Independent finance and leasing business Asset Alliance has proved it is one of the fastest growing companies in its sector by delivering its 2,000th commercial vehicle – a milestone CEO Willie Paterson credits to its unique market offer.
3GL Transports new arrival will be used on a contract transporting Fyffes bananas from the port of Southampton to supermarkets across the UK, seven days a week.
Paterson, formerly Director of Commercial Finance at Alliance and Leicester, set up the business believing there was a gap in the market for customers looking for truly bespoke support when buying or leasing vehicles.
Today Asset Alliance uses its own funds and purchasing power to buy and finance vehicles and trailers for its clients, allowing it to supply multi-brand assets on any combination of contract hire, operating lease, finance lease or hire purchase.
Paterson says: “Our offer is truly unique, and has allowed us to get a strong foothold in a competitive industry in a short space of time.
“Others struggle to compete in terms of price, tailoring deals and demonstrating real industry expertise. They tend to be either ‘off-the-shelf’ suppliers, or financiers who don’t understand the complexities around commercial vehicles. Customers want more than that these days.”
Paterson now runs Asset Alliance Group – a parent company which includes Asset Alliance and three aligned businesses he has acquired in the last five years, which offer expertise in trucks and trailers, refrigerated equipment and bus and coaches, namely ATE Truck and Trailer Sales, Total Reefer and Forest Asset Finance.
He says: “We genuinely don’t look at our competitors in terms of size – it’s not about size, it’s about reputation and the ability to serve. If customers are grumbling and not completely satisfied, it doesn’t matter who their supplier is, how well-known they are or how long they have been established – that customer is looking for something extra.
“I think our focus on that makes us hold ourselves to much higher account in terms of customer service. We live in the knowledge that it can be tough to win new business, and very easy to lose it.”
He adds: “I think what we have proved is that if a business is nimble enough to respond to customers’ needs and efficient enough to offer competitive rates there is a real chance to gain market share.”
Asset Alliance’s landmark 2,000th asset – a Mercedes-Benz Actros 2548 tractor unit – was delivered in Paterson’s native Scotland to 3GL Transport, a fleet offering logistics services to businesses across the UK. It will be used on a contract transporting Fyffes’ bananas from the port of Southampton to supermarkets across the UK, seven days a week.
To mark the milestone occasion, Asset Alliance donated £2,000 to the STV Children’s Appeal, which is raising funds to support children and young people in Scotland who are affected by poverty.
Elizabeth Partyka of the STV Children’s Appeal says: “We are extremely grateful for the donation of £2,000. With the support of partners like Asset Alliance we hope to make an even bigger difference in the lives of children who need our help most.”
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