07/05/2022
*PLEASE READ ON, DISCOUNT CODE OFFERING FOUND WITHIN*
To all our loyal customers,
Firstly, we would like to offer our sincerest apologies for any delays in responding to any outstanding emails or inquiries over the last few months, and for our somewhat ‘ghosting’ from our normal standard of service.
Percy’s has always striven to provide unique and fresh options, with monthly specials, competitions and freshly cooked meals to hopefully earn our place within the community as a well-earned treat for the many hard-working families, individuals and businesses alike, that we service each week.
While we must accept ultimate responsibility for this, there are factors outside of control that has largely meant, instead of focusing our time and attention in more positive areas of the business, we found ourselves for a number of months forced into a legal battle with a well-known ordering platform.
Why is that, you may ask? Did we do something illegal or unscrupulous? No, certainly not. Did we carry out our service in contradiction to any terms of service set out to us? No, not at all!
We were forced to initiate legal proceedings against said company, simply because a platform (with such vast resources and unimaginable financing behind it) decided to push a small independent to their near limits, ignoring all correspondence and every request to release neigh on 2 months’ worth of takings, that was rightly due to us, but more importantly, vital cash-flow being withheld from our business, when all businesses are already doing all they can to weather current circumstances.
The effects of which, initiated a domino effect, spreading across our entire chain of operations and carried financially damaging consequences; not only to our hard-working staff, but also other local independent suppliers who provide us with the fresh and local produce we take great pride in serving. Other local independents, who are equally doing all they can to stay afloat during an economically challenging period for all.
Within just the last year alone, the food delivery industry has experienced changes from multiple fronts (forcing all effected to react and adapt almost overnight) be it through the after effects of COVID, which saw an unprecedented boom in new food delivery services popping up all around us, to the pre-existing silent predators lurking in the background and ever-expanding dominance of the web giants (with their bottomless pockets to throw at fierce marketing campaigns to, attract, or more fittingly entrap customers within a small number of platforms) in effect, creating a new world of online real-estate that forces local independents to sign up and pay what their told, simply to ensure sustainability and a competitive edge.
That said, it is a double-edged sword, and we cannot entirely begrudge this change. It can equally be a platform to showcase yourself within a local area to those that may otherwise been completely unaware of your existence.
Therefore, to completely disregard such platforms would be entirely unfair and ultimately ignorant to the equally beneficial effects it can have to local businesses.
As a customer, you may find such platforms provide you with discounts, which the actual business you’re buying from is unable to do. In such circumstances, we certainly recommend going through these third parties. However, when these giants are unleashed upon us with no regulation or duty of care to the businesses they take on (often spending vast amounts of funding on overly friendly sales people who roll out the red carpet to initially get you signed up, then soon after swipe that carpet from under you to move onto their next victim and leave you with underfunded and neglected aftercare in the form of customer support.
What makes this entire ordeal as astonishingly frustrating as it has been, is the fact that every action and consequence that followed could have quite literally been avoided, if we had been provided with the simple ability to contact a relevant department, to clear up what was a fairly straight forward issue! All of the stress, hardship and negative effects it has carried, simply resolved through a billion pound operation providing, what we consider, to be a basic necessity where vital cash-flow within a business can be put at risk.
While we cannot name which particular billion-pound operation who decided to hold a small independent's vital cash-flow hostage. What we can say is, we have never experienced any issues from platforms such as JustEat, MKEats or The StarShip company, so make of that what you will…! 😊
Sadly, this saga is not yet entirely over for us, and we are continuing to fight while awaiting the frustratingly long processes that come with such things.
In the meantime, we would like to use this opportunity to ask all of our loyal customers to consider ordering from us directly. If you have a discount code that saves you money through any third-party platform, or if using this method provides you with some form of ease to your ordering experience, we absolutely hold no resent.
Although, if you are able to come to us directly and it doesn’t impact you, we would like to offer a reward in the form of a 10% discount for supporting a local independent in your community.
Simply use the discount code “ ” on the checkout page of an order placed directly through us.
To clarify, that is a hashtag symbol, followed by ‘INDEPENDENT’, all one word and case sensitive.
We would like to thank all of our loyal customer base for your continued support (some of whom have used us since our first day of opening over 10 years ago) and provide reassurance of our continued commitment to improve our service.
We have many exciting plans in the coming months from; adaptation / expansion upon our current offerings, drastic improvements to our delivery timings, and a return to providing regular excitingly delicious specials to look forward to each month.
If we have missed any emails, messages or calls from any customers with an outstanding query or still in need of a response, please do not hesitate to message us directly or give us a call on 01908568007 and we will get back to you ASAP.
Wishing you a fantastic (finally unrestricted) Summer, and a big thank you from all in the Percy’s Team x
