Red Arrow Trading has been rebranded as Red Arrow Electrical Distribution (RAED). In addition, the company has opened a new manufacturing centre in China, which promises to offer customers a full lighting design service.
Previously Managing Director of Crompton Lamps, Michael Crossley has acquired Red Arrow Trading and is transforming the business into a streamlined, quality-focussed manufacturer and distributor fit for today’s marketplace, with a key focus on lighting.
After rebranding as Red Arrow Electrical Distribution (RAED) in May this year, the company’s 4,000 plus customers can still expect competitively priced products, but they will now also benefit from superior quality and much faster service delivery.
ECN spoke with Crossley, and his Sales Director, Graham Lewis, to find out more about the new business transformation.
Starting with the removal of the less popular trading items, Crossley assures us that customers will now enjoy easier access to RAED’s 3,000+ strong product range, as well as an exciting new selection of lighting products planned for 2020. He comments, “We are in the process of integrating ISO9001/14001 accreditation and streamlining our offering. By removing some trading items, we can develop our key area of strength – lighting. This means we are now able to offer all our customers a full lighting design service.’
Plus, with a complete overhaul of both stock management and delivery across the brand, RAED can ensure much faster and more reliable delivery services. “We have moved from a third-party service offering to operating our own supply service via our specialised distribution point near Milton Keynes,” Crossley adds. “Holding more than £5m worth of stock in more than 100,000 square feet, this has vastly improved our service delivery.”
Working alongside Crossley is Graham Lewis, Sales Director at RAED, who is eager to “service electricians the best we can through our increasing network of distributors across the UK and Ireland”. And leading this transformation with Lewis is RAED’s new management team: a group of lighting industry experts with 60+ years’ experience working for companies such as OSRAM, Siemens, Cooper Lighting, Crompton Lighting and Crompton Lamps.
“We want to work closely with existing and new customers to show them how dedicated the RAED team are, and how the changes we’ve outlined will benefit them,” Lewis enthuses. “And thanks to our new manufacturing plant in China – which is managed by a team of highly experienced supply chain and compliance specialists – we’ll be introducing better quality product offerings to the marketplace very soon.”
But it’s not all change at Red Arrow Electrical Distribution. The website’s URL, contact details and core staff have remained the same – minimising any potential disruption for customers.