Hilary Devey – Honorary Degree – University of Leicester

A short clip of Hilary Devey receiving and responding to the presentation of the Honorary Degree (Doctor of Laws) from the University of Leicester. Hilary Devey is a businesswoman and entrepreneur whose company, Pall-Ex, revolutionised the distribution of small freight loads. Set up in 1996, Pall-Ex was founded on the sale of Devey’s house when she could not generate financial interest in her business model, which involved collecting individual pallets from customers into a hub from where they could be delivered next day. Before the launch of Pall-Ex, there was simply no cost-effective way to move a pallet of freight around the country. Big loads could justify a lorry, small stuff could go by courier, but there was a gap in the middle which Pall-Ex filled. The company now shifts 10000 pallets every night, has a turnover of nearly £100 million and recently expanded its operations into Italy. The Pall-Ex ‘hub’ is a specially built unit in Leicestershire which not only has state-of-the-art facilities but also has been designed to minimise the environmental effect. As Chief Executive of the UK’s number one palletised freight distribution network, Hilary Devey is an inspiration to entrepreneurs everywhere. She is also a tireless campaigner for charity, a popular motivational speaker and now adds TV presenting to her skills. In 2008 Devey returned to her Lancashire roots in Channel 4’s The Secret Millionaire and she followed this in March 2010 with a series for Channel 5 called …
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