Case Study
5th October 2015
If the Schuh fits, Antalis Packaging will ship!
Schuh is one of the UK’s high street success stories. From the humble beginnings of its first
shop in Edinburgh, Scotland, Schuh has grown significantly over its 30 year history, and now
boasts 100 stores across the UK and Ireland, with a new outlet recently launched in
Oberhausen, Germany. The heart of the Schuh operation is focused at its two distribution
centres in Bathgate and Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland, from where their shoes are
stored, packaged and despatched for delivery to their network of retail outlets.
“We oversee distribution of 10,000 items every week from our centres to our shops across
the country, and overseas to Ireland and now Germany, so it’s absolutely essential for the
business that we run an efficient and streamlined packaging operation,” explains Donald
Hutchison, Logistics Manager at Schuh.
For the past ten years, Antalis Packaging has been working closely with Schuh, not only to
provide on-time regular deliveries of a range of protective packaging products and bespoke
solutions, it has also played an active role in helping Schuh optimise packaging operations at
its distribution centres.
Under the watch of regional manager Norman Robb, Antalis Packaging delivers protective
packaging supplies to Schuh’s distribution centres at least once a week, as well as
introducing new innovations and labour saving solutions. This has resulted in the
development and introduction of enhanced carton construction and design innovations to
add strength and quality to their shipment containers while optimising weight, as well as
introducing automated stretch wrapping solutions to reduce assembly and fulfilment time,
adding further to operational efficiency and cost savings.
Initially supplying just one single-sized outer carton in the early days, Antalis Packaging has
responded to increased demand as Schuh’s business has expanded, and now supplies a
variety of sized protective cartons and complimentary packaging supplies. It also introduced
the company to a new semi-automated Lantech Stretch Wrapping solution to improve the
speed and containment of its palletised containers.
“We’ve really noticed a difference since the introduction of the Lantech systems. This was a
process previously done by hand, so now we can process more product, and increase load
security speeding up operations for despatch,” enthuses Donald.
“The vacuum system was initially trialled in the Livingston distribution centre, following a
detailed audit by Antalis. It worked so well, that we decided to implement it in our Bathgate
site also. Previously, we required two men to load the magazine full time, and we were
noticing health and safety concerns from the heavy lifting. We care the utmost about our
staff, and the vacuum system has meant that only one operator is required to move the
suction cup head to feed onto the pallet, making it a much safer process.”
“Antalis Packaging also provides additional off-site storage for our regularly ordered
products, so we never have to worry about running short of supplies, as we know that just
one call to Antalis, and they can respond quickly,” adds Donald.
Donald has welcomed the positive feedback that these changes to his packaging fulfilment
operation has generated from the many retail outlets. Maintaining high standards
throughout the business is essential to Schuh, from the quality, design and presentation of
its merchandise, its high levels of in-store customer service, to the way in which the shoes
are finally sold and handed over to the customer. “At the end of the day, no customer wants
to receive a pair of brand new shoes in a damaged box,” explains Donald, “so it’s essential
that we can provide effective protection in the most dynamic way, so our boxed shoes
arrive in-store in tip top condition.”
While the customer experience is vital, so too is operational efficiency. And, for a company
that was recently awarded the Micros Grand Prix Golden Chariot Award for Delivery
Excellence’, Schuh is keen to maintain its award-winning reputation.
“I’m always looking for ways to maximise efficiency and reduce costs, while still maintaining
the highest quality of service,” concludes Donald. “We’ve enjoyed a good working
relationship with Antalis Packaging for many years now and I can always rely on them to
respond to our demands and come up with something new that will streamline operations
and reduce costs,” concludes Donald.
ENDS
Notes to Editor
About Antalis Packaging
Antalis Packaging is a leading supplier of innovative protective packaging solutions to protect, store, dispatch
and transport goods safely throughout the entire production and supply chain. These include distribution and
packaging materials such as cartons & containers, bubble film, wrapping papers and tapes, branded and own
brand packaging machinery, bespoke solutions as well as professional consultancy services to analyse
packaging logistics and requirements.
About Antalis
Antalis is the leading European distributor of paper, packaging solutions, and visual communications products
ranking #3 worldwide, with sales of 2.5 billion Euros in 2013. Our 6,000 employees serve more than 125,000
print and business customers worldwide, in 44 countries through its 100 distribution centres.
Antalis makes 12,000 deliveries per day in Europe, and distributes 1.8 million tons of paper per year
worldwide. Antalis is the distribution arm of Sequana.
Issued on behalf of Antalis Packaging by AD Communications.
For further information, please contact:
Cerys Traylor/Lucy O’Dea
AD Communications
Tel: 01372 464470
ctraylor@adcomms.co.uk
lodea@adcomms.co.uk
Samantha Brown
Communication Manager, Antalis UK
Tel: 01530 505153
Samantha.brown@antalis.co.uk