It’s safe to say 2020 has had its ups and downs for everybody, but there have been some real highlights on which we’re reflecting as we prepare to head into a new year.

20^th anniversary celebrations

On 2 March 2020, we celebrated our 20^th anniversary and to mark it we wanted to make sure we were giving back, so we embarked on a mission that would see us support 20 different charities over the following 20 months. Although our charitable initiatives got off to a slower start than planned due to the national lockdown, here’s a snapshot of what we’ve been up to so far in our 20-month journey:

• Began a partnership with The Trussell Trust and made donations to Bradford North foodbank
• Held a raffle for Breast Cancer Haven Yorkshire as well as donations to Cancer Research and British Heart Foundation
• Took part in a golf competition for LGBTQ+ charity, Stonewall
• Supported the National Trust’s tree planting scheme
• Held a Halloween Quiz raising funds for mental health charity, Mind
• Fundraising for Children in Need with a sponsored duck race and ‘donate your age’

Electrifying rental with launch of the first ever single source online EV booking platform

As part of our revamped IRIS V5 rental management system, this year we launched the UK’s first dedicated electric vehicle (EV) online rental platform for business use, enabling businesses to meet the rising demand for alternative, cleaner mobility solutions.

To complement the platform launch, we also created a dedicated EV Guide – the latest in our Glovebox Guide series – to highlight the benefits of operating electric vehicles within fleets, while offering practical advice to drivers.

Supporting clients new and old to meet demand

As businesses up and down the country battled new and unique challenges this year, retailers – particularly supermarkets – experienced unprecedented demand for home deliveries and needed to keep shops well stocked.

Whilst managing the complexities presented by Covid-19, we supplied over 500 vehicles to Morrisons, within 24 hours, which enabled the retailer to increase deliveries to its customers each day, especially the elderly and vulnerable, who were in close proximity of its stores but unable to visit.

Awards Success

We were delighted to retain our place in the Business Cloud 100 eCommerce Trailblazers rankings as well as feature in the 2020 Northern Tech Awards Top 100 Fastest Growing Technology Companies list and to be ranked as one of the Top 15 Fastest Growing Larger Companies. The Northern Tech Awards 100 League Table ranks the fastest growing Technology Companies in the North of England and Scotland.

Launch of our new staff wellbeing programme

We recognised that the pandemic has had a profound effect on our wellbeing, so we launched our first Virtual Wellbeing Programme and we now have a trained team of in-house mental health first aiders to support our staff on a one-to-one level.

The Committee has also been devising physical team challenges – like competing to see who can walk the most steps during lunch breaks – to help people to break away from their desks, get some fresh air and look after their mental and physical wellbeing. So far, the programme has received great feedback from colleagues, and we are committed to continuing this scheme in the long-term.

Record rentals in a single day

By adapting to the challenges of working in a pandemic, we have ensured that our vehicle rental offering continued to facilitate our customers’ fleet needs – something that is critically important with the increased demand in the lead up to the festive period.

It is this demand that has seen us reach a new milestone, supplying more than 20,000 rental vehicles, in one single day!

Despite some of the most challenging supply conditions seen for many years, we have successfully managed to fulfil the vast majority of the vehicle rental orders required by our clients.

This year we, like all businesses, have had the wellbeing of our workforce, customers, and suppliers at the centre of our operations and has continued to prioritise excellent service, despite our offices being closed. Our team has worked remotely throughout the pandemic and this result is a real testament to our colleagues and their hard work this year. Whilst 2020 has been a tough year for everyone, we have remained committed to meeting our customers’ ever-changing needs and we are looking forward to an exciting 2021.