How a 200-year-old luxury goods distributor modernised its delivery operations with MaxOptra

Like many businesses with a long and proud trading history, Farmiloes had built its success on deep customer relationships and an exceptional product offering. But as customer expectations around delivery evolved, it became clear that the technology underpinning its logistics operation needed to keep pace.

The business had an existing route planning system in place, but it was a legacy platform – expensive, complex to use, and limited in scope. It handled planning, but offered nothing in the way of driver tracking, digital proof of delivery, or customer communications. And with a significant price that for the planning tool alone, it represented a high investment for a relatively narrow return.

When Stephen Pantony joined as Operations Manager in October 2025, he quickly identified that a more modern, integrated solution could unlock meaningful gains – in efficiency, customer experience, and value for money. The opportunity was clear:

• Route planning required two separate sessions each day – an initial plan at 3pm and a second pass at 4pm – meaning loading couldn’t begin until around 4:35pm
• Without real-time visibility of drivers, customer service teams had to call drivers directly for updates, adding time and friction to every delivery query
• Responding to last-minute customer requests was difficult, limiting the team’s flexibility and occasionally meaning orders had to be declined
• Proof-of-delivery was entirely paper-based, creating administrative overhead and making audits more time-consuming than necessary
• With the launch of Farmiloes’ new direct-to-consumer brand, 34 St John, the need for precise time slots and Uber-style delivery tracking was becoming a commercial imperative

For a business with ambitions to grow – and a premium customer base with equally premium expectations – the case for change was compelling.

Stephen already knew MaxOptra. He had introduced the solution at a previous employer and was a committed advocate – so when he joined Farmiloes, it was the natural first call.

After reviewing what the incumbent supplier could offer (including an upgraded version of their platform), Stephen concluded that MaxOptra remained the stronger choice – not just on price, but on usability, functionality, support, and the quality of the overall package.

The switch to MaxOptra gave Farmiloes access to a fully integrated platform covering:

• Intelligent route planning and optimisation
• A driver app with digital proof of delivery – including photo capture and electronic signature
• Real-time driver tracking, accessible across the business
• Automated customer messaging, keeping recipients informed throughout their delivery journey
• Digital vehicle checks, replacing paper-based inspection records
• Aggregated reporting for operational oversight

This time around, Stephen also took advantage of MaxOptra’s implementation and training support. Working with MaxOptra’s implementation specialist Kim, Stephen was able to unlock features he hadn’t previously explored – including the live driver tracking view for the customer service team and the full suite of reporting tools.

“The Implementation Team showed me a few things I didn’t know… The implementation process made all the difference.”

– Stephen Pantony, Distribution Manager

 

Driver adoption has been a real success story. With MaxOptra’s intuitive app, the vast majority of drivers got up to speed quickly with zero issues – a testament to how straightforward the platform is to use, even for those picking up digital delivery tools for the first time.