Spicers returns to wholesale supplies market with key senior hire

Since Paragon’s acquisition of OT Group and Spicers Ireland in May 2020, a seven-figure sum has been invested into the group and the evolution of its dealer provision, in anticipation of the reintroduction of the 200-year-old Spicers name to the market.

This funding has fuelled the digital transformation of finance, operations, and sales order processes across the group, as well as leading-edge automation in the firm’s Ashton and Dublin warehouses, alongside further development of its market-leading procurement engine, SmartPad.

The redefined proposition centres around the user experience – and how to streamline operations in a digital-first world. The rebrand further bolsters OT Group’s commitment to becoming the market-leading service provider for businesses across the UK and Ireland. 

Joining the OT Group board to assist with the next chapter for Spicers logistics is group operations director, Martin Weedall, who joins from Evo Group, where he has worked for the past 31 years.

Adding to an established team of Spicers personnel – including OT Group procurement director Scott Walker and wholesale experts Steve Morley (UK) and Martin Everard (Ireland) – Martin Weedall brings a wealth of knowledge and experience of dealer requirements to enhance and expand OT Group’s logistical offering to its dealer partners.

“We’ve taken a 200-year-old brand and made it fit-for-purpose in a constantly-evolving wholesale market,” explained OT Group CEO Andrew Jones. “Our Spicers team has over 100 years of collective industry experience, are in constant dialogue with dealers, and understand what our market needs from suppliers.

“As such, our new model provides a cost-effective, digital-first solution for dealers. As we continue on our journey to become ‘best-in-class’, we pride ourselves on being customer-focused – something which sits at the core of Spicers as we seek to deliver the right products, at the right price, and at the right time.”

As part of the relaunch, the team has planned further investment to provide its dealers with access to over 1 million products through its extended range initiative and is looking to launch further enhancements to its SmartPad procurement portal, including a complete audit trail of orders, visibility of order status, and detailed tracking capability.

Supplying dealers with office products and workplace supplies across the UK and Ireland, Spicers stocks over 8,500 SKUs – in depots across UK and Ireland – to ensure availability and efficiency in both warehouses.