Capacity to handle higher volume of parcels
Stronger competitiveness on marketplaces
Reduced operational complexity with centralised carrier management
About Testermans
Testermans is a specialist UK supplier of electrical test equipment and calibration tools. Founded 20 years ago, the business began with PAT testing and grew from buying/selling via eBay into a multi-channel operation spanning its own website, eBay and (now its biggest channel) Amazon. Testermans serves predominantly electricians, gas technicians and plumbers who rely on these tools to do their jobs, plus a wider mix of business and consumer buyers through Amazon. They also offer calibration services, collecting customers’ tools, servicing them and returning them directly.
The Challenge
For Testermans’ customers, delivery is a vital part of their business as it can determine whether someone can work that day. If a tester, lead or adapter doesn’t arrive in time, the knock-on effect can be missed jobs, wasted engineer time and reputational damage for both the customer and Testermans.
At the same time, customer expectations around speed have risen sharply, driven in large part by Amazon-style urgency, making delivery reliability an important competitive advantage. A one-day difference could mean winning or losing the order.
Operationally, Testermans was juggling multiple carriers, each with different portals and processes. Choosing the right carrier was often manual and rate-dependent which was specially challenging for harder-to-serve regions like Northern Ireland and further north in the UK. In addition, complexity from post-Brexit rules was increasing workload and risk.
Seeing Delivery Differently
Testermans partnered with GFS, using Despatch Cloud to streamline and centralise delivery management. With GFS they now have:
- One portal for multi-carrier delivery so they didn’t have to log into multiple courier systems and the team could manage shipments through a single platform.
- Simplified operations and customer service due to no longer needing to contact multiple carriers or search across systems to find tracking details and shipment history.
- Automated customer communications and reduced manual admin through Dispatch Cloud which prints labels and sends customers tracking information automatically
- Better international delivery including tracking links for international customers to see duties and pay them promptly when required, reducing friction and delays.
- Pro-active issue management with fast notifications on delays or failed delivery attempts allowing them to support customers quickly.
- Ongoing optimisation with account support including regular reviews with their GFS account manager to understand shipping performance, refine carrier mix and adjust delivery options shown across channels.
Positive Business Impact
GFS helped Testermans turn delivery from a fragmented, manual workload into a streamlined capability, supporting reliability, scalability and future expansion.
Capacity to handle higher volume of parcels
Stronger competitiveness on marketplaces with delivery being a deciding factor for customers.
Improved customer experience and trust with better tracking and proactive communication.
Ability to expand to new marketplaces and growth opportunities with GFS supporting operations.
Reduced operational complexity with a centralised carrier management – less time spent switching systems, chasing tracking numbers and resolving issues.
“What’s made everything easier for us is our partnership with GFS. Having one portal means we’re no longer juggling multiple carriers or systems. Honestly, I don’t think we’d be coping with our current order volumes, or even considering expanding into marketplaces, without GFS.”
Mara Carmichael, Sales and Marketing Manager at Testermans
