SUPPLIER PROFILE
BLUE MAX BANNER
Blue Max Banner – furlongs ahead in the school, corporate and leisure wear industry
W
ith both financial stability and buying power behind it, Blue Max Banner offers its customers the single most important pledge – to be the most reliable source in the UK for stock. “Our customers have to deliver and particularly when it comes to schoolwear,” says Nigel Plenderleith, managing director of the group. “Kids canʼt turn up at school on the first day of term without a school uniform. The difficult economic climate has meant there has been a lot of instability in the market place with companies not being able to fulfil orders. Blue Max Banner has managed to buck that trend, striving to ensure that the state of the art 3 million cubic feet warehouses, with the capacity to store up to 5 million garments, are constantly stocked in conjunction with frequent arrival of containers.”
Continues Nigel: “The quality needs to be there for a company really to gain the trust of customers. As a combined business, we have nearly 200 years of experience in the garment trade. All our
factories are visited regularly. We have developed excellent relationships with them to ensure we get the best quality and at the most competitive prices. A dedicated quality control department at the factory ensures that only the very best reaches our customers and the company prides itself in particular on colour consistency – critical in the schoolwear market where all the kids need to look ʻuniformʼ year on year.”
Aside from quality and buying power, Blue Max Banner still prides itself on its family approach to business. Adds Nigel: “Essentially, this is still very much a family set up and you can really feel it when you walk in here. “Itʼs a really friendly, welcoming working
environment. Mary and David Fawcus continue to play a hands-on role in the business and daughter, Fenella, is the purchasing director. Her husband, Piers, is in charge of marketing and export and has been busy working on the companyʼs first integrated brochure. The family Labrador and border terriers are also a regular feature at the head office in Trowbridge.” Yet the friendly, family atmosphere does not in any sense belie the companyʼs commitment to customer service and professionalism. Customer service is paramount. The company has integrated the two sales teams into one under the directorship of Jeremy Aston-Phillips. Office hours have been extended to run from 8.30am to 5.30pm. A major investment has been put into the IT system from which significant benefits will evolve. There are also plans for a major website overhaul, details of which will be unveiled in the autumn.
Knowledge is another key component. Commercial director Chris Whitby also plays a role as the vice chairman of The Schoolwear Association and as such is
Quality everywhere you look
WORKWEAR • SWE A T S HIR T S • POLOSHIR T S • BLAZERS & JACKE TS • TROUSERS & SHORT S
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