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February 2021

We now find ourselves nearly one year on from the first of 3 lockdowns resulting from the CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC. This has shaken mankind to the very core of everything we think we believe as a race and on a multitude of levels. Most notable amongst the resultant shockwaves being to family, social interaction, and to our personal value judgements.

However, at DAVANT then we believe that the COMMERCIAL WORLD has also fundamentally changed.

For reasons of safety then we have all had to resort to social distancing, constant mask wearing, and communication methods that avoid as much personal contact as is humanly possible.

For a company like DAVANT, with a strapline of ‘Built on Relationships’, and in an industry that is truly contact ‘centric’, then such barriers to business and personal interaction are obvious and painful. An approach that has traditionally relied on regular personal visits and meetings between suppliers and customers, between buyers and sales personnel, suddenly seems unthinkable and even anachronistic.

This is not to say that we don’t continue to believe in the importance of personal service and interaction with our customers. Several of our EXTERNAL SALES TEAM have returned to work following furlough and the intention is that the remainder will follow on. Nevertheless, the current climate undoubtedly calls for significantly less personal presence at our customers’ premises; and a far more targeted approach when a customer visit is requested or required.

Consequently, and for the moment, then DAVANT, like many other companies, have to devise new ways of reaching out to serve our customers.

The most significant innovation that we are determined upon is the development of a CENTRAL COMMERCIAL HUB from which we will interact with our customers on a variety of levels. This in search of an excellence of customer service and with a level of communication that will only be limited by the amount of information and other requirements that our customers request.

We will be investing heavily in the recruitment, training, and development of a number of young and enthusiastic new members of staff who will be selected to work with our existing, experienced staff and in a multitude of disciplines. All of these functions will be designed to enhance our customer experience and to help in the success of our customers’ businesses.

There will be several teams within the intended COMMERCIAL HUB as follows:-

 

  • A Customer Services Team who will be available to help with any and all enquiries and to solve any and all issues;
  • An Administration Team with a targeted Attention to Detail skillset.
  • A Marketing Team to anticipate the needs of the marketplace and to devise the best strategy to deliver our customer requirements & wishes.
  • An Outbound Sales Team who will reach out to our customer base via telephony and other electronic capability.

 

Are we truly at the dawn of a brave new commercial World or are we experiencing a temporary blip in what has always been a traditional, personal, and contact-based industry? Who can really know what the next chapter holds in this continuing, extremely uncertain climate?

Whatever the future, we at DAVANT are determined to be ready to react to our customers’ needs and challenges and to help in any way we can towards an objective of mutual success for our customers and ourselves.

Stay safe and stay well.

David Merrick

GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR.