Decades old partnership between Scully RSV and Rum City Foods has seen both companies successfully grow together. Image: Scully/Rum City Foods
Decades old partnership between Scully RSV and Rum City Foods has seen both companies successfully grow together.
Rum City Foods, a Queensland based food distribution company, has experienced rapid growth in recent years and to meet new demands has turned to solution providers such as refrigerated truck and trailer specialist, Scully RSV.
Rum City Foods started as a family business in 1978 and continues to operate as one today.
“After many years, Rum City Foods has developed into a total food service solution provider,” said Scott McIntyre, general manager, Rum City Foods.
“We originally started with milk before branching out into cheeses, yogurts, soft drinks, and water. And as the business has grown, we now have over 8,000 lines under our roof.
“Our latest venture is into fruit and vegetables which has now classified us as a total food service provider. It has really put us on the map.”
Thanks to this expansion, Rum City Foods has to make additions to its fleet of trucks and trailers which distribute the food across a wide swath of Queensland.
This rapid growth required expansion across many facets of the business, from factory floor space to logistics, and Scully RSV stepped in to help with the logistical needs of Rum City Foods.
“We have grown at a rapid rate and our stock holding and variety have increased as a result,” said McIntyre.
“It’s also given us the capability to bulk buy and capitalize on full vehicle load discounts.”
Despite having a new facility to work the more than 8,000 product lines, the continued growth has also resulted in Rum City Foods purchasing even more land to cater to the future of the company.
The facility services as far south as Brisbane to Emerald in the West and as far north as Rockhampton.
“Our factory allows the chef’s and business owners to save time and put their total needs for the next day or week all through Rum City Foods, which saves them time and gives them peace of mind. “That’s what this new building has achieved for us,” said McIntyre.
“This helps customers secure volume and ensure customers get the best rate while we experience stock shortages. Having the space to facilitate that has helped us capitalize in the market and be a reliable source of deliveries.”
Since the pandemic died down, McIntyre said, the growth of the company has only increased.
“The business has exploded that much over the last two years we have had to purchase the land next door to facilitate stage two, our new fruit and vegetable division,” he said.
“We thought it would take five to seven years to experience the growth that we have experienced.”
As a Scully RSV customer, Rum City Foods benefits from the quality of vehicles suitable for premium produce transport. With electric standby units and an age of fleet under five years, the temperature control and features of a Scully RSV support the quality control required of Rum City Foods.
Scully RSV and Rum City Foods have cultivated the partnership for decades and McIntyre said this partnership has been critical to the development of his company.
“We are one of Scully’s longest lasting customers. They have been a part of our business since it was started in 1978,” he said.
“On top of that, when we branch out into new areas and tell Scully our requirements, they listen, they develop and move with our needs. The service and reliability are second to none and their customer service is on point.
“Rum City Foods would have struggled to be where it is today without the partnership with Scully RSV.”
McIntyre said Scully RSV’s continued innovations have also provided another layer of importance to the partnership.
“Scully RSV is evolving with their technology and are constantly building a stronger and lighter machine which provides a string of benefits, especially around fuel economy,” he said.
“For example, the technology they use in their walls allows for greater packing capacity, which has obvious benefits for us.
“Scully constantly works and develops and improves, and we reap the benefits of that. They have top level technology now and we believe they will continue to provide the cutting edge.”
McIntyre also praised Scully RSV’s hands on and personal approach to business, including an ability to help Rum City Foods meet almost immediate demand.
“If I get a new contract and need to add a trailer to the fleet ASAP, we can call Scully and have a staff member up there and bringing the solution back on site in quick succession until we can get out our own assets built,” he added.
“It allows us to expand at the drop of a hat.
“Scully allows us to take on new work which makes them a major part of our business. We talk almost daily, and they are a pleasure to deal with.”
As another example of how Scully RSV can address Rum City Foods’ needs, in quick time, coming from the distributors Rockhampton factory.
“We were experiencing rapid growth in Rockhampton and needed more logistics,” said McIntyre.
“We bought a semi-trailer and contacted Scully, who had the exact trailer solution we needed, which also helped with our overhead costs.
“This helped us to address the growth needs in the area and before long we had two B-double trucks going into Rockhampton every week.
“That has been an area of great savings for us.”
Originating in Brisbane, Scully RSV provides services Australia wide through key locations in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Townsville, and Perth.
The organization manufactures vehicles of superior workmanship ranging from utes to trucks up to 14 pallets in size. Scully RSV also offers a premium fleet of trailers for hire. Customers access a range of fleet options such as short- and long-term hire solutions, alongside new and used truck sales.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the partnership we have developed with Scully RSV,” said McIntyre.