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Working Collaboratively with Thompson & Morgan to Achieve First-Time Delivery
Case Study

Working Collaboratively with Thompson & Morgan to Achieve First-Time Delivery

Working Collaboratively with Thompson & Morgan to Achieve First-Time Delivery

Thompson & Morgan are the UK’s largest mail order seed and plant company. Their extensive product range includes award‑winning seeds, young plants, bulbs, seed potatoes, onion and garlic sets, soft fruit, fruit trees and a wide selection of gardening supplies.

With ongoing advances in technology and increasing consumer choice, delivery performance has become a critical differentiator for online retailers.

Why First-Time Delivery Matters

One of the biggest contributors to successful first-time delivery is accurate address capture. Getting this right creates a positive customer experience, while reducing the costs and disruption associated with address corrections, delays and failed deliveries.

Each failed delivery can cost as much as £14.35, once returns, re‑stocking and customer retention are taken into account, making fulfilment failure both costly and avoidable.

A Collaborative Approach to Smarter Delivery

Whistl Parcels have been Thompson & Morgan’s delivery partner since 2015. In recent years, the relationship has evolved into a more collaborative and proactive partnership, focused on improving how address queries are identified and resolved.

To tackle this challenge, Whistl Parcels implemented a SMART proactive delivery solution. This captures potential address issues in real time, validating consumer addresses as they arise and confirming the correct details directly with the carrier—helping to ensure successful delivery on the first attempt.

Real-Time Visibility Delivers Real-World Benefits

Live delivery status updates play a vital role in:

  • speeding up deliveries

  • improving the overall customer experience

  • reducing the need for repeat delivery attempts

  • lowering carbon emissions through fewer failed journeys

  • cutting the financial impact of inaccurate addresses

Results Within Two Months

Following implementation, the impact was immediate:

  • Over 3,000 address issues eliminated

  • 97% of address issues identified by Whistl Parcels

  • Issues resolved within four hours of the scan being applied

With address-related issues significantly reduced, Thompson & Morgan’s customer service team can focus on more complex enquiries, supporting a better, more consistent customer experience.

 

“When addresses are inaccurate or incomplete, 41% of deliveries are delayed, and 39% simply fail. The latter statistic alone is eye-watering: fulfilment failure is costly”

Loqate Provider of leading data management solutions