Wincanton secures three-year full service contract with garden products supplier

Wincanton has landed a three-year contract with garden landscaping products manufacturer Kelkay which sees it “seamlessly embedded” in its client business.

Under the new contract, Wincanton will provide Kelkay with store deliveries, fleet provision and maintenance, planning, scheduling and compliance.

The new contract will also see the group manage the movement of around 20,000 orders per year from Kelkay’s site in Pollington, East Yorkshire, for distribution to over 2,000 retail locations across the UK and Ireland.

Wincanton will operate from a transport planning hub in Wigan to manage load movements, utilising the Wincanton fleet network. A transport execution team will also be based at Kelkay’s site in East Yorkshire.

This latest deal builds on Wincanton’s existing relationship as a trusted partner to Kelkay which began in 2019 and which saw Wincanton provide access to its fleet network.

In the same year the company, which was bought by Ames UK in 2018, invested £1.5m in warehousing, logistics and packaging machinery.

Kelkay is on a major growth drive aided by a boom in garden products following the pandemic. According to Mintel, the UK garden products retail market is forecast to see sales increase 35.3% by 2025 as consumers focus on improving their gardens and outdoor spaces.

Andy DeVere, group transport director at Wincanton, said: “We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with Kelkay. The contract win strengthens Wincanton’s position as a leading supplier to the UK garden products retail market.

“We look forward to utilising this expertise, alongside our track record of operating across the UK, to provide Kelkay with supply chain support to drive long term growth.”

Paul North, Ames UK MD, said: “Our partnership with Wincanton is key to delivering our ambitious and exciting growth plans.

“Their highly professional approach, together with enormous flexibility, gives us the logistics capacity to handle the rapid growth in our business.

“The Wincanton team is now seamlessly embedded in our organisation and our customers will benefit through streamlined communications and timely deliveries.”