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Mail
Order Service Totally Unaffected! |
Despite
the huge fire, which engulfed the Robinsons store on Thursday 19th
September, their mail order business is totally unaffected. Orders
from both their new catalogue 2002/3 and the website are being processed
without any delays. Even store customers are being tempted to make
their purchases this way whilst the store is out of action.
The Haydock store at almost 20,000 square feet was the largest equestrian
superstore in the UK, but just over five miles away is their Call
Centre and Warehouse, which at 74,000 square feet is over three
times larger than the store. Stock holding at the warehouse is almost
five times the stock value held in the store. Robinsons are still
able to answer and take an order from up to 3,000 calls per day.
In terms of sending out orders, in less than ten days they could
despatch enough orders to equal the value of all the stock that
was in the Store.
Marketing Manager Paul Bentham explained, "at this stage, it's
too early to say what we will do, but it's safe to assume that we'll
be back with a new store that will be better than any other equestrian
store in the world. Despite all the upheaval, we see this as an
opportunity to create something better than anything anyone has
seen before. We now have the chance to put all our experience of
20 years that we had in that building into a Store, which meets
the demands of today's customers. Nobody is better able than us
to make this happen. Our Store may have been the biggest in the
UK, but its success was achieved in an old building with far fewer
facilities available to us than we would have liked."
If
you have any queries about the store, Robinsons shop telephone number
01942 712555 has been diverted to their Rainford headquarters where
their Store staff can take your call. If you would like to place
an order via our Mail Order service, simply call 01744 885555 or
visit our website at www.robinsons-uk.com
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Jim
Bentham, Managing Director of Robinsons at the site of the Haydock
store. |
Further
Information:
Despite the huge fire, which engulfed the Robinsons Store on Thursday
19th September, our Mail Order Service is continuing to operate
as usual. Our Call Centre and main warehouse are actually located
five miles away from where the Store used to be and at 74,000 square
feet, we have ample facilities to enable us to take up to 3,000
orders each day! Even with the temporary loss of our Store, we are
still the UK's largest equestrian provider with huge stock levels.
We are very proud to be able to say that for the eighth year running
our Mail Order Service has once again been voted No 1, by the readers
of 'Your Horse' magazine. Plus, at 220-pages, our 2002/03 Annual
Catalogue is our biggest ever and is jam-packed with some superb
products for your horse, your home, your stable...and you! As well
as all the old favourites, there are plenty of new innovative ideas,
great new brands and of course the usual amazing prices.
Many of our existing Store customers are now purchasing their equestrian
goods from us, though our Mail Order service and from the comments
we've received so far, the majority are enjoying the experience
of shopping from the comfort of their own home!
MAIL ORDER: 01744 885555
Temporary
Feedstore opening 11th October
Within
fourteen days of our Retail Store burning to the ground, we have
located temporary premises within two miles of our old location
and filled it with horse feed, bedding and supplements. We've been
inundated with calls from regular Feedstore customers enquiring
as to when they'd be able to purchase their horse feed and shavings
from us again. Many stated that they were finding it extremely difficult
to locate an alternative local supplier who offered the same wide
range of low-priced feed. So, we're very please to announce the
opening of our temporary Feedstore at 10am, on Friday 11th October.
We'll be offering the same ranges, at the
same prices with the same efficient service - the only difference
is that this temporary Feedstore is even bigger than our previous
one!
News
updates at your fingertips!
Make
sure you keep up to date with the latest news about our plans for
the Retail Store.
We'll be keeping everyone informed on a regular basis via our website
and the equestrian media.
Plus, when you visit www.robinsons-uk.com you'll discover a whole
new world of equestrian online shopping. You'll find all the products
from our catalogues, plus many more available to purchase through
our website.
Browsing through you'll also find general information about the
history of Robinsons, the services we offer, job vacancies, 'web
only' offers, a constantly updated 'links' page and a step-by-step
guide on how to place an order online.
Latest
developments
Although
it was a devastating shock to watch over twenty years of work burn
to the ground, Jim Bentham, Managing Director of Robinsons is very
excited about future plans for a new Robinsons Retail Store.
Like the rest of the Robinsons Team he now sees this as a unique
opportunity to create something better than before.
"Our
Store may have been the largest in the UK, but its success was achieved
in an old building, with far fewer facilities available than we
would have liked. Now that these restrictions have been removed,
we have the chance to put all our twenty years experience into a
new Store, one which meets the demands of today's customers."
Jim Bentham explained.
"We'd love to be able to announce our plans, but for now we
are investgating every option. Rest assured that as soon as we know,
we will keep you updated every step of the way."
Make sure you check out our website for regular updates, as well
as the equestrian media. We may not be able to tell you anything
substantial yet, but we do promise that the new store will rival
any and will be a new experience in equestrian shopping.
Huge
support received following Retail Store fire
We
have been inundated with messages of support ever since the fire
at our Store on Thursday 19th September.
The very next day we received messages of goodwill from many of
our UK suppliers, mail order customers and even competitors. As
word has spread, messages have come from several of our foreign
suppliers as well as other large equestrian Mail Order companies
in Germany, South Africa and the USA. Roly Owers of the ILPH, Tanya
Larrigan, who would have appeared at this year's 'kids@robbies'
Store promotion and all our friends at The Pony Club have also passed
on their thoughts. It has been great to hear from everyone and we
have been touched by their sincerity. Our customers themselves have
also shown an incredible amount of support. Despite the fact that
their shopping has now been made more inconvenient by the loss of
the shop, many of them have given us a huge boost with their good
wishes. We hope to repay their faith by providing them with an even
better store as soon as we can. The whole team at Robinsons are
full of drive and determination to face new challenges. Most of
the Retail Store staff are now working at either our 74,000 square
foot headquarters, or our temporary Feedstore.
We have total confidence that Robinsons will emerge from this a
much bigger force than before and with a new Retail Store to challenge
competitors and astound customers.
Frequently
asked questions
Robinsons have the answers to your most popular enquiries
What
happened?
On the evening of Thursday 19th September, the Robinsons Retail
Store building was completely destroyed by a fire. The alarm was
raised at 7.30pm with around one hundred customers and ten staff
in the Store. Everyone was evacuated in an orderly fashion and no
one sustained any injuries.
Can I still buy my equestrian goods from Robinsons?
Yes! The fire at our Retail store has not affected our Mail Order
service and shop customers are invited to use this service for future
purchases of equestrian goods. You can also order online, via our
fully secure website.When will the new store be opened?At the moment
it's too early to say when or indeed where our new store will be
located. We're currently exploring several options and will of course
keep everyone updated as often as we can. It is safe to assume though
that we will be back with a Store which is even bigger and better
than the one we had.
My rugs/clippers were at the Store being repaired/cleaned/sharpened
- what do I do now?
Please send in a copy of the receipt that you were given when you
dropped your goods off at the Store. This needs to be sent for the
attention of the Retail Store Manager at the address at the bottom
of this page. We will then try to sort out replacements for you
as quickly as possible. We recommend that you photocopy the receipts
before you send them and ensure that you include your full name,
address and telephone number.
What
about Group Visits and other Store promotions?
We regret that any Group Visits and planned promotions for the remainder
of 2002 have had to be cancelled. Please contact us in the New Year
for the latest details.How can I get hold of a copy of your 2002/03
Annual Catalogue?It's easy, you can either phone our dedicated catalogue
request line which is 01744 887002, or you can order a copy online
via our website. If you have any other questions or queries regarding
anything to do with our Retail Store, please don't hesitate to contact
our Store Supervisors on 01942 712555.
Website:
www.robinsons-uk.com
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