Providing a flexible fleet for a startup's sales team
A small fintech firm needed cars for three sales reps but didn't want to sign 3-year leases. We provided three executive hybrids on a monthly rolling basis. When one rep left, they simply returned the car with no exit fee. This saved the company £3,800 in potential contract cancellation costs. They now manage their entire fleet through our dashboard.
VaultFlow Finance needed reliable cars for their new sales team without the heavy weight of a 3-year contract. We provided a monthly subscription that lets them scale up or down as their headcount changes.
The challenge
The team at VaultFlow was growing fast in early 2024. They hired three sales reps to cover territories from Reading to Bristol along the M4 corridor. Local dealerships only offered long-term leases that required a £1,950 upfront deposit per car and a 36-month tie-in. This was a problem because startup roles can be unpredictable.
They didn't want to be stuck paying for a car sitting in the Station Road car park if a rep moved on. They needed a way to get their team on the road without adding thousands in long-term debt to their company balance sheet. The management was also worried about the admin time spent chasing three different insurance policies and maintenance schedules.
Our approach
We met with their operations lead, Simon, in January to look at their actual mileage needs. Most of their trips were under 45 miles, so hybrid vehicles made the most sense for fuel costs. We didn't suggest any complicated fleet software. Instead, we set up three simple accounts on our OHC platform.
We picked three silver 2023 hybrids from our fleet that were ready for immediate use. We handled all the registration and insurance details in-house. Our team delivered the vehicles directly to their office near Forbury Gardens so the sales reps could start their training with cars already in the lot. We kept the paperwork to one master agreement to keep their accounting clean.
The solution
We delivered three executive hybrid saloons with full maintenance and breakdown cover included. The company pays one flat monthly bill that covers the tax and insurance. We also gave them access to a digital dashboard where Simon can see the mileage and MOT status of every car in 30 seconds.
In May, we even arranged a temporary swap. Their lead rep needed more space for a week-long trade show in Birmingham. We swapped his saloon for a larger SUV on Friday afternoon and swapped it back the following Monday. This gave them the right tool for the job without a permanent upgrade cost.
Results
The flexibility paid off when one sales rep left the business in April. Instead of paying a massive early exit fee to a leasing company, VaultFlow simply gave us 5 days' notice. We collected the car, and their monthly bill dropped immediately.
Timeline
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January 2024Initial meeting at VaultFlow HQ in Reading
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February 2024Three hybrid saloons delivered and reps onboarded
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April 2024One vehicle returned with no penalty after staff departure
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June 2024Quarterly fleet review and SUV swap for trade show
"I was worried about the admin of managing cars for a new team. Off Hours Coding made it simple. We returned one car in April with zero hassle and no extra fees. It just works for us."