Transparent, reliable logistics: why Haan works with Bottomline

Introduction

De Haan Minerale Oliën (De Haan Mineral Oils, DHMO) is a family business that over its 65-year history has grown to include a network of almost 500 fuel stations in the Netherlands and Belgium, under four different brands including its own: haan. 115 of those stations are staffed and operated using two successful, high-quality shop formulas: Tony’s Street Food and Tony’s Coffee & More..

The challenge

Rick Verhulst, Head of Fuels & Cards: “Our strategy is very much about combining various commercial activities: fuel sales, but also high-quality food service outlets, car wash facilities… That’s our core business, and that’s what we’re good at. Ensuring timely, well-planned fuel transports is another discipline, that would take up a lot of our time and that we would rather leave to specialists.”

Why Bottomline?

“Working with Bottomline means we can leave the entire planning process to them. They have access to our real-time inventory and sales data and schedule deliveries across our network. And we in turn can see exactly what deliveries and voumes have been planned, so we can answer any queries from our fuel station operators straight away.”

An added advantage: since DHMO does not need its own fleet of fuel trucks and drivers, the costs of logistics are entirely variable. So it’s easier to scale up or down the logistical operations, responding to fluctuations in sales volumes or the number of fuel stations to be supplied.”

The results

In Verhulst’s experience, it’s a smooth cooperation that normally doesn’t require any further interventions. “The most important thing for us is that deliveries are scheduled efficiently and our inventories don’t drop below crucial levels. We periodically sit down with them to review the whole process. And in the event of any complications, we can quickly reach our regular planners to Bottomline. They’re a solid partner we can rely on.”