Warm welcome

Chief operating officer and chief finance officer, Stuart Simpson, got a taste of island life when he visited colleagues on Stornaway, the main town of the Western Isles and the capital of Lewis and Harris in Scotland.

Western Isles area manager, Andrew MacDonald collected Stuart and service delivery leader, Chris Paton, from Stornaway airport.  

‘After a 90-minute flight delay due to an aircraft fault in Inverness our plan for the day had to be changed slightly,’ said Andrew. ‘But Stuart was in great form and really excited to see an island operation. 

‘We started by driving to the remote Shawbost Delivery Office, 40 minutes from Stornoway. The delivery work area is shared with the Post Office operation and attached to postmaster, Mrs M Wallace’s home. The post office has been in her family for over 150 years.

‘Mrs Wallace gave Stuart a written history of the site as well as some of her amazing homemade baking. He loved her homemade jam! Our next stop was Calanais Visitor Centre in Callanish to see the proposed new site for Callanish Delivery Office. We also took the opportunity to see the world-famous Callanish Stones. Stuart was amazed at the landscapes and history of the site.

‘After heading back towards Stornoway, we visited “Ishga” a new up-and-coming cosmetics business, which is managed by Stornoway Delivery Office manager Kevin Clark’s wife, and includes customers such as President Donald Trump! We then continued to Stornoway vehicle service workshop, which services more than 50 vehicles on the Isles of Lewis and Harris. Shift supervisor, Murdo Johnson, who is in charge of the workshop, spoke to Stuart about the new M5 booking tool and rising fleet costs.’

For the final leg of Stuart’s journey, he held a Town Hall meeting at Stornaway Delivery Office (pictured), where he spoke to colleagues about how important our new strategy is to deliver change and generate profits. He also answered a number of questions on how the strategy would affect the islands. 

‘When Stuart was leaving he said his day on the islands was one of the best work trips he’s had in years,’ said Andrew. ‘He even said he might come back with his family for a holiday. He was really impressed with Stornaway Delivery Office and said colleagues are doing a fantastic job in a location, which often experiences non-standard operational and weather issues.’