Category: Andy Blog

Dear Customers, we seem to be going through exceptional times. Last week I  ordered another batch (typically 50,000 sheets) of paper to find that the price has gone up yet again (5^th time in the last year) and is now almost DOUBLE what we were paying just over a year ago and almost 3 times what we were paying back in 2015. The latest rises are (I am informed by my suppliers) due to the Russia / Ukraine situation causing a shortage of supply.

We have also had increases (although less significant) in ink, energy, fuel, wages, stationary, insurance and probably a few more things I can’t think of at the moment. I am sure your are familiar with many of these.

I have been running this business for 18 years now and never have I known such increases in costs from my suppliers in such a short time. During all of that time, we have never increased prices more than once a year and some years not at all. However the current situation is unsustainable.

I appreciate that an increase from us, in turn will be adding to your supplier costs too but hopefully (unlike our paper supplier), your advertising cost is not a very large proportion of your direct costs.

To try and keep things simple, and in the hope that this is a temporary situation we are NOT putting up standard prices! However we will be applying a 6.5% TEMPORARY surcharge to every new invoice issued after the 6^th August.

I give you my assurance that this surcharge will be removed IF our supplier costs go back down in the weeks and months to come. We will as usual review our standard prices in January. I do hope you understand.

Kind regards, Andy Pelling

1^st August 2022

Our business is passionate about the environment! We have taken steps to reduce our energy consumption, lowering our carbon emissions for our loved local community. As a business we have invested in LED lights and instant water heating. This will make a huge difference to the environment and this is just the start of our sustainable journey.

To help us invest in these energy saving measures we had support from Smart Energy Greater Lincolnshire. Through this we received a grant of almost £500 to enable us to make these fantastic changes.

The £9.2 million Smart Energy programme has been part funded by the European Regional Development fund. This is enabling small to medium businesses across the Greater Lincolnshire area invest in energy saving technology.

Hi everyone and may I wish you a happy New Year – a bit late I know!

Just a short BLOG this time highlighting how the local community and businesses working together can be mutually beneficial.

Local businesses create employment opportunities for nearby residents, reducing the need for long commutes through traffic jams. Many local businesses are owned by people who reside in the immediate area and thus a proportion of any profits they make are likely to be spent back in the area. They also pay business rates to the local authority helping to fund essential services.

The Deepings and surrounding Villages have many examples of local businesses sponsoring sports team, events and raising money for community projects and charities.

So if residents support local business, there is much more likely to be a return benefit to your community than if you are using services from out of the area or buying from the online giants. I know that’s not always possible and online can be very convenient – when it works well! However, I am sure most of us have had issues with waiting in for deliveries, items that don’t arrive or turn up damaged. Returns can be an issue when bought online. When you take your time (and sometimes fuel charges and parking fees) into account, local can often be equally cost effective and you are more likely to get great customer service and after sales support.

I have a few examples: Recently ordered some batteries, they have not turned up and am now in dispute with supplier. I ordered a new PC monitor and it arrived damaged, had a battle to get my money back. Tried selling an old car using one of the “Free” facebook groups. Put £400 NO OFFERS – must have had at least 15 phone calls offering silly amounts like £250 and waited in for 3 people at different times who never turned up!

You may have heard of the “LOVE DEEPINGS” campaign, initiated by Deepings Business Club – check them out at www.deepings.co.uk . This is a great initiative and we here are the Deepings & Villages Advertiser are very supportive of it.

We also try and give back to the community by sponsoring the Rugby Beer Festival, Deepings Raft Race, and paying to have banners up at the Carnival and Duck Race and made a contribution towards the Age Concern minibus to name a few. Subject to available space we also put free adverts in for good causes. We use quite a few local suppliers and employ around 50 local people.

So please help this virtuous circle by supporting Local Businesses when you can and hopefully the community as a whole will benefit.

Andy Pelling

Welcome to the very first BLOG for your local advertising magazine – better late than never, I’ve had online marketing people telling me I should do a regular blog for the last couple of years but have 2 very good excuses:

1. The old website wasn’t really up to supporting it, now we have the shiny new website courtesy Callum, Reuben and the guys at Productive Design (a great Deepings based business) we have the ability to BLOG!!
2. I have been rather busy what with (trying) to run 2 businesses, being a Parish Councillor (recently stepped down), Chairman of the Business club, volunteer on the Neighbourhood planning team and Raft Race committee member – not good for the golf handicap!!

Now the more difficult issue of what to write about!

OK, first let’s give a brief intro into how A&M Print came into being. I used to work in Telecoms, 25 years with BT then another 6 with private telecoms companies. Towards the end I was working away a lot, in Europe mostly and missing my family. A chap called Alan had set up the Deepings Advertiser using a photocopier back in 1993 and in 2004 he wanted to retire and advertised the business for sale (In the Deepings & Villages Advertiser)! I met with him, had a look and thought – yes, that will give me a good work / life balance. Since then we have bought premises, taken on employees modernised all the equipment and expanded considerably. So here we are today with almost 10,000 copies being printed and delivered every week.

We have 6 office based staff (some part-time):

Any, Kim, Maria, Fern, Peter and Monika. Pictures coming soon on another page of our website.

We also have 46 delivery people who undertake 49 delivery rounds between them – what stars they are, going out in all weathers! Having said that, in nice weather it’s quite a pleasant job which I enjoy doing from time to time when some of our deliverers are holiday. A few are adults but many are young (over 13) people.

We are based up on Market Deeping Industrial estate and are happy for people to pop in to enquire about advertising, printing or graphic design.

AUGUST HOLIDAY

Previous years we have closed for 1 week in August. Mainly because a lot of our deliverers go on holiday then and trying to cover 10 or more rounds is rather tricky – this year we have gone mad and decided to close for 2 weeks!!! I may regret that decision?

Anyway, it means you will get issues dated 2^nd August and 30^th August delivered as usual.

There will be one other issue for August – billed as a MID AUGUST SPECIAL – this will be delivered between 7^th August and 19^th August – SO PLEASE DON’T RING US UP TO SAY YOU HAVEN’T HAD A COPY DELIVERED before 19^th. I expect most people will get it before then but a few will be towards the end of that window. YOU CAN OF COURSE VIEW IT (and the previous 9 weeks issues) ONLINE FROM OUR WEBSITE – Online Issues. Ok, I think that’s enough for the first BLOG – future ones won’t all be about the Advertiser, I may stray into local community things