Phil Denton is one of those business leaders who possess a strong understanding of every aspect of his company. In founding Ital Logistics, he has done everything from the bottom up, and this hands-on involvement has helped to shape the company as it is now.
He says he had one of the best teachers – Jim Woodward. And to this day he holds Jimmy in high regard as one of his forwarding mentors. Phil says “No matter how focused you are as an individual, your first influence in the workplace goes a long way to mapping your future. And my first influence was one of the best one could hope for.”
He first became involved in the forwarding industry straight from school in 1978, firstly at Tower Express where he met his aforementioned mentor, and later at several other companies in the sea freight sector. Various jobs and redundancies followed, and Phil said: “After a couple of years as a full time musician, I needed a mortgage. The bank manager asked my profession, which was, at that time, musician. You can imagine his reply! So in 1987 I was back into the freight business, and able to get on the mortgage ladder.”
“Around 1989 the company I was working for at the time started an Italian trailer service. Asked if I would manage this I said, “Of course, anything for money!” Little did I know that this was to be a turning point in my career, the full effects of which would start to materialise some 11 years later. “
“After three and a half years there, realising I could only progress if the next man up either left or popped his clogs, in 1993 I jumped ship, only to be approached six months later by M&S Europe (later becoming IS Logistics) to be their Italian Route Development Manager. This is where I met what were to become my Italian partners in business as they are now.”
It was in 1998 that he started working in partnership with ITX Cargo in Milan, through which he met the team at Cardinal Maritime. Phil said: “One evening, Brian Hay, now CEO of Cardinal, asked if I had ever considered setting up my own company. The answer was “Yes, but I don’t have enough money to do it, nor the bottle! That said, I had been looking into this for some time, and was almost at the point of looking for an investor. Anyway, Brian said that he had both, and so it began.” Ital Logistics Limited was founded in August 2000 as a partnership between Phil, the then three directors of Cardinal and a small shareholding to one of the directors of ITX Cargo, Roberto Tagliareni.
Phil said: “My role in Ital Logistics has gradually evolved. At first, I was doing everything – after all, it was just a junior and I in the back of a warehouse in Rochdale, in what were little more than 2 x 9’ square brick cubicles, where the business started. “Gradually, as the business flourished, I was able to employ more people, and our head count is now 21.”
“The ethos of Ital Logistics, and mine throughout my freight career, is one of honesty, reliability, sincerity, enthusiasm and an eye for detail. Jimmy taught me well. We are also never frightened of communicating bad news when things go awry. Good communication is fundamental. And you have to be able to adapt and change the most perfect of plans when a fly suddenly appears in the ointment; and they appear on a regular basis! “
“You have to understand your clients’ needs. What suits one client, doesn’t suit another. Yes price is important, but good service and, above all, honest and precise communication, are just as important, if not more so.”
“As I have gradually eased away from the day to day operations, I have devoted some of my time to providing better infrastructure to the company, in part, with the provision of various MS Excel based workbooks to assist with rating and, more recently, Dangerous Goods with the development of my HAZculator ®. This looks up all ADR, IMDG and Eurotunnel data, and returns it all in one sheet. Development of tools such as these saves my operations team hours each week, and guarantees against error. We are all human, after all.”
He sees a number of challenges for the sector. “The economies of scale of the larger logistics providers can stifle a thriving SME. By way of example, one such major player, recently bought out by an even larger one, instructed their sales team to ‘get the business, no matter how low you undercut’.”
“Based on cost alone, companies such as Ital Logistics are often uncompetitive. Our constant hope is that clients will see the extra value in using a smaller company in that the personal service, greater knowledge and flexibility is usually of a greater level.“
“Still on the financial side, keeping a rein on payment terms is a constant battle, not to mention the increasing desire from many to insist that the proof of delivery document accompanies the freight invoice. No matter what anyone says, no company requires every single proof of delivery, ISO certified or not. This was always thought to be an historical way of delaying payment, and I cannot see that this has in any way changed.”
“There are exceptions of course, and I do not wish to throw a blanket over all that persist. If delivery is in doubt, or there is a potential claim, then of course, the proof of delivery is required. But otherwise? And as a caveat against payment? Not convinced.”
“But the biggest risk of all is ourselves and how we react to difficulties. The ball is always in your own court and the eye must remain firmly focussed.”
He remains optimistic, saying: “We have held our own pretty well, and this year we have increased our turnover by 20%, so all seems fairly healthy as far as we are concerned. The forwarding sector is, however, like any other, under pressure. Companies are closing on a regular basis, so one has always to be mindful of this, and keep that eye firmly on the ball.”
“If we maintain our ethos, we should stay firm. You always have to continue to improve and continue to increase your client base to allow for those that, even through no fault of your own, drop off the bottom by closure, loss of business themselves or simply undercut.”
Asked what has enabled the company to survive tough times, he says: “Honesty and reliability, dedication, enthusiasm, and of course a good team. Furthermore, my decision some ten or so years ago to commit fully to the movement of Dangerous Goods has been instrumental in providing what is becoming a niche area for the Company.”
“More and more companies are backing off from this sector of transport as it can be problematic – that is, if you don’t know what you are doing. This is why we have spent a lot of time making sure that we do know what we are doing and I think I can safely say that our name is becoming synonymous within this sector.”
“Furthermore, in a time when many companies were cutting back in the period since 2009, I decided to increase the sales force. Bold, but I worked on the basis that if some companies dropped off, we would be well positioned to pick off those clients who then needed an alternative.”
“We shall finish the year around £7.5m turnover. This is up £1.3m from 2012. I rarely set targets. I have always operated on a ‘what will be, will be’ basis. Yes, of course, it is a standard desire to better the previous year, and I am always looking at additional markets that can be opened up for us. But these things cannot be planned for. They are more like opportunities to be pounced on should they arise.”
“Moving forward into 2014, we shall simply continue to do more of the same. All being well, having done us in good stead in the past, this methodology should stand us well into the future.”
