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Family firm Bowring Transport has seen business return to pre-Covid levels after an annus horribilis which saw the sudden loss of the firm’s much loved MD David Bowring from pancreatic cancer in January 2020, closely followed by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

The company, which is based in Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, specializes in heavy haulage for the construction and agricultural sectors, operating a fleet of around 90 wagons and 350 trailers.

Clients include Vinci Construction, Aggregate Industries and Galliford Try Construction.

Bowring Transport also sells agricultural machinery, farm feed, aggregates and building materials, operates a landfill site, a maintenance workshop and a driver training school.

Following David Bowring’s death, son James took the reins, experiencing a baptism of fire as he struggled to come to terms with the sudden loss of his father, whilst tackling the challenges that the pandemic lockdown brought.

He said: “We were badly hit in April and May, partly because we didn’t quite understand furlough and were slow to put staff on the scheme at first. We lost £200,000 of profit on the transport side, just in those two months, which were our worst performing months in seven or eight years.

“However once we got to grips with the furlough system, things eased. We put 60% -70% of our drivers on furlough and by June we were back in the black, with just 15%-20% on furlough - and we have continued to grow ever since. This month, compared to May 2020, we have seen profit up by 150%, which means we are back to where we should be.”

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Bowring added that much of the growth comes from construction customers expanding their business, with many keen to make up for lost time during the pandemic lockdown.

Bowring was speaking to motortransport.co.uk after the company posted its results on Companies House for the year to 31 May 2020, which revealed a 0.3% rise in turnover for the haulage division and 38% fall in annual net profit before tax.

This year the company is now facing the challenge of recruiting drivers to meet growing demand as the national HGV driver shortage continues.

“We run a training school but still have the problem of struggling to find drivers, particularly Class One drivers, thanks to the backlog of HGV driver tests that built up during the lockdown. It is taking people four or five months to get booked in for a test. That and the loss of European drivers after Brexit and from the furlough scheme has made the situation much worse. I think as an industry we have to look at the pay structure.”

Bowring attributes the company’s recovery since the pandemic to the longevity of the team at the firm. “We are like an extended family, with some staff having been here for over 35 years. They remember me kicking a ball round the office when I was ten. When Dad died we all pulled together to get through it. They really did keep us going and are a great team.”

Looking ahead Bowring said the company is now “back to normal” and set to benefit from a number of major construction projects, including the HS2 project, to which a number of the firm’s clients are contracted.

He added: “It is all about getting the wagons out on the road - and looking after our staff and our customers and we believe that has to come first before profit.”

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