Zuiver: ‘Communicating and never basing anything on assumptions is Van Duuren’s strength’
Van Duuren arranges transport of a number of consignments for the interior design label Zuiver to a variety of destinations in Europe. Michiel Ankersmit of Zuiver particularly appreciates the personal contact with the personnel at Vianen. “They are good in communication, as a result of which little goes wrong.” His colleague Bart van Leeuwen certainly agrees with this. “Always checking and never basing anything on assumptions is Van Duuren’s strength,” he adds.
“Zuiver BV designs furniture with a high-end look, and is the company behind the successful interior brands Zuiver and Dutchbone. We bring these furniture collections to the market in Western Europe and beyond,” says Michiel, Senior Supply Chain Specialist, summarizing the activities briefly. Van Duuren has for some time been responsible for the transport of furniture to Great Britain and Scandinavia. Recently, destinations such as Ireland, Hungary and Italy have been added to the list. “We are increasingly gaining more orders, and we’re very appreciative that Van Duuren can deal with this growth,” says Bart, Team Leader Supply Chain. “The service they provide testifies to a high standard of service, and as a result we feel really freed of care.”
High pallets
Birgit Polkerman is Van Duuren’s Account Specialist for Zuiver. “I see it as my task to highlight the importance of the relationship with Zuiver,” she says. “It is of course essential that our colleagues in the planning department are fully aware of the wishes of the people at Zuiver.” Good communication is also important in this, as transport for Zuiver cannot be treated as an everyday job, she adds. “We work with pallets of 2 metres 20 high for the transport of Zuiver’s products. For these we need taller trailers, and they have to be available.”
In addition it goes without saying that the furniture must arrive at its destination without scratches or other damage. But this too is no problem for a carrier such as Van Duuren, as Bart and Michiel realize. Bart: “The reporting procedures are followed correctly, and the contact with the stores, where the goods are delivered, is excellent.”
Drop shipping
“We would like to expand into the field of drop shipping, and Van Duuren could perhaps play a role in this,” says Michiel about possible plans for the future. “We now only deliver to our retailers, but in the future we also want to deliver goods to private individuals’ homes. At the moment the idea of drop shipping is very new to us, but we would like to bring this service wider into the market.” This also applies to Zuiver’s service to retailers in Hungary, observes Jeroen van Duuren. “They currently collect the products themselves, but on request Zuiver can now deliver the furniture via us. This freedom of choice, particularly for the higher end customers, is an ideal solution. An additional advantage is that this will also be of benefit to our collaboration. Zuiver can take the lead with a customer friendly transport suggestion and we carry out the orders.”