950,000 active customers shopping with them today. Ocado’s vision and proposition to customers is “shopping made easy” and one of their objectives is to deliver their customers the best service and shopping experience available.
The grocery market is vast, and one where the landscape is changing at dizzying speed. With growth in the traditional grocery shopping marketplace static, all growth is in online, food discounters and convenience stores, with online having the biggest potential. To date they cover geographies comprising over 74% of UK households.
The Ocado business was built for this channel shift – to benefit from, and to lead the online revolution. Their strategy is to drive growth, maximise efficiency and utilise their proprietary technical knowledge. Ocado is constantly planning for growth, investing in delivery spokes as well as an increasing number of non-food opportunities.
The Challenge
The seeds of our relationship with Ocado were first sown in 2005 when we initially provided LGV driver support alongside ADR and in 2006 we became Ocado’s main supplier of LGV drivers.
However, in 2008 an agency called Pro-Drive Quality Recruitment started to supply drivers in parallel with Driver Require, and then became Master Vendor on the basis of providing a complete Transport Management service, supported by Driver Require.
In 2013 Nationwide Drivers took over PDQR and the service levels began to drastically deteriorate and it was becoming increasingly challenging for Ocado, at a period of immense growth, to continue to meet their own business objectives. They consequently found themselves on the verge of failing on their promise to their own customers of delivering a superior service.
Therefore, with their existing supplier unable to consistently provide the number of quality LGV drivers Ocado needed, it was time to find another supplier.
Our challenge was to provide a seamless, stable driver base under highly variable circumstances to a client with impeccable customer service standards.
The Solution
When Ocado turned to us for a zero-fail solution to their driver supply crisis, we went beyond the extra mile and delivered a fully integrated, 24/7/365 compliant service with a long-lasting commitment to support their ongoing nationwide growth strategy.
In 2014 we won the contract and replaced NDL as a sole supplier and Master Vendor to all Ocado’s sites which included Hatfield and Dordon, followed by Andover, Erith and Purfleet.
From the outset, we knew this would be a major challenge. But this is what we thrive on, and the synergies between our companies meant that by sharing common values, using our expertise in this niche sector and by working in partnership with an exacting client, that we would deliver on our promise to deliver on theirs.
Client Requirements
A deep understanding of Ocado’s business ethos and requirements, together with our vast knowledge and experience in the LGV Driver recruitment sector as well as a common geographic coverage, meant that we delivered exactly what they asked for:
Ocado Requirement | Driver Require Delivered |
|---|---|
Zero fail – No delivery should be late | We provided a 24/7/365 support service with multi-layered, super-resilient account management and support organisation |
| High quality, specialist service | Professional, expert and experienced staff dealing with all aspects of the contract. The majority of our consultants come from within the logistics industry, so they know exactly what Ocado requires. |
100% compliance | We focus on compliance through:
|
Single point of accountability | Master Vendor contract: we act as Primary Supplier with 2nd Tier suppliers supporting Ocado’s requirements |
Partnership with a company with similar values, standards and ways of working:
| Aligned values include: Partnership, Passion & Commitment, Teamwork, Respect, Integrity & Courage, Expertise, Excellence Integration at all levels vertically and horizontally:
|
The Result
This partnership is delivering tangible benefits for Ocado and its customers. Throughout the course of the contract, we have facilitated almost 200,000 shifts which equates to approximately 90 million Ocado grocery deliveries (as of June 2023).
Ocado’s satisfaction with our performance can be evidenced through our Master Vendor contract renewals. Contract renewals have extended to include supporting the opening of new sites including Andover in 2016, Erith in 2018 and Purfleet in 2022.
We have also received positive feedback at every quarterly review meeting held to date.As Ocado’s strategic objective includes ambitious growth, we are planning to grow with them strategically and geographically and to continue to go beyond the extra mile to enhance the service we offer and deliver on a zero-fail contract.