We’d all prefer to do business with those we know already – because we know, like and trust them. But occasionally we’re required to place our business with a person or company whom we know little about, and that’s always a risk.

No more so than in the delivery business – no job is complete, or invoiceable until it is delivered. And reputations can be won or lost based on whether or not deliveries can be depended upon. So arguably, your relationship with your delivery provider is one of the most important in your business.

What criteria do you use to screen a new supplier?

It's that time of year when delivery schedules are stretched to their limits, and deadlines are at risk.

Take away the headache of worrying about your deliveries by sending your goods via our Sameday courier service here at Courier Direct.

From Christmas menus to Christmas trees, party bubbly to client thank you presents, trust your seasonal consignments with us so you can focus on your own Christmas preparations.

We offer a priority service to all our account customers, so if you don't yet have an account, we recommend you open one soon. Simply email ian@courierdirect.co.uk using...

It might seem extravagant to hire a van to deliver an item that could go cheaply via the post, but if it's valuable, or time sensitive it simply isn't worth the risk.

That's when you need the security and assurance of sending your consignment with a dedicated vehicle for a sameday, timed delivery.

For complete peace of mind, we use fully maintained and tracked vehicles driven by CRB checked trained drivers so you can rely on us when you need to.

Financial documents, passports, contracts, court papers, and certificates are all entrusted to us for same day delivery on a dedicated vehicle. We carry delicate items, prototypes, valuable goods and perishables too. And because we’re in touch with our drivers, we can give you up to...

In a recent article in Real Business, emphasis is placed on the importance of trust between a sales person and their customer. For a sale to succeed, relationships must be built with not one, but often a number of stakeholders within an organisation. Successful sales people understand that rather than approach a sale as a supplier-customer transaction, it is far better to view each customer relationship as a partnership, where you are in fact both on the same side.

We couldn't agree more, which is why we look upon our services as a provider of dedicated same day deliveries as an extension of yours. We work in partnership with you to deliver on your promises. So, whether you are providing a bag of widgets to a factory or an entire poster campaign to a retail chain across the...

If you're thinking of employing your own driver you must have a need for a regular, reliable deliver resource in your firm. But is committing to a full time employee the best option?

Add together the cost of recruitment, salary and holiday cover plus buying the vehicle, keeping it on the road and the insurance, and it does in fact soon mount up.

And what do you do when the van is in for a service? Or even worse, involved in a bump and it’s off the road for a while – you still have to pay for your driver, and maybe the cost of a hire vehicle on top.

But you’ll have your own van on the road – with your livery, advertising your company wherever it goes. And you’ll be in control of your own deadlines. So, what’s not...

Not all parcels are neat, small brown boxes. Irregular consignments are our speciality – stone statues, flowers, medical supplies and even giant inflatable rugby balls have passed through our hands and been delivered safe and sound at their destinations.

We’ve also been trained in delivering mobility scooters and setting them up for new users.

Trust goes a long way when choosing a courier, which is why we pride ourselves in offering the personal touch in all the deliveries we make.

Should you have regular runs that simply must be in safe hands, then please talk to us and ask about our credentials. We work overnight too, so if you’d prefer or need your consignments to be moved after dark, we’d be happy to do so.

All...

Don't take any chances with your precious consignments. We offer a dedicated sameday courier service from Bristol to London on your terms.

Choose from a range of vehicles to with a size and budget to suit you. We have 20 of our own sprinter vans, three 2.5 tonne curtain siders and a happy band of experienced long-term sub contractors to cover our busiest periods, enabling us to offer a seriously flexible and efficient dedicated courier service.

We go to London daily, often several times a day, and our drivers know the short cuts and best routes around like the back of their hand. And if you need goods bringing back from London to Bristol, call us, we may well have a vehicle nearby.

For a direct door to door service, from reliable, trained...

Trust – it’s the one overriding factor that determines the success or failure of a business relationship. When choosing a delivery partner, it’s paramount.

Deliveries that arrive on time, intact and by a personable driver, are more likely to result in you being paid on time. Queries of any sort can be used as excuses to delay payment and missed deliveries can even put your reputation on the line.

So, if you’re shopping around for a new courier, here are some questions we think you should ask, to put your potential partnership to the test:

Will your new courier company provide:

• An intelligent account manager who will build close relationships with you, to get to know your needs, your regular runs, specific requirements...

Now the dust has settled, there’s time to sit down and assess how well your Christmas deliveries went for you.

Did you have nightmares or no worries at all?

We often receive calls from people at this time of year to say they never want to experience another December like the last one – full of problem deliveries, missed deadlines, lost consignments and late collections from their regular courier.

So here’s the thing; why not trial another courier to see whether you can receive a better service? Put us to the test at Courier Direct, we’d be pleased to step up to the challenge for you.

During January, we are offering 10% off your first 5 deliveries if you open an account with us. We offer a dedicated same day service across the...

It might seem extravagant to hire a van to deliver a document or envelope but sometimes needs must. Actually we’re called upon to run very small items like these to their destinations more often than you might think.

And to lighten the load (pardon the pun!), we offer fully tracked vehicles driven by CRB checked trained drivers so we can offer you peace of mind and reliability.

Financial documents, passports, contracts, court papers, and certificates are all entrusted to us for same day delivery on a dedicated vehicle. And because we’re in touch with our drivers, we can give you up to date details on where we are, ETA’s and keep you informed should any road conditions delay our progress,

We work with accountants, law firms and the probation...

You’ve seen the advert - Man with van! – what more could you want?

Well, if your consignments mean something to you, if your deadlines need to be respected, and if you’re keen to ensure your drivers aren’t breaking the law when on your business, it’s worth using the services of a well respected, reputable provider.

Take a look at some of the considerations – all of which we have covered here at Courier Direct:

Our vehicles are

• Safe and suitable for the roads
• Regularly serviced up to date models
• Fuel efficient for more cost effective journeys
• Clean, professional and liveried
• Have tracking to monitor progress and delivery times

Our...

Print is precious - we understand that - it's taken a lot of hard work, graft and money to create it. All you need is it to be delivered in one piece, safe and sound, dry, intact and on time - right?

We've been moving print since we started in business, and that's over 20 years ago now. We know that quite often, as soon as the last box is sealed, you want it on its way to the customer, without delay. That's why we're happy to be there for you, on demand, providing a fast and efficient print delivery service that's on a dedicated, well maintained sameday vehicle.

We've enjoyed long standing partnerships with print firms in Bristol, Bath, and the South West, and would be happy to let you talk to them if you need to check us out for real, just...

We were pleased to support the incredible efforts of Niki Barat of Bunzl, and her team, in their quest to complete the 24in24 challenge on behalf of the Capella Foundation.

The Capella Foundation was born to help increase awareness of medical complications during pregnancy, increase the support available to those affected, and to raise as much money as possible to directly fund medical research into advanced treatments.

Courier Direct were proud to sponsor Niki and her team who worked incredibly hard to keep going throughout the 24 gruelling hours. Challenges included an 8km loaded march at hour 23,...

Well, it’s finally arrived, the PM has triggered article 50 and we’re on our way out of the EU. Whether you’re happy or horrified, the reality is nothing is going to change soon.

And that includes the service you’ll receive from Courier Direct. We’ll still be here taking a keen interest in the timeliness and security of your deliveries, no matter what.

In fact right now we are delivering more goods into Europe on dedicated couriers than we have in a while, so it’s not all bad news for the UK.

We’ve been transporting lots of print too this month, it’s seems it’s the season for special promotions, shows and exhibitions. If you’d rather your driver not get caught up in the queues to deliver...

When you’re choosing to send your goods by sameday courier, you don’t want to wait – after all that’s why you’re choosing a sameday rather than next day service.

Only a courier company with a large fleet has the capacity and flexibility to respond quickly, with the right size vehicle, when you call.

And beware – not all sameday services are the same. Some services may be sameday, but consignments are often collected and delivered in groups so whilst your parcel may be on its way at 9.30, it may not reach its destination until much later in the day. When checking prices for sameday services, make sure you are comparing like for like.

For a direct door to door service, you need a dedicated sameday courier and that’s the...

Let’s face it, we’re facing times of uncertainty, perhaps more so than any other in recent history. What with shock referendum and presidential election results, a new prime minister, earthquakes and currency crashes, is there anything we can be sure of any more?

Let’s take a breath. So, we’re not exactly sure how business will fare in the coming months as we get closer to the reality of Brexit. Caution may well spread throughout commerce and industry, which means we should all do what we can to be prepared.

One way is to take a look at overheads. Right now, we’re providing permanent driver cover on a part-time and full-time basis, for some of our customers. It saves them the cost of employing a driver (pensions auto enrolment, holiday pay,...

Not all courier drivers are the same! Some believe that if you own a van you are by default a courier! However, when it’s your precious parcels, consignments and urgent documents in transit, you’ll want to know that they are in safe hands.

Drivers at Courier Direct are vetted, trained and tracked, so that we know all goods in transit, from the moment of collection to the moment of delivery are safe, secure and protected from damage. Drivers are CRB checked and every one of them must have a clean driver’s licence.

We have an impeccable track record for delivering goods on time and in perfect condition. Our checking process at collection includes packaging, weight regulations,...

We’re not exactly kicking back here and enjoying the sunshine as July rolls on into August. We’ve been called upon to travel the lengths and breadths of the UK and beyond on missions to help our customers deliver for their customers.

It’s always a pleasure, and no more so that at this time of year when the countryside is at its best.

So, just a few words this month about our approach to providing you with the best possible service you can expect from a courier company – well, 3 in fact:

Flexibility: We’ve never had as large a fleet as we have right now. From nifty little Vivaros for nipping around town, to our reliable sprinter transits, perfect for print, POS materials, engineering parts, steel, building materials,...

Whether you export goods on a grand scale, or send a transit or two full of goods to the EU a year, you’ll no doubt be watching the great British Brexit debate with interest.

What strikes us here is the lack of detail surrounding the practical impact a vote to leave might have. We’re not writing this article to persuade you to vote in any particular way, more to discuss the affect it may have on the way you may need to change your delivery arrangements, should the leave campaign be successful.

If we do leave the EU, the open borders and free movement of people and goods will come to an end. And that means that we’ll revert to the old system of presenting additional papers...

No two days are the same here at Courier Direct. We’re often required to move the weird and wonderful for an eclectic mix of clients. And we don’t just move goods within the UK, we take trips over to Europe too, regularly, and across the sea to Ireland and the Isle of Man.

Come rain, shine, hail or high water, our dedicated vans of all shapes and sizes are on a mission to deliver whatever our customers request, to any destination of their choice.

Here’s a selection of the more weird and wonderful consignments we’ve been asked to deliver:

Ed’s Stone – do you remember at the height of the general election campaign...

There’s been much controversy over George Osborne’s budget last week. And while the debate rumbles on over the fairness of cuts to disability benefits, with talk now of a U-turn in this policy, we’ve taken a look at some of the measures to see how they impact the courier business.

First of all we welcome the fuel duty freeze for 2016-17. We were worried that low oil prices and cuts to prices at the petrol pumps would give George Osborne a window of opportunity to increase fuel duty. Any such rise has a direct impact on the costs of our operations, so this freeze enables us to keep offering competitive prices to our customers, so they can keep control of their costs too. Good news...

To some people, choosing to use a sameday courier may seem like a luxury – after all you’re paying for a dedicated vehicle. It’s a bit like comparing using a taxi to taking the bus.

But there are lots of reasons why a sameday courier service makes sense and these include:

Large parcel – Costs for sending parcels are often directly related to their size and weight. You may find that an oversized parcel is indeed cheaper to send on a sameday courier. And if your goods are on pallets, it’s possible that a sameday service is cheaper than an overnight one. It’s worth asking.

Precious...