Covid 19 – a message to the extended Whitco family
Maybe it’s my Italian heritage but I’ve always believed in the value of family in everything we do – at home or at work. Staying close, working things out together – and talking (always talking) are keystones of family life.
In work, as at home too. So, in these extraordinary times, I wanted to reach out to you and all of the rest our Whitco family – our staff, partners, customers, and everyone in the extended supply chain, that have supported our wonderful business for more than 25 years.
I’ve been working very hard over the last month to ensure that we safeguard the physical and financial well-being of everyone concerned, now and going forward.
We’ve probably all suffered during the Corona outbreak from a lack of clarity in messaging, so I want to spell out clearly what we will be doing.
We’re working now
The first thing to say is that while our premises are closed, our business is still there for you. Call our office today and you’ll find that we have connected a network of all our professionals working from home. Apart from my visits to collect post and do some office housekeeping, the premises will remain closed for the duration. Our phone, IT systems and accounts are all working seamlessly. All areas of the Whitco business will operate throughout the crisis – apart, of course, from the routine movement of people.
Emergencies
If you have a gas leak, a hot water failure, a malfunctioning fridge or freezer, or a similar serious problem call us, as ever, on 01832 735007 and we’ll be there for you
Keeping the family together
Suppliers
A lot of our emphasis going forward is in protecting all of our supply chain. We’ll be limiting our financial exposure while ensuring that our customers and suppliers are protected.
Customers
If you have paid a deposit on a project and we haven’t been able to complete it yet, your deposit is ring fenced and secure. As soon as we can, we will carry out a risk assessment and proceed.
The same thing applies to work in progress. We are contacting all our customers with individual plans to move things forward as soon as safe and practicable.
Our people and your people
We will proceed on projects as soon as we can be sure that none of our work threatens the well-being of our teams or our customers’ people.
Going forward
Our guiding principle throughout the outbreak is to be strong, to be smart and to be safe. And that goes for everyone in the extended Whitco family. Together we will emerge from this stronger and fitter to face the future challenges.
Away from business
Finally, let’s all remember that people will always come first before business. For my part, I’ve been committing a lot of time and effort to protecting those nearest and dearest to me. If you’re anxious, unwell or you’re caring for someone who is infected our thoughts and best wishes are with you in these difficult times.
If you’re feeling well, and you’re able, try and reach out to someone who needs help.
Keeping in touch
I’ll be in touch again but, for now, I hope that you all understand that wherever we can help, we will.
To contact us please email us at hello @whitcoltd.com, phone or keep an eye on our website (whitcoltd.com) for updates.