Today’s article looks at the benefits of working locally, so always start with a Google search ‘furniture hire company near me’!
There’s plenty of choice when it comes to choosing a furniture hire company to work with for your next event, occasion or project, and you’ll find other articles within our blog section about what to look for when choosing the best event furniture hire company.
In this article, though, we’re looking specifically at the importance of location.
You might think, of course, that working with a local company is a ‘nice-to-do’, as it’s always better to support local business, as we all know. However, when it comes to large event furniture rentals, the issue is bigger than just that.
Service
Without doubt, the most important reason to work with a local furniture hire company is to do with the service levels you’ll receive. And remember, things don’t always go 100% to plan – it’s always good to have a plan B, C, D & E. Imagine, therefore, hiring furniture for an event in Manchester from a furniture company based in London. Whilst they might have the products you want, it’s a long distance between these two cities. What happens if you have ordered too few of a certain product and need to hire some more at the last minute? Can they schedule ANOTHER trip into their busy logistics planning, or will you have to travel the hundreds of miles to fetch it in person?
It HAS to be easier working with a local or even regional based furniture hire company, that should be able to provide you with much more of a both proactive and reactive customer service when things go wrong. The last thing you want to be doing in the lead up to a busy event is worrying about your furniture requirements – let them look after this for you, so you can concentrate on what you do best!
Transport costs
Another main issue for dealing locally is that of cost. Some, of course, would say is this THE most important factor, and it’s certainly up there. Why? Because the delivery and collection costs of almost any hire company are determined by the mileage distance from your event venue to and from their distribution centre. In other words, the further the distance, the more expensive your transport charges will be.
Let’s take the example of your event in Manchester again, and working with a London furniture hire company will cost much more in terms of transport than if you were to deal with a Manchester furniture hire company. It stands to reason, doesn’t it! And, of course, if you’re thinking, ‘that’s fine, as I’ll pick up and return the equipment myself’, well that’s all well and good, but think about the cost of the fuel, the depreciation on your vehicle and the time you’ll spend driving. We know what we’d rather do…
Relationships
When doing business, relationships can count for a lot and will go a long way, especially when doing repeat business. How are these relationships built? By having mutual respect, and interest in each other’s businesses, and a willingness to engage and communicate over and above what you’d normally do. And, as a customer, it’s amazing what additional help you can get from a customer service representative if you’ve taken the time to invest into this relationship.
Working on a local basis, you’ll probably be able to go and visit the furniture hire company and maybe even take a look around their showroom, if they have one. You’ll certainly be able to meet your account manager or designated point of contact face-to-face – after all, it’s always good to put a face to the name! It’s much more difficult to do this if you are in Manchester and your supplier is in London…(zoom calls just aren’t quite the same!)
A local furniture hire company near me offers a greener solution
And last, but by no means least, let’s not forget the impact on the environment. Almost anything and everything we do has a carbon impact which we should be aware of, and transporting event furniture hire up and down the country is no exception. You should always be trying to minimise the carbon footprint generated by this sort of activity by working with a company local to you.
So, these are just a few points that you should consider when choosing a furniture hire company, specifically in regard to location. easyEventhire, for instance, is a national company but with a local presence through our strategically positioned distribution centres around the country.
This means that we’re local to you, with local sales teams, and affordable transport costs. We’re also conscious of our environmental responsibilities, and will always look to deliver to, and collect from, our nearest distribution centre, helping to minimise our carbon footprint.
Whatever event furniture hire you need, whether it’s table and chair hire, lounge furniture or just chairs for events, don’t hesitate to browse and place your secure order online 24/7 with the experts at easyEventhire. Our team is here to provide you with a seamless hire experience, so feel free to use our live chat service if you have any questions, and put your faith in the hands of the UK furniture rental experts!
