March 21st, 2020, was a real disaster for my business Arrow cars; for 16 years, this business had been built and flourished. In fact, it had become the only national private hire company in England, with our airport transfer service spanning five airports. With Arrow having a year-on-year growth, the airports' closure effectively halted the Arrow operation and created many a sleepless night for me and the Arrow team in attempting to keep the company afloat.
To give some context now on Arrow Fresh, it was early in April, and I was in a long queue outside a fruit and veg shop. To me, it was clear that the system wasn't working; long lines meant the vulnerable were virtually unable to gain access to essential goods. I realised with the resources of Arrow cars, we could supply the vulnerable with what they needed. I also believed that there was a market for this product to be of the highest quality, and from this, Arrow Fresh was born.
In the beginning, we had only two fruit and veg convenience boxes, selling off a website that was built in 72 hours. From the off, the response to our idea was extraordinary. We believed we were offering a service that no one else was doing, delivering when people wanted, from same day to flexible delivery. We never turned a customer away and became fanatical about customer service. Where other supermarkets traditionally were slow to refund or sort out mistakes, we believed rapid action was key to customer happiness. Put simply, if we made a mistake or a piece of fruit wasn't up to standard, we always look to address the problem the very same day.
In a matter of weeks, our slim offering transformed into a one-stop-shop. We knew offering fruit and veg is essential. However, people also want access to freshly baked goods, dairy, meat, and many more. This belief to give the people what they want has led to our range now standing at over 3000 products. Our shop is now no different from a supermarket; we have ranges which include; pharmacy, alcohol, hampers, doughnuts, candles, and many more.
December was truly a special month; we did 7500 orders to 3000 different customers. Like our belief from the off, never once did we turn down a customer or close off our delivery slots. Up and down the country, people received Arrow Fresh boxes with various goods in, all with a guarantee of being high quality, packed by people who deeply care.
2021 promises to be a really exciting year. We are so thankful to our customers who have supported us and are grateful for the loyalty on the continual recommendations to friends and family, which have enabled us to grow rapidly.
The Arrow Fresh team is superhuman; their enthusiasm, commitment, and belief in our values are truly extraordinary. Our regulars know that the Arrow Fresh team is always willing to go above and beyond the call of duty.
Old fashioned service and attention to detail are what we are about; yes, we are an online shop. However, we also take orders over the phone. You call us, and you will be straight through to a friendly human, not a robot. Computers do not rule us, we do what is right, and I pledge to ensure that this will always be the case.
We at Arrow Fresh wish every one of you a happy and healthy 2021, and we look forward to continuing to make shopping a pleasure for you.
Kind regards
David Richmond
A Reflection of 2020
