Family-owned Merseyside haulier SSO Logistics is creating 20 new jobs and is joining a national network that will boost its annual revenues by £1m. Tony McDonough reports

Merseyside haulier SSO Logistics is creating 20 new jobs as it becomes a shareholder member of a national logistics network and will boost annual revenues by £1m.

SSO, based in St Helens, will see a rise in the volume of work after joining the Pallet-Track network. Based in the Midlands, Pallet-Track uses a network of local hauliers for deliveries across the county. It cuts carbon emissions through ‘vehicle load optimisation’.

Family-owned SSO is located just five miles away away from Pallet-Track’s northern hub and will take over palletised deliveries in part of the network’s WA postcode area. It is creating 20 new jobs, 12 as a direct result of joining Pallet-Track.

These will include new administration and warehouse personnel at its Merseyside head office, as well as drivers to execute the Pallet-Track requirements. Peter Draper, one of SSO’s three directors, said the move was “strategic” and part of the company’s growth trajectory.

“Being so close to the northern hub and being able to reduce our carbon footprint was one of the main drivers for becoming a Pallet-Track shareholder member,” he said. “Apart from the new jobs it has helped create, it is also boosting our revenue by £1m.”

SSO was formed in 2013 and now provides a full range of national and international logistics services. It launched its freight forwarding division in February to provide a more international profile.

Pallet-Track chief executive, Caroline Green, added: “We continue to invest in our own delivery infrastructure and bringing in new ‘can-do’ shareholder members is part of that strategy.

“SSO has a lot of energy and ambition and an admirable track record of local, national and international delivery, credentials that are all-important at a time when volumes and demand for our services have never been higher. This increased demand is tempered with greater environmental expectation from the buying public.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, SSO also  introduced a local ‘buddy up’ scheme to help a struggling gym which had been forced to close its doors. It provided and delivered spin bike equipment and thousands of pounds worth of nutritional drinks to help the Hamma Academy of Mixed Martial Arts completely free of charge.

“We stayed open throughout the pandemic as we were classed as key workers distributing food to supermarkets and other retailers. It was tough but being busy kept us focused on those who were forced to close,” added Peter.

“After chatting with the gym owner Caroline Martin, who also runs a cleaning business that we use, she told me that she needed some more equipment, which we were able to donate along with several cases of hand gel which was needed to keep the gym COVID-safe when they were able to re-open.

“We also asked our customer Applied Nutrition if they could help and we were overwhelmed at the generous offer to donate £3,000 worth of protein for the gym’s new venture of a protein bar to make customer protein shakes.”