Food, beverages, tobacco and related products

Tender description

The key objective of the LNER catering logistics contract is to identify a supply partner who is intuitive to the needs of our customers and our business. LNER seeks to deliver an innovative and dynamic contract which provides a customer centric end to end catering solution, while optimising commercial performance in a continually evolving environment. In undertaking this process it is LNER’s desire that the end result will be an agreement with a supply partner who can not only facilitate, but can help shape the evolution of the catering proposition to exceed the expectations of our customers both now and in the future. This contract is to include both supply of catering products and associated logistics in order to deliver an exceptional service to our customers throughout the route that we operate within. London North Eastern Railway Limited (LNER) is a long-distance rail operator based in the UK operating on the East Coast mainline and running 156 services per weekday (157 on a Friday), 151 services on a Saturday and 118 services on a Sunday. LNER calls at 48 stations, 11 of which it also manages, serving key UK cities including London, Leeds, Newcastle, Edinburgh and York. Over 363 days LNER carries over 20 000 000 customers a year. LNER is committed to delivering an amazing customer experience through the combination of its talented people and the provision of high speed, high frequency services, which offer shorter journey times, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. The LNER fleet consists of 44 trains, 30 electric trains (MKIV) and 14 diesel trains (HST). In addition LNER are currently leasing an additional HST set from East Midland Trains. There is a significant change to the fleet arriving in 2019 with the introduction of the new Azuma train, 1 of the most advanced trains on the UK’s rail network. The new fleet of 65 Azuma trains will be introduced at the rate of 1 per week over the next 2 years alongside the existing fleet which will gradually be withdrawn as they are replaced. When complete the new fleet will provide an extra 12 200 seats for a new and expanded timetable. The fleet will increase capacity into London Kings Cross by 28 % during peak times. Whilst retaining overall strategic control, LNER will rely upon the supply partner to fully manage all aspects of the day-to-day logistical activities. All operational and financial relationships will be based on an open book policy encompassing partnering principles and the supply partner will have ultimate responsibility for their successful execution. The supply partner will have full responsibility for the delivery of the logistic services whether by directly employed or sub-contracted personnel. LNER are seeking a supply partner where the reliability of the basic operational performance is a given, and who thrive on supplying innovation coupled with a strong sense of commerciality to help to shape the future of the catering offer. In doing so, the successful supply partner will pre-empt our customer’s requirements in order to deliver a world-leading customer experience while driving commercial performance. LNER understands that getting the on-board catering proposition right is a key driver for customer advocacy. We continue to improve our commercial performance year on year, however we recognise the increasing threat of a more sophisticated and more varied platform retailer offering. We are therefore seeking a supply partner who can work with us in delivering insights and innovation in revolutionising the perception of the on-board catering experience. LNER measure their customer experience using Net Advocacy Score (NAS). This shows that our happiest customers will remain loyal to LNER, and will recommend us to their friends, family and colleagues. Using this data we can tell that catering availability and catering quality are valued very highly with our customers and are key contributors to building an amazing customer experience. LNER are committed to developing the catering offer to ensure a world class product and service offering for our customers. We wish our supply partner to play a large and intricate part in the development through innovation and by driving value throughout the supply chain.