SPOTLIGHT
Heating spares on demand
City Heating Spares and its network of UK wide branches prides itself on its same day or next day delivery option. Here the company reveals more about this installer friendly service
Who is City Heating Spares?
City Heating Spares (CHS) has branch counters located in over 300 City Plumbing Supplies branches nationwide, as well as in selected branches of Travis Perkins.
CHS was set up in 2009, following intensive customer research with heating engineers. Customers told us they wanted access to thousands of parts available same-day or first thing the next day, supported by expert staff – so that’s what we set out to provide. All of our staff can provide detailed product knowledge, plus our specialist software means we'll identify and source the right part, first time – saving our customers time and money. We have also grown and developed to become a leading distributor of boiler parts and controls for a range of customers, from single engineers to multinational contract companies.
Describe your range of products?
We supply everything from gas, oil and LPG boiler spares, to fire and shower spares – for everyone from sole trader installers to large contractors. We have 20,000 spares in stock at our distribution centre for next day delivery from more than 85 manufacturers. Each CHS branch carries a bespoke mandated stock range, which is based on its sales and wider regional sales data. Every branch across the UK has a full common national range, plus additional products based on what sells well in that region. On average approximately 300 of the fastest moving domestic and
commercial spares are stocked in each branch, ready for customers to order and collect the same day. We recently increased the amount of this stock by 35%, adding up to 150 new lines across our network so it’s even easier for customers to get parts on a same-day collection basis. We also always update our stock based on what our customers tell us they need.
What products/services are in high demand?
There’s significant demand for our delivery options. We offer shipping to branches six days a week and also early morning branch collection. That’s driven by the fact that contractors work all hours and can’t necessarily wait for office hours to place or collect orders.
How do you manage changing consumer behaviours?
Our customers – and ultimately their customers – don’t work on a strict ‘9 to 5’ basis, so we’ve recently expanded the operating hours of our specialist contact and distribution centre in Chorley. Customers can now speak to our expert team seven days a week to place orders and have them delivered to branches for next-day pick-up. We have also invested significant resources in our Drop Box initiative, which lets couriers deliver overnight to secure units located outside branches. This
means that weekday orders taken until 8pm Monday to Friday can be delivered to branch Drop Boxes overnight, for collection from 8am (with Saturday and Sunday orders delivered on Monday). So if you order at 7.30pm, your spares are ready for collection at 8am the next day – a bit like Amazon Prime for spares! Also, it’s 2018 - so we recognise that installers are increasingly likely to buy
online. This trend, combined with our commitment to helping installers correctly identify the requisite spare part, led to the development of SparesFinder. This is a free online parts identifier tool, covering 2,000 products, and with stock availability visible by postcode location. Travis Perkins plc customers can use the tool to identify spare parts, check stock at their local branch, order and then collect from the branch the next day. This saves installers lots of time, whilst supporting our branch network.
What are your future plans?
We will continue to develop our online proposition, whilst supporting and nurturing the branch network. It is important to us to ensure that the branch network remains strong and complements the online offer because we want to make sure that there’s always a choice. Some installers are more comfortable with direct online ordering, others prefer face-to-face with a local expert. We will continue to make sure we stay close to installers so we always provide what they want – whether that’s online, via telephone or in branch.
www.heatingandventilating.net
32 February 2018
www.heatingandventilating.net
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