I have to tell you about one of my favourite business books. ‘Be More Pirate’ by Sam Conniff was one of those can’t put down, read from cover to cover, ‘this is me’ books that I truly believe helped me and team diamond embrace our culture and forge through a tough time post the Brexit announcement and to forge a much stronger fiercer company that has sailed well through the challenges that has scuppered many a business in 2020.

Running multiple strands of a logistics operation simultaneously, while also offering the best service to clients brings with it unique challenges. Once upon a time businesses needed to juggle multiple systems, multiple carriers, a fleet of vehicles and premises. Now, diamondlogistics leads the field having created a one-stop and bespoke logistics platform that does it all. Built in-house, despatchlab combines classic same day courier, domestics and international express delivery, with online marketplace integration, storage, fulfilment and delivery with national coverage, all in the same place.

Outsourcing – using third party providers to provide essential services or products - is not new. But in this period of great uncertainty and change it is rising as not just an overflow asset but as a long term solution to adding adaptive and flexible resources without investing heavily on in-house resources.

Michael Gove’s announcement of £705m of investment a mere 12 months away from the end of the transitional period for free movement of goods has been heralded as too little too late, says our CEO Kate Lester.

Here at diamondlogistics, across our 25+ Service Centres nationwide, not only do we offer Sameday, Overnight & International shipping via our one-stop bespoke booking portal despatchlab, but we also offer a full range of ecommerce fulfilment options. From beauty products to paddleboards and beyond, diamond offer shopping cart integration with a multitude of ecommerce platforms and shipping via the multiple carriers we partner with.

Here at diamond we have seen a huge rise in clients selling within the CBD sector - cannabidiol, one of the many cannabinoids, or chemical compounds, found in marijuana and hemp. CBD is not psychoactive (i.e. won’t make you squiffy) but is said to have many health benefits such as relieving pan, reducing anxiety and depression and is alleged to even help acne. CBD can be bought in the form of oils, supplements in pill or gummy forms, sprays or cream to apply directly to the area of concern. As the global market is supposedly expected to grow to $20 BILLION (!), according to a report by Rolling Stone, it may be worth investigating.

Most people start an online business with a plan to bring about a better lifestyle – more time with family or an additional source of income. In our experience though, the reality of running an online business can massively differ from that original plan. Ecommerce can be an unpredictable beast. From the expected sales peaks throughout the year to the unexpected high demand..

In addition to our Home Service Centres in Guildford & Bournemouth, diamond logistics have a nationwide network of logistic partners who decided to join Team diamond to diversify into the world of Overnight Domestic and International Deliveries, Multi Carrier logistics & Fulfilment.

Shared Success © is one of our core values at diamond logistics. With that in mind in these unusual times, we would like to show our support for some of the many clients and suppliers that we work closely with & highly recommend. Today we showcase Frances Cassell and her Guildford-based marketing agency OCTOPUS Solutions.

Kate has been sitting in on a few Cranfield School of Management webinars over the last few weeks to stay at the forefront of business planning advice in such a tumultuous time.