1: When the Bollocks Hit the Container

“Bloody hell, they’ve classed our hinges as ‘furniture parts’ again!” I yelled at the customs letter, which demanded £2,800 for “luxury goods storage” – all because some desk jockey in Shenzhen ticked the wrong box. Dad’s face went whiter than a Sheffield snowdrift.

Then me mate Dave (our chain-smoking warehouse guru) slid a card across the counter: “CUC Freight. Liable to swear more than you. Ask for Sarah.”

How a Chain-Smoker, a Tea Addict & a Ex-Customs Bloke Saved Our Arses

Sarah (CUC’s Leeds-born logistics lass):
“Mike, your paperwork’s a proper car crash. Let’s get Mr. Zhang – he retired from Beijing customs in ‘08 but still dreams in HS codes. Oh, and tell Dave his plywood crate obsession is adorable.”

What Actually Happened:

• ▼ Customs delays: From “feels like bloody forever” → “quicker than a kebab shop queue at 2am”

• ▼ Costs: Saved “enough to finally fix the leaky roof” (Dad’s exact words)

• ▲ Customer tantrums: Went from “weekly hinge rage” to “one moany git last month”

Why CUC’s Office Smells of Yorkshire Tea & Shanghai Dumplings

Founder Li Qiang (who looks suspiciously like my Uncle Geoff) runs it like a “反叛物流帮” (rebel logistics gang):

1. The “Two Cuppa” Rule
   “If we haven’t shared a brew – builder’s tea for you, chrysanthemum for your supplier – we’re not done,” says Sarah, who once made a Shanghai factory boss drink Tetley’s.

2. Marmite-Level Straight Talk
   To Liverpool’s Organic Soap Co.: “Ship that lavender shite in July heat? It’ll melt faster than an ice cream van in the Sahara. Let’s redesign the crates.”

A Geordie, a Scouser & a Shanghainese Walk Into a Port…

No punchline – just CUC’s team teaching Newcastle Bike Co. how to negotiate tide times with a Ningbo dockworker named Lao Wang. “He called our manager a ‘flat-cap tosser’ in Mandarin. Brilliant,” grins owner Bob.

Fancy a Brew While We Untangle Your China Mess?

Li’s challenge: “Send us your worst shipping nightmare. If we can’t sort it over a cuppa (Yorkshire/普洱/instant – we’re not posh), next round’s on us. Deal?”

» [Chat to a Human (Who Actually Knows Port Schedules)]