“Trust defines brands and is earned, not bought.” This a headline from the Edelman Trust Barometer Special report[1] issued during the pandemic, where respondents said that trust is second only to price when purchasing a new brand.
For Whittan, a leading UK storage manufacturer celebrating 70 years as a trusted supplier of storage products and solutions, these findings reinforce their customer insights. Whittan research over the years has consistently shown that trust and an established reputation affect both purchase decisions and marketing efficiency.
Whittan are pacesetters in storage products and solutions. Many of their well-known storage brands have been around for decades, earning the trust of their customers and a reputation as a leading UK manufacturer and supplier. Whittan pioneered the first pallet racking system using a bolted rather than welded frame. They have industry-wide recognition of their manufacturing standards, locally and internationally.
Their storage products and solutions can be found supporting leading industry and household brands, businesses and organisations across sectors and industries, spanning the length and breadth of the UK. Many of their brands such as Link51, Apex and Polypal UK are ubiquitous in their markets, maintaining a reputation that is unparalleled in their sectors.
The brands have been refreshed over time and the products have kept pace with the demand and adaptation of storage and space. Throughout, Whittan have remained true to their mission to provide quality products and solutions to the storage and logistics industry.
Whittan are best known for their wide range of lockers, shelving and adjustable pallet racking solutions which they supply for a multitude of applications and specifications. From creating the space to house 13.5 million litres of Macallan single malt; storing defence equipment on board a Royal Navy submarine; protecting Stella McCartney’s couture archives; to providing secure storage lockers for offices, schools and gyms – they are present in warehouses, retail, stores, offices and organisations across industries and sectors.
As Whittan celebrates seven decades of expanding storage capabilities and maximising opportunities with Link51, it brings an outstanding range of trusted storage brands. These include Link51 and Apex, providing the design, manufacture and installation of racking and shelving products; HiStore, for mezzanine floors; market-leading display and storage solutions for retail sectors from Polypal UK and an extensive range of lockers and workplace products from Probe and Link Lockers. Storage Direct, the online retail destination for UK-manufactured storage products and solutions, stocks products for warehouse, industrial, office, retail and home environments.
However, the trust in Whittan does not rest solely on the reputation of their heritage storage brands. It also stems from their commitment to quality local manufacturing, sustainability and a move towards net-zero. All Whittan products are manufactured locally. They have an extensive UK-wide network where experts are on hand to help with queries and handle simple to full turnkey environmentally-efficient installations. This means that they are never far away from installation sites, eliminating delays and disruptions to timelines while cutting down on carbon emissions.
Earlier this year, Whittan launched a group-wide rebrand, consolidating all its storage brands, products and solutions within one unified approach to provide extended capabilities in storage.
Stephen Pickering, Whittan Group Head of Marketing explained the rebrand, “Our customers are at the heart of everything we do. It’s important to us that the trust we have earned over the decades is not lost. All our brands embody our values of integrity, accountability and honesty. By consolidating our brands, we have strengthened our innovative solutions, heritage and reputation.”
He concluded, “70 years on, we continue to build on our trusted reputation in the tradition first established at Link51’s original location at Brierley Hill, in the heart of England’s industrial ‘Black Country’. Across Whittan, we are committed to bringing the power of storage to help businesses large and small and make space work harder by providing the most innovative, flexible and future-proof storage solution possible.”
