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10 minutes with Archie Isles, Prestige Group: looking after a family business

Prestige-Group

Prestige Group was founded in 1982 and has since grown to a fleet of around 100 Mercedes offering both courier and passenger transport services. The group is still run as a family business with excellent service as its core value. We spoke to Archie Isles, Head of Business Development, to learn more about Prestige Group and what makes it unique…ย 

What’s been the model behind Prestige Group’s international growth?

โ€œWe have had a very robust and reliable customer service-oriented business in London for nearly 43 years now. Following discussions with our client base, we have found that they are increasingly asking us to arrange transport services when they land at international airports. We started having conversations with like-minded individuals in these cities and towns, and got them to sign up to our system and trained them to mirror the service we offer in the UK.โ€

Is further expansion on the cards?

โ€œOur expansion plan is very much just saying yes to everything, it’s as simple as that. It’s about doing a good job. Once people get to know us, they really tend to never leave us, and that’s important. At least 50% of our new business comes from recommendations.โ€

What’s unique about Prestige Group?

โ€œOur biggest and strongest selling point is our reliance on humans. Everyone is trying to slim down the human element, pushing people to go online and do things themselves. We are still very much on the phone and our approach is very hand held. This means looking after people that have been with us for a long time and providing them with that element of expertise. Working with PAs and EAs is great and we really like to get to know them. We like to become, in some small way, an extension of their business, making their lives easier. I think that’s unique. Our team of people genuinely care. Everybody is given incentives to make their own respective departments a success. Everybody understands that they need to do that little bit extra and I think that’s unique too.โ€

How do you improve sustainability within your business?

โ€œEvery single new vehicle that we have is either hybrid or fully electric. You simply can’t get a PCO license without it. We love a nice S-Class Mercedes which is achieving about 400 miles ‘on the tank’ without needing a charge. All our vehicles are congestion charge compliant i.e. ULEZ compliant.โ€

Do you offer corporate packages?

โ€œThere’s always a conversation around looking after the individual PAs and EAs, making their lives that little bit sweeter.

We tend to give anybody that opens an account with us on a corporate basis a 10% discount across the board, that covers all our services.

We also work with PAs and EAs who look after individual high net worth clients, or people in the public eye. Clients can have their own person to contact if there were any issues, and everybody in our team is given the tools to help effectively. We all talk to each other. We’re not a massive business and are all on the same floor so internal communication is easy. It’s important for PAs and EAs to know that if there are any issues, they can quickly get hold of someone who will sort it out.โ€

 

Find out more or enquire about the services of the Prestige Groups courier and passenger transport.

We are very pleased to have the Prestige Group as a Recommended Supplier.