Having built a reputation for supplying high quality minibuses for the last decade, EVM UK is now looking to expand its offering even further by adding Iveco-based products and working with more partners to offer an even broader range. Richard Sharman visited the new West Sussex facility to find out more
Bespoke, prestige and high quality are just some of the things people tell the CBW team when they are talking about EVM minibuses they have purchased, so it comes as no surprise that the company has easily achieved a decade in the UK serving the industry.
With a bold vision statement setting out a clear view of where EVM sees itself in the market over the next 10 years – “to move people, and to do so in tomorrow’s technology, cutting edge style and with unmatched momentum” – the team at EVM have their sights clearly set on the future.
New premises
To mark it’s 10th birthday, EVM UK has invested heavily in shiny new premises in Southwater, West Sussex, just a short distance away from its previous home near Gatwick airport. With new modern offices for the sales, marketing and aftersales team, a dedicated workshop and parts store and an increase in parking for stock, the company is well dressed for the future.
“We know that strong relationships and flexibility are what drive true customer satisfaction, which is why we go above and beyond at every step of the process. Our exceptional customer service and meticulous engineering adapt to each and every order, providing a personal, tailored and truly end to end service,” stated Managing Director Danny McGee.
Sales and Marketing Director Peter Flynn said: “The thinking behind the new premises is all focused around elevating the customer experience, and how we differentiate ourselves against others in the market. Exemplary customer service.”
The story so far EVM set up in the UK in 2011 to give the company direct access to its growing UK customer base. The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter-based minibus range has enjoyed substantial success in the market; in excess of 2,000 units have passed through the gates of the West Sussex-based company in the last 10 years.
The growing demand from its customers for larger capacity products lead the direction for adding other carefully engineered solutions to its portfolio. Armed with knowledge of its own manufacturing environment and the customer demand, the company firstly added the well respected Carbus Grand Tourer to the range in 2014.
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2017 saw the beginning of a relationship with the Lithuanian company Altas to expand its ‘virtual factory’ to increase capacity of EVM’s successful low-floor Sprinter. Peter explained: “When we started promoting our low-floor product we found there was a seasonal clash. When EVM in Ireland would get really busy in the build up to summer with new vehicles and registrations, it would be at the same time as I was looking to get lots of low-floor Citylines built. This is where the idea of a virtual factory came in, the ability to fulfil vehicle orders quickly to exactly the same standard that the customer expects from EVM. If you put an Irish-built Cityline next to an Altas-built example there would be no differences at all, thanks to our stringent build quality standards. Both examples use the same glazing, seat, trim and floor covering suppliers.”
2021 brought Turkish bodybuilder Erener to the product range with the Iveco Daily-based Revolution 29/33-seat midibus with PSVAR options available. 2022 brought with it the move to the new premises in Southwater, with a purpose-built facility giving the foundation to grow its sales, aftersales and parts services even further. The team has grown too, with additional parts personnel, two new additional service vans, roadside assistance and the continued growth in the dedicated aftersales network of support agents.
More options for the customer
A brand ‘makeover’ which includes a fresh new logo and a subtle change to its name has been undertaken. But the changes are more than just a sprinkle of fairy dust to a well-respected company in the industry.
Since the beginning, EVM has operated in the UK as EVM Direct. Although a standalone UK company, the initial concept was EVM supplying its own mini coach range ‘Direct’ to its UK customers. As the years have passed, the focus has expanded to include a broader range of products from other manufacturers to fulfil the requirements of its growing customers and customer base.
“EVM UK is the specialist sales and aftersales agent for minibuses in the UK, providing industry-leading sales expertise, aftersales care and guidance. You won’t find a more well-informed team in this space; we know our vehicles inside out, and that expertise enables our customers to unlock the hidden potential in every single one. Our approach ensures consistent customer relationships, a direct link to the manufacturers and a focus on protecting your return on investment – all the way to vehicle resale,” enthused Peter.
“One way to explain this change in company name is that EVM in Ireland is a vehicle manufacturer. That is its sole purpose. EVM UK supplies the industry with products that we asses fit the operators needs and has all the features and the quality that they are looking for. So in essence, we are a multi-franchise marketing sales and aftersales organisation. The name change also represents a wider offering for EVM UK’s customers, the range now includes models from Carbus, Altas and Erener, moving EVM away from its traditional specialisation in the Mercedes-Benz brand alone and including the Iveco brand for some of its larger capacity offerings up to 33 passengers.
“We work with these brands because we have exacting standards and like things engineered in a certain way, so that there is a cloud of data for every part, everything is repeatable and the manufacturer meets certain standards, so that when we submit our ISO certification (the International Organization for Standardization, which develops and publishes international industrial and technical standards) at the end of the year, we can just attach them onto our own and put them through. They are all just good partners to work with, and have good logistics.
“With Brexit, you need to have partners who excel at the administration and engineering function, so that when a vehicle is delivered here it can slot right into our process and has all the paperwork required, and these partners deliver on all of those aspects every time.
What makes EVM different?
“The customers trust in us to find and supply the right vehicle choices, and we have very strict standards and processes that we use when we are finding new partners. That trust in us also extends to when something goes wrong. Our customers know that if they have an issue we will get it sorted as quickly as possible, and this is because all parts are traceable. This gives us the ability to get that part to them very quickly and either send them to an appointed after sales agent or send a ‘man and a van’ out within hours to sort any issues. We understand that operators need their vehicles and that downtime is not an option,” said Peter.
“When we joined various frameworks around the country we made commitments under ISO standards. That means we have to do things in a very controlled way and we embrace this. Everything from how we operate on a day to day basis, to how we process a deal with a vehicle and how it works its way through the different departments to final delivery. Everything has traceability and process.
“Equally important is how we assess our suppliers. Danny is very good at being aware of what is happening on a global basis, but particularly in Europe. Once demand is generated, by talking to multiple customers about their requirements – for example a larger vehicle that we may currently offer, we go out and assess what is in the market. We then do factory visits and if we like it then it is followed up by a lengthy list of checking on how they do things, and whether they meet our standards.
“Typically the UK market is very different to pretty much anywhere else in the world, so any new product must be tested to ensure it is what operators are looking for. Key differences could be how the entrance area is built, how accessibility is handled, where the emergency exits are situated, styling and seating types. So from our point of view, it makes sense that we use similar or current partner suppliers for new products.
“We don’t just drop a product in the UK market to see how it goes; everything is fully assessed and we speak to our customers about their needs. We then go through a design process with that manufacturer to make the required changes for the UK market. Before committing to how many units we will order, we talk directly to end users, procurement teams, fleet managers, our own sales team, finance companies and – depending on what the product is – to each of the main players in the UK market to see where they see the product, potential order numbers and so on.
“In addition we have multiple sources of information when it comes to looking at future trends in vehicles, for example, the e-Cityline forms part of our low-floor line up but two years prior to it being introduced I would have gone and spoken to the procurement teams who were about to tender for services for demand responsive transport contracts to see what their requirements were. In addition, if we are dealing with an operator day in, day out and there is a vehicle they require that we don’t currently offer then that poses an opportunity to grow our range. The customer knows they can depend on us to deliver a vehicle that looks good, is reliable and holds residual value.”
Sales Team
As a sales organisation, EVM punches well above its weight with a dedicated team dealing with tenders in-house and a strong presence in all areas of the country. With product now running with each of the ‘big five’ transport providers, and a presence in all the main supply frameworks, EVM has a track record of success.
The clear message about customer service is closely followed by an equally clear understanding that a business is built on people, and the directors tell a story of a very focused recruitment and retention policy within the company.
“We take time in choosing new additions to the company and use a mixture of technical and behavioral interviewing techniques to ensure that we get people who are the best fit for our organisation,” explained Peter. “And as a result, we have built a team of energetic and passionate people who love what they do.”
Danny added: “We’re a dedicated, conscientious, down-to-earth team, individually expert but united by a shared ambition to elevate the passenger experience. We’re building bespoke vehicle solutions so that everyone – from a disabled child on the way to school to a busy senior executive on an airport transfer – can travel easily, in safety, style and comfort. We do more than just enable drivers to transport people from A to B. Never resting on our laurels, we use our collective ingenuity, the most appropriate technology, and an exemplary level of service to make sure all our customers enjoy the ownership experience, and all their passengers enjoy the journey.”
Meet the sales team
EVM now has a team of seven experienced salespeople covering the UK and Irish markets.
Aftersales
The one thing everyone within EVM UK agrees on is that the sales team may sell a customer his first bus, but it is the aftersales team which sells every bus after that first one. Their customers are keen to tell them this also.
“While we love the EVM products, it’s the aftersales service that keeps us coming back for more,” says Dominic Kalantary of Vectare.
EVM has adopted this as somewhat of a mantra and realigned its complete focus around the customer. “The customer’s satisfaction with our range of products and in particular the aftersales service they get is what underpins the strong residuals of our products in the market. We are at heart, a customer service company first,” explained Peter.
This message is at the core of the company’s rebrand with Managing Director Danny confirming: “Our aftersales service and commitment to our customers is the foundation of everything we do. From the beginning it was the vision of the shareholders to build a business which puts our customers at the heart of everything we do. While we may not be the cheapest supplier in the market, we have built a team of industry professionals who will work tirelessly to deliver exceptional customer service.”
What price for good service?
What is the price of good customer service? A very good question! EVM is a proponent of the old adage of ‘buy cheap, buy twice.’ Every member of the team holds a firm belief that they must deliver exemplary customer service at every step of
the way.
Ian Edgerton is the Aftersales Manager for EVM UK and is in his 6th year with the company. He brings over 25 years of aftersales management with global OEM brands to the role. He knows first hand how important this is for their customers. “Our goal is to respond swiftly and accurately to all requests for aftersales support,” advised Ian. “Our customers have made commitments to their customers and as a result they depend on us to deliver on our promise to them.”
A dedicated support portal on the firm’s website allocates a unique ticket to customers, 24 hours a day, and assigns a follow-up to a member of staff to complete.
“This system gives traceability to all calls and requests for support and ensures we follow up on it in a timely manner” added Ian.
Ian is aided in that task by a number of skilled staff. Michael Duffell is EVM’s workshop manager and brings extensive workshop and manufacturing control experience to the role from his many years in the aircraft industry. Michael manages a team of six workshop staff with skillsets including auto electrical, upholstery, fabrication and valeting.
Martin Keill is EVM’s dedicated handover technician. Trained in all aspects of the vehicles’ functionality, Martin hands over all new and used vehicles from EVM to customers and takes them through training on all aspects of how to operate the vehicle safely.
Newly appointed James Grant brings a lifetime of experience in parts management with fast moving OEM brands to his new role within EVM. Growing parts capability is key to its future growth, the company believes, and it has demonstrated this with an impressive three-storey, 300m2 parts warehouse on site. Next working day delivery on all major parts is standard.
Looking to the future
Having visited the new premises, been given a tour, seen the products first hand and spoken at length with Danny and Peter I can say that a decade into this business, the new developments here are taking EVM UK to a wholly different level, and that really does start with the new premises. The new Southwater site is in vast contrast to the former Three Bridges location.
When you are spending hard earned money on a new vehicle, you want to be treated like you are important; EVM UK already does that, but the new premises go one step further and enhance the customer experience. It looks good from the outside, but once inside you will experience a premium comfortable customer area where you can discuss the latest vehicles in the range, or simply sit in comfort whilst waiting to collect your vehicle – but that doesn’t mean it has to be a minibus, as EVM UK also does PSVAR conversions on the Mercedes-Benz Tourismo.
What is crystal clear when talking to Danny and Peter, is that customer service is extremely important to them, and they are rightly proud of this fact.
In the four years I have been at CBW, the EVM range has seen some major changes, which include a bigger vehicle range and an electric low-floor option. This continuous expansion will see the addition of a truly global manufacturer to the range in 2022; keep an eye out for exclusive details in a future issue.
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