Movie movers
Royal Mail Relay is our bespoke service that provides tailored deliveries around the clock. Its drivers are trusted keyholders and let themselves into premises to make out-of-hours deliveries.
Relay started out delivering time-sensitive mail for banks but has diversified as its customer base has grown. And for the last four years it’s added a touch of silver screen sparkle to its work by bringing the latest box office blockbusters to the masses through National Film Transport (NFT) – the courier scheme for UK cinemas.
The latest films are collected by NFT in digital form direct from the warehouses of Hollywood studios. From its base in Slough, NFT duplicates the film onto password-protected hard drives, then transfers these to one of Relay’s depots ready for delivery.
NFT, which covers 90% of UK cinemas, is the only contracted courier for film deliveries and since moving under the Relay umbrella has seen a marked improvement in its services.
Nicola Lamprill, NFT depot manager, said: ‘We used to run the service with self-employed drivers on a three-day service. Being with Relay is faster and easier. It’s now a five-day service and is a lot more efficient, so it’s saving us money.’
Films aren’t the only items Relay drivers deliver, however. The NFT is responsible for delivering all the commodities cinemas need – from popcorn to pick and mix and promotional posters to Coke cups.
So, the back of a driver’s van can be a mixed bag – something driver and action film aficionado, Fred Woods (pictured) is used to.
‘The most bizarre thing I’ve delivered is two old cine reels, the big ones that old films went on, to a recently opened cinema in Eastbourne,’ said Fred. ‘They were part of the opening presentation.’
With 16 years’ experience working out of Relay’s Epsom depot, Fred thinks it’s great the business is expanding.
‘As time goes on we have got to diversify and secure new business,’ he added. ‘No company’s going to survive on one thing alone especially in today’s world with the way technology is going, and with less people sending cheques in the mail.’
