In just three years Myhill’s has set a precedent for excellent customer service and reliability in its locality
Cambridgeshire-based operator Myhill’s Minibuses has grown in leaps and bounds – from just one vehicle at its inception in 2016 to its current fleet of five vehicles.
Owners Steve and Jayne Russell originally had one 16-seater Mercedes Benz Sprinter working for their company Airport Lynx, which was quickly followed by a second when they acquired Myhill’s Minibuses.
Keeping the name Myhill’s Minibuses, the operator is a separate company from Airport Lynx but works out of its offices thereby keeping overheads and costs low.
A third 16-seater Mercedes Benz was bought, coachbuilt with an UNVI body and tables.
Transport Manager Claire Wombwell says: “All of our vehicles are executive coaches because we do a lot of business around Cambridge.
“After buying our third 16-seater we went bigger and now have a 25-seat Iveco Compa T and a 37-seat Yutong TC9.
“When we decided we wanted a bigger vehicle we went to Coach & Bus UK and tried lots of models. We heard lots of good things about the Yutong and liked it as we didn’t want to go too big. It’s a nice size and has the same executive feel that the other models have.”
Myhill’s’ most recent acquisition, the Iveco Compa + was bought to replace a 22-seater Mercedes Sprinter minibus with a trailer. “Not all drivers could drive it” says Claire. “We needed something big enough to take a large group with luggage and to cater for our larger groups of students. We had previously experienced excellent service from Mark Fenton and the team at UNVI.
“The aftersales care is good. It was a 25-seater with a nice amount of space in it, executive fittings and furnishings and it looked the right fit for us.”
Working alongside Airport Lynx the firm does a lot of airport transfers, mainly to Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted alongside days out to the coast, London and Oxford among others.
Educational work
The operator is based in Cottenham, just eight miles away from Cambridge, giving easy access to the business hub of the city and private education facilities.
The city is flooded with international students and Myhill’s works with numerous language schools to provide summer transfers. This involves picking the students up from the airport using any of the minibuses up the Yutong. The students go out on a number of day trips too – all lucrative work for Myhill’s.
The firm carries out a lot of education work – public and private. All of its vehicle are executive standard which can prove challenging for the muddier sports trips – the groups understand the need to keep the bus clean and generally bring along a spare pair of shoes (which is much appreciated). The firm has its own cleaning facilities on site – a jet wash, vacuum and cleaning tools.
Claire says: “We support the local educational settings by offering a bit of discount. We believe it’s important to partake in enrichment activities outside of school and we are very happy to help.
“Because we work for schools we get people asking us if a ‘school’ minibus is going to turn up. But we explain that all our minibuses are executive vehicles with full or part leather reclining seats, wi-fi and USB charging points.”
A mix of work
The 16-seat Mercedes Benz minibuses are the most popular size booked. The company only bought the Yutong last April, so it is expecting demand for it to be greater this year.
Claire says: “We had a really good summer last year and then we were busier in the winter than we expected. A lot of businesses round here have their head offices in London and we were busy taking people to Christmas parties throughout December.
“Then there are corporate trips, shuttles, some overnights to team training events. We even go as far as Cumbria and carry out the Three Peaks Challenge in collaboration with Challenge Central.”
The business breaks down as around 25% schools and educational fixtures, around 45% business and around 30% retail.
“We get a lot of customers calling up wanting a private trip. That can be anything from birthday parties, stag and hen dos, theatre trips, visits to Oxford, we’ve even completed a private ski trip to Switzerland.”
Myhill’s has five full time drivers and two extra drivers to cover busier times.
“We’ve got a really stable driver pool now,” says Claire. “It feels like we’re there.
“Recently we’ve had people coming via Stagecoach. Two drivers came via that route.
“We expect our drivers to be punctual, tidy, clean and offer the standards that we expect. They should turn up and treat the customer the way we treat them.
“We provide a service to customers and want to enhance their experience, not just get them from A to B. If you give them those finishing touches they come back.”
Drivers wear suits and ties for corporate work and a more casual uniform of polo shirts and jackets for school work.
The business grows
“It’s been really nice to see the growth of the business,” says Claire. “Although the business has grown organically a lot of the expansion has come through word of mouth.
“We did a mailshot at the beginning of the year to companies and educational establishments which also got results.
“With brokers, if we work for them, we often find that our customers come back to us directly in future – which we’re not asking them to do but they do remember our name.
“It’s really nice to see that repeat custom.
“Once customers have travelled once they do keep coming back and recommend us to their friends.
“There’s a family feel to the business and it reflects in our bookings. People are comfortable booking with us because we are still small enough to offer that personal touch.”
Claire goes on to explain that the main area of success over the last three years has been the customer service. She says: “It’s both the testimonials we receive and the compliments and comments that drivers on the road get.”
Already the company has a reputation as a market-leading corporate transport specialist. The management team is constantly working to improve the service offered and this is followed through by customer care.
“If companies book us regularly, we go out and see them and check that they are happy with the service we provide,” adds Claire. “We talk about anything we could do better, work out schedules and generally look after their needs.”
Private work
Myhill’s is also popular with small groups like the local Women’s Institute (WI).
“The WI has nice trips and always treats the driver really well,” says Claire.
“People are only onboard for a small portion of their trip but like to feel like they’re being well looked after.
“Lots of our customers are really kind and include the driver. The WI has recently been to Birmingham to a show at the Alexandra Theatre, garden centres, Hunstanton, the Saatchi Gallery. It always books a ticket for our driver as well if he wants to come.
“There’s a small group of fans who book a minibus to Old Trafford about three times a year. They always say “we’ve got an extra ticket if they want to come in.” Little things like that really matter to our drivers.
“One driver even ended up invited into a wedding!”
Claire went on to mention other moments that had stood out. “Recently we took a group of people to a funeral,” she says. “The minibus went from the company the deceased worked for as they wanted to take all the employees together, with the prior knowledge of what the journey was for we were able to brief the driver, ensure he was appropriately dressed with black suit and tie. It’s those small details that we believe in offering as standard.
“We even had bookings on Christmas Day. The drivers didn’t mind as it was only a small section out of their days. One carried out some shuttles taking doctors and nurses from the hospital and another took a group down to Heathrow.”
The future
Myhill’s also takes overflow work from a small number of local coach companies. Already its reputation is such that it could charge higher rates, but Claire explains that it can keep prices down because it doesn’t have the overheads the larger companies have and wants to create a balance that works for the customer and the business.
It is looking ahead to further expansion in 2020.
“We are looking at buying a sixth vehicle but haven’t decided what yet,” says Claire.
“We will sit down and work out what we need over the coming weeks during our year-plan meeting.”
In the meantime, the business continues to go from strength to strength, building on the respect of its customers with its core ethos of client care and its solid group of drivers.
