Enter the beating heart of Svendsen Sport’s vast European distribution network
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Angling is booming but your business can only capitalise if it can successfully meet demand. To remind customers of its power, Svendsen Sport’s Supply Chain Manager, Jacob Frier, has described the company’s huge operational warehouse in Poland.
Size & Efficiency
“Our warehouse can accommodate 117 average-sized UK homes,” says Frier. “And it has a 10m ceiling for the vast amount of stock that needs to be delivered. In the past, Svendsen Sport had two warehouses from which it served retailers across its markets – one in Denmark and the other in Germany. This worked well for many years, but times and demands change and they have been replaced by one facility in Szczecin, Poland. Now all inbound product is delivered to one destination and this makes a saving in administration. However, the most important advantage is that we managed to cut down on our overall delivery time so our retailers are getting products more efficiently than before.”
Reduce, reuse, recycle
As a major international company that produces and ships across the globe, Svendsen Sport have a responsibility to reduce its impact on the environment, says Frier. “After all, nature is our business. To do this we are using recycled paper as protection in all our boxes from Poland. All our shipments from Asia are CO2 offsetting certified. All excess plastic or paper is delivered to the local recycling station. The next step on our ‘green’ mission is to change all our lighting in the building to more energy-efficient LED. We are part of the UN Global Compact, which is a global pact that encourages businesses to adopt sustainable and social responsibilities.”
Culture
Explains Frier: “Our Danish culture is important to us and while the operational tasks are carried out in Poland, the tactical and strategic decisions emanate from Denmark. So in order for it to function we have had to learn to carry out distance management. We have learnt to connect the two cultures in a way that is working better than we could ever have imagined.”
Practice makes perfect
Training matters, says Frier. “Every employee undertakes three months of training to ensure high quality and efficiency, utilising the latest technologies and systems available to achieve our goal. The most important tool is the humble iPad, which is used by everyone. An automated system minimises the risk of mistakes and increases overall efficiency.”
Staff focus
“Our focus is always on our people,” says Frier. “We have a security officer who ensures proper working conditions in a healthy environment.”
