We’re not going to fib to you, moving house costs money. But there are ways to cut those costs down to size without putting your stuff, your house or your lower back in danger. Here’s how.

Book your removals firm early (and pick a good day)

Any removal firm worth its salt knows where its vehicles are going to be a week from now. If you find a removal firm that has nothing to do next week, you’ve got to ask yourself why. Removals firms are busy and the price can go up the shorter the notice. Book your removal team as early as possible to get the best price.

If you can, be flexible on the day you move. Friday is the most popular day for moving as it leads nicely into the weekend. For some firms, this means Friday is also the most expensive day to move. See also; bank holidays and the days before and after bank holiday weekends.

Moving on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday can save you a good deal of money.

Once you’ve got your movers booked in, you need to plan access at both ends. Speak to your neighbours and ask if they’d mind moving their cars for the day to make life easier for everyone. Paying for their parking and getting them a decent bottle of wine as a thank you will still be cheaper than paying for parking tickets or fines that comes from lack of access.

It’s also worth remembering that your move will take longer the further away from your front door your movers have to park. Most removals firms charge by the hour so it’s in your financial interests to make sure they’ve got adequate access to your property.

Get rid of as much stuff as possible

It makes no sense at all to pack, transport and unpack any items that you’re not going to use at the new house. Think of the space, weight and energy every item will take to transport. Your stuff really needs to earn its place on that removal truck. Further more, do you really want to start off life in your new home with unwanted clutter around?

Time to de-clutter? Image credit Wiki Commons/Jorge Royan

Time to de-clutter? Image credit Wiki Commons/Jorge Royan

As soon as you know you’re going to be moving, begin methodically working through each room, getting rid of items that fit any of the following criteria.

• Items that haven’t been used or worn in the past six months (excluding items that don’t get regular use, like your best suit or electric carving knife).

• Things that exist in duplicate. If you’ve got more than one of it, ditch the one that is oldest. Obviously we don’t mean things that are useful to have in multiples, like drinking glasses or socks, but items like coffee machines, DVD players and power tools. You may even be able to recoup some money by selling these items on eBay or Amazon if they’re still in good condition.

• Stuff that’s broken. You tell yourself you’re going to get it fixed, you just need a spare day. Good luck taking advantage of all those spare days you’ve got coming up now you’ve got a new house to live in. If in doubt, see criteria #1. If it was that important you’d have got it fixed by now.

We’re by no means saying you should throw away sentimental items, we just don’t want you to have to move things that you should really have thrown away by now. Be honest with yourself when considering if something is worth packing.

Shopping smart is important too. In the run up to the move, minimise the amount of stuff you need to transport. If you’re moving house in a week, do you really want to be buying a family pack of baked beans this week? Downsize your normal pack sizes to ensure you’re not transporting half-used washing powder and open boxes of cereal.

Get rid of all perishables before you move. There’s just no point risking the mess. We pride ourselves on moving your stuff with care, but if you’re going to start packing eggs in your kitchen box, you’re sort of asking for it.

If after careful consideration you remain in doubt, do yourself a favour and throw it out. There is one exception to this rule. Keep this stuff. It’s really useful.

Bedding

Bedding makes really good packing material for fragile items and when you get to your new home, you can use it for protecting bannisters, architraves, and counter tops when moving in and unpacking. If you plan on decorating, old bedding is great for covering carpet and furniture.

Boxes

You’ve got two choices here, let your removal firm provide the boxes or source your own. Sourcing your own can be handy if you’re not doing a big move and don’t have anything particularly expensive or fragile to move. This is especially true if you’re using a man and van service for a small move.

For big moves where you’ve got a lifetime’s worth of treasure to transport, we’d strongly recommend using professional moving boxes. We provide packing boxes at very reasonable rates (we would say that though, right?), but we also happen to think using professional standard packing boxes is a money saving choice. Using the right boxes can make packing easier and quicker, especially if your removals firm are doing the packing for you. There are also insurance implications of transporting items in boxes that you’ve sourced yourself.

That said, if you do want to source your own boxes, here are some tips from the professionals.

• Check the boxes are dry before taking them. Even a slight bit of damp can be problematic once the box is full. And by problematic, we mean the bottom might fall out of it.

• Check that they are spider-free too. Especially true if the boxes were used for fruit. Spiders can be problematic on moving day too.

• Reinforce all boxes, even sturdy feeling ones, with gaffa tape.

• Two small boxes are better than one big one. You’re getting twice the amount of reinforcement and coverage for the same amount of volume. This also prevents over-filling of boxes.

Pay for packing

This sounds counter-intuitive when we’re trying to help you save money. It also sounds like exactly the sort of thing a professional removals company that offers a packing service would say, so don’t take our word for it. Here’s what other people say about letting the professionals do the packing.

“Long distances and furniture stacked together heightens the risk of damage. Consider paying your removal company to do some of the packing for you, particularly for bulky items like white goods and furniture or fragile items. It might seem like an extravagant luxury, but they know what they’re doing, and it can be a big time saver too. – The Scotsman

When asked if £300 was a fair price to have everything packed, here’s what some of The Guardian’s readers said (we don’t charge that much, by the way).

“They didn’t break anything and were very very good value for money in the respect that with a bad back I literally did not lift a finger.” – Guardian readers

This guy was very pleased with his choice to leave it to the professionals.

“Picture the scene: it’s 8:30, you awake, have a nice breakfast in your normal non-packed house, then a team of packers turn up and you go out for lunch (your only getting in the way so no need to hang around), you go for a nice relaxing walk afterwards and return at 3pm, it’s done, whole house packed and in the back of a lorry.

This is an exact description of how my last move, 6mths ago, went. My wife had a hard time persuading me it was worth it but I’m glad she did, I’m never packing myself again.”- Guardian Readers

Rightmove (the website you’re now sick of after months of over-usage) also agrees that letting the professionals do the packing is a good idea.

“If you’ve opted for the protection and convenience of having the team pack for you, help them out by getting organised – the faster your team can pack up, the quicker you can be on the way and the faster you can be ready to unpack at the other end.” Rightmove.com

Letting your removal team do the packing means we can get you moved and unpacked in less time. Since we charge by the hour, this can often result in a saving for our customers. It also means all of your stuff is fully insured. We can’t always insure a move if the packing has been carried out by third parties.

Download 08 Wizard for your phone

So you’ve moved house and now it’s just the small matter of unpacking your stuff, finding the kettle (pack a separate kitchen box and put it on the truck last so you can get it at the other end), moving over all of your bills and changing your address. We all know that no matter which tariff you’re on, your mobile company is going to sting you for those 08 numbers. And we all know that your bank is going to keep you on hold for at least three Mumford and Songs songs.

08 Wizard can’t do anything about ubiquity of Mumford and Sons, but they can make 08 numbers free to call. It’s a free app that will 100% save you money in the weeks after a house move.

Change locks and alarm code

Have you ever wondered who knows your alarm code or has a copy of the keys to your home? Do you remember the alarm code from any of your previous properties? Chances are it was something memorable. You’d be amazed at just how many people don’t bother to do it, even though it’s entirely feasible that the previous owners made copies of their keys and gave them to the neighbours for security reasons. We’re not saying your new neighbours are going to rob your house, but it makes sense to change the locks. You can always give them a copy once they’ve earned your trust.

Remember to change your locks. Image credit Wiki Commons

How does this save you money? It doesn’t really, because the chances of an evil neighbour or former inhabitant using their old key and alarm code knowledge to burgle you is very low, but if it does happen, you won’t be insured. Surely the extra peace of mind and knowing you are fully, properly insured is worth the money.

Kiwi Movers provide a range of support services to businesses in London and the south east. One particularly interesting area we specialise in is supporting concierge service providers in delivering their service, but what exactly is a concierge service?

London Concierge Jobs and Duties

Concierge services and lifestyle managers take care of the important tasks that their clients simply don’t have time to do. They are here to help busy individuals make more of their time and run their life as efficiently as possible.

London Concierge services are typically used by busy professionals, those who do a lot of travelling and people who split their time between two locations. The concierge service providers will manage many aspects of their client’s life, from organising travel, arranging deliveries and even booking dinner and making hotel reservations.

Do you require or provide concierge services in the London area? To find out more about how we assist concierge service providers and how we might be able to help you, give us a call on 020 8877 9682*.

Removals and Related Services for Concierge Professionals

You might wonder how a luxury service such as a concierge and a no-fuss service like a removals firm would work together. But it’s actually quite obvious when you think about it. We’re experts at moving stuff carefully and safely. We work quickly and we’re flexible. These qualities are exactly the same as those required to fulfil a comprehensive concierge service. Clients need things doing quickly, without fuss and with discretion. We’re not the people to go to for exclusive dinner reservations, but if you’ve got a piece of antique furniture that needs moving, give us a shout.

We come into our own when our concierge client requires removals, shipping, excess baggage delivery, cleaning or logistical support. Our reputation as trusted, professional and no-nonsense movers means our colleagues in the concierge industry know we can deliver.

On the Job with a London Concierge

Friend of Kiwi Movers Vicky Silverthorn owns You Need a Vicky, a London concierge service specialising in servicing high profile individuals, including a number of celebrities. Here she explains what she does and how she does it:

Vicky and Kiwi Movers work together on various concierge accounts.

“We offer high level professional organisation services for people who have busy lives and need a hand to implement practical systems and process into their lives. We help create streamlined and efficient homes and we declutter and organise in order for people to enjoy their homes again.

“We help people move home, we pack personal effects with discretion, we unpack homes after a move, methodically, aesthetically but with practicality at the forefront of our thinking. We help families get organised when they are having a baby. We declutter homes and rooms which simply have too much stuff. We juggle kitchens to make them efficient. We design furniture and advise on storage.

“Our typical clients are busy families, whether it’s because they work or just have hectic lives. Anyone who likes to be organised and wants that feeling of calm in their home but hasn’t got the time or inclination to do it themselves.

“We work with Kiwi to ensure our clients get a smooth move from start to finish. It means we are all on the same side and can literally take the stress away from a move. The client could potentially leave their home for a couple of days and come back to a completed and unpacked, (organised) home that not only looks good but actually makes sense.

“With my sister company You Need A PA we can also cover every aspect of the admin side also. It’s the whole package.

Run Your Next House Move like a Concierge

Concierge services don’t match every budget and many people simply don’t need a full service concierge. But almost everyone we know would love to inject a bit more organisation and efficiency into their lives and live as if they had an extra pair of hands helping out. While we can’t magic up that pair of extra hands, we can offer some of our experience and knowledge earned from working alongside a number of London’s top concierge service providers to help you live like you’ve got your own concierge, especially when it comes to moving house.

1. De-clutter

Vicky has one piece of advice for anyone moving home in the near future.

“If you are decluttering yourself then start early and do little by little. Work on a small area of the home each week and start a few months before your estimated move date – almost as soon as you know. You don’t want to take belongings you don’t need with you and you don’t want to pay to move things unnecessarily.

2.Get Good Quality Boxes

Once you’ve de-cluttered, you need some decent boxes. It may be tempting to nip to your local Tesco for some spare cardboard boxes, but these won’t do for everything. Electrical equipment, breakables and anything you wouldn’t happily pack in a suitcase to take on holiday deserves a good quality box. Check out our guide to moving boxes for more information.

3. Clean as You Go

Cleaning just isn’t fun, especially when you’ve got other jobs to do, but if you clean your stuff before you pack it, you’ll save a lot of hassle when you come to unpack. The last thing you want to do is to bring dust and dirt from one house into your next one.

4.Pack Like a Pro

We always recommend letting the professionals do the packing and indeed, we offer a comprehensive and flexible packing service. This can save time, cut costs and more importantly, ensures that everything is insured during the move. Self-packed boxes are often uninsured. If you do elect to pack your own stuff, try to pack as logically as you can to save time at the other end. Use newspaper to protect anything breakable and avoid over-filling boxes, especially the big ones. You often don’t know how heavy a box is going to be until you realise you can’t pick it up, or worse, the bottom falls out (see tip 2).

5. Keep a Checklist

There’s no denying it, moving house can be very stressful, even if you’re super organised. Minimise that stress by working to a checklist. There are plenty of jobs that need doing aside from the physical moving of your stuff. These are the sort of things the concierge in you will enjoy taking care of, provided you’re organised; council tax, broadband, phone, insurance – these things all need updating when you move house. Our end-of-tenancy checklist has some great tips for moving out of a rented house, but is also applicable to people selling their own place.

Research conducted by Kiwi Movers has found that two in five Britons alter the way they speak when communicating with tradespeople. Over half of men said they’ve done the “tradesmen voice” at least once, with blokes who work in the financial industry most likely to slip up. 19% of women said they’d done it too.

London Movers Less Likely to Hear “Tradesman Voice”

Thankfully as a London moving firm, we’re less likely than our mates in the trades up north to encounter this quirk, as northerners are most likely to do it.

Our study of more than 1,000 people found that 38 percent of us who do change the way we speak to tradespeople do it because they’re trying to “connect.” As a firm of removals professionals who absolutely love meeting new people, we often wonder if that guy moving the antique sideboard from his Chelsea townhouse really does call a cup of tea a “brew” or whether he’s just trying to speak our language; either way, we’re happy to be offered a drink.

The habit of speaking in a different voice is known as bidialectism. It happens when people try to fit in with those around them. In the case of ‘tradesmen voice,’ this most commonly affects men, people living in the North West and those in finance.

Who is most likely to put on a tradesman voice?

By location

North West – 48 percent

West Midlands – 45 percent

East Midlands – 44 percent

South East – 42 percent

North East – 40 percent

By profession

Finance – 47 percent

Creative industries – 43 percent

Education – 42 percent

Health and social work – 40 percent

Business services – 41 percent

How we change how we speak for tradespeople

When we asked our respondents to tell us the main way in which they change their speech, over half said it was a matter of altering their vocabulary. 21% said they pronounce words differently when speaking to tradespeople, while 16% said they hammed up their own dialect. 4% said they didn’t know exactly how they changed the way they speak, but were sure they did it.

Linguistics expert Enna Bartlett from marketing firm Venn Digital explains why we are so keen to modify our speech.

“The way in which you talk is known as ‘register’. People tend to vary their register based on the purpose of what they’re doing or the social setting they are in. This is called ‘accommodation.’ You can over-accommodate though. If you change how you speak too much then the person you’re speaking to will notice that that’s probably not your normal way of speaking. Quite often over-accommodation can come across as patronising.”

Director of Kiwi Movers director Regan McMillan believes most tradespeople notice when a customer is changing their speech. “When someone isn’t using their natural voice, it’s actually quite easy to spot, even if you’ve never spoken to them before. Our movers have noticed it happening and don’t take offence, but it really isn’t necessary for people to change how they speak just because they’ve got tradespeople visiting.

“We’ve got chartered accountants, a geologist and qualified nurses working in our removals teams, so they’re relatively well educated. There’s really no need to dumb it down for our team, or indeed the majority of tradespeople, although we really don’t mind whether you call it a brew or a cup of tea, we’re just grateful for the drink.”

Once that final box is through the door, it’s hard not to immediately begin planning how you’re going to make that new place a home. Often all it takes is a lick of paint to get the homely vibes flowing, but if you’re planning something a little more intensive for your next place, you’re going to need a bit of inspiration and know-how.

We love seeing people get joy from their new homes and we’re often privileged enough to be the first through the door with them as they start a new chapter in their lives – and as we offer our own interior design support services we’re always keen to hear what they’ve got planned, so to help get those creative (and practical) juices flowing, here’s our nine favourite renovation and interiors bloggers.

You Need a Vicky

Vicky Silverthorn is a professional declutterer and organiser with a unique professional background. Prior to starting her business and blog, she toured the world with high profile musicians, such as Lily Allen, helping to keep highly complex tours on the road and in ship shape.

Her blog is chock full (but not in an untidy way) of tips, hacks and inspiration for living a clutter-free life. Ideal to check out before your next move.

Website

Twitter

Minimal Home

If minimalism is your thing, John Rice is your man. His blog is the authority on living the minimal life, whether it be at home, at work or on your wrist (he even writes about watches). Minimalism isn’t just about hiding books away in a slick ottoman, it’s about organising your life in a way that removes obstacles and celebrates simplicity. For ideas and advice, plus links to products that fit the minimalist bill, this website is worth checking out.

Website

Twitter

Gh0st Parties

Gh0st Parties is the brainchild of Kate, a Glaswegian blogger and interiors enthusiast who is so stylish she doesn’t even need a surname. The site is a charming and engaging collection of ideas, concepts and looks, all presented in a loving and original way. For style inspiration in the form of domestic mood boards, this blog is ideal. In fact, give yourself a couple of weeks to digest all of the great ideas on here – from quirky upcycled storage ideas to simple restoration projects -before you start any new projects.

Website

Twitter

Well I Guess This Is Growing Up

This journal style blog is great if you want to see what a complete home renovation looks like from the inside. There’s a bit more perspiration than inspiration in this one as editor Karen documents each step of her renovation journey meticulously, offering practical advice and “this is how I did it” encouragement. It’s an invaluable resource, with great money saving tips and solid advice on security and all the other practical stuff you forget to consider when you’re getting giddy about over-sized lamps. One to come back to again and again.

Twitter

ADP Interiors

ADP is the design and build practice of Andrew Dunning. Andrew’s aim is to deliver your dream home at an affordable price and his blog is a great place to start for ideas and inspiration. Whether it’s remodelling, renovating or just a home makeover, Andrew is an experienced professional with a point-of-view worth hearing. His blog is high level, dealing with technical issues as well as style ideas, but it’s delivered in an easy-to-understand manner.

Website

Twitter

Lucy Loves Ya

A fun and relaxing read, this blog is all about trends, ideas and ways of having fun with interiors. It’s a cacophony of colour here and the site is bound to provide some inspiration for doing up a tired house or flat. You’re not going to get technical advice on digging out a cellar, but you’ll get the benefit of Lucy’s eye. She’s always out and about with her camera, capturing sights that can be translated into interiors concepts and projects.

Website

Twitter

Ellie Tennant

As a professional interiors journalist and stylist, Ellie knows her stuff and has travelled the globe gathering style inspiration for us lot back home. She specialises in distilling the essence of a look or style, enabling her readers to devise their own interpretation in their own homes. She’s got a fine eye and a wonderfully engaging writing style that makes planning a home renovation project feel more fun that it should do.

Website

Twitter

Ikea Hackers

This is very clever indeed. It’s a fun blog that gives you step-by-step instructions for remodelling those old bits of Ikea furniture. Turn a bookshelf into a cat house or a raised planter for your garden. The site is brimming with great concepts and is ideal for anyone looking to optimise their space or to simply put a boring old Billy shelf to better use.

More

Twitter

Steph Modo

The strapline “where practical meets pretty” is something we at Kiwi Movers are more than happy to buy into! Step’s blog is a great source of inspiration for living an optimised, space-efficient existence without sacrificing on aesthetics. Smart storage ideas compete for screen space with ingenious furniture modifications.

Website

Twitter

Private tenants are losing £40 million* per year through deposit disputes with landlords, a Kiwi Movers survey can reveal. Over the past five years, 52% of deposits were either fully or partly withheld by landlords, most of whom claimed insufficient cleaning or the need for minor repairs as the reason for withholding the depost. That’s the equivalent of more than 400,000 deposits a year, or £200 million over the five-year period*.

Over a quarter (28%) of people surveyed said their landlord delayed returning their deposit despite making no deductions, while just 20% said their deposit was returned swiftly without issue.

The importance of end of tenancy cleaning

Avoidable issues such as insufficient end of tenancy cleaning and minor repairs are the biggest reasons landlords give for withholding tenancy deposits, accounting for 62% of all tenancy deposit disputes cited in the study.

Not only will a professional end of tenancy cleaning service give you peace of mind that your property is up to scratch on check out, but a professional invoice is likely to act as a deterrent for any rogue landlords that may otherwise make frivolous claims against a deposit.

You are most likely to lose your deposit if you are;

• Tenants living with friends
• Students in rented house
• Tenants living with partner or spouse

Moving house in London? – Here’s what you need to know about getting your deposit back

London is the capital of deposit disputes, with people living there twice as likely (11%) as the national average (6%) to have their whole deposit withheld, while those aged between 18 and 24 living with friends are the type of tenant most likely to lose out.

Amy Williams, a Digital Producer from Southampton took her London landlord to court and won after he withheld her deposit. “It was only a six month contract and the landlord tried to make us pay for problems that were in the flat when we moved in.

“The court said it was wear and tear, ordered the landlord to return our deposit and told him that wear and tear was something he’d have to get used to. The landlord also choose to hold the court session not in London but on the south coast. But luckily because we won he had to pay for our train tickets too. We were really poor at the time too!”

Tenancy dispute hot spots:

• London
• Scotland
• West Midlands
• North East

The most common reasons for lost deposits:

• Minor repairs required – 33%
• Cleaning required – 29%
• Items missing from inventory – 19%
• Unpaid bills – 16%
• Other – 3%

Kiwi Movers director Regan McMillan said: “There’s been a steady increase in people hiring us to perform end-of-tenancy cleaning alongside our removals service. It’s not that these customers can’t clean for themselves, but a number of them feel that having an invoice from a professional company is the only way to counter what they see as the inevitable attempts to withhold part of their deposit. Our customers tell us they feel vulnerable unless they have paperwork to prove they left the property in an acceptable state. Moving is stressful enough without having to worry about having your deposit unfairly withheld.”

Worst reasons for withheld deposits

Toilet blockage mystery – “It was definitely clear when we left. If it was blocked, it must have been someone from the lettings agency that did it. However, it was £75 from a £1,000 deposit, so I didn’t bother challenging the landlord.”

Burglary damage – “The house had been broken into before we moved in. We gave up reporting the damage to the window that was caused, even though it prevented us from fully opening it. When we moved out, the landlord tried to blame us for the same damage.”

Detergent residue – “I hired a professional cleaning company because I didn’t have time to deep clean the apartment myself. The letting agency still deducted £35 from my deposit because there was detergent residue inside the detergent tray.”

References

*Based on 4.2 million privately rented households (ONS figures, reference 1) paying the equivalent to one month’s UK average rent of £761 (LSL Property Services figures, reference 2) and 6% (252,000) of those households losing their entire deposit, equivalent to one month’s rent.

**Kiwi Movers surveyed 1,034 UK adults between the 20th January 2015 and 11th April 2015.

Reference 1

http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/detailed-characteristics-on-housing-for-local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/short-story-on-detailed-characteristics.html

Reference 2

http://www.lslps.co.uk/documents/buy_to_let_aug14.pdf

The first quarter of 2015 has been very busy for us with new staff and some sad goodbyes to those leaving. As a growing business change is inevitable and at Kiwi we embrace change for making our business better. One of the most noticeable changes is our brand new website!

It’s been a few months in the making with new images and working to ensure it is responsive across all screen types from smart phones to desk top computers. There are a few wee bugs, but we are pretty happy with how it is looking. We hope you enjoy it and find it easier to use and easier to see the different services that Kiwi offers.

Until our next post – enjoy Spring! :-)

On Thursday the 7th Nov, the management team from Kiwi attended the Wandsworth Business Awards. This was the second time that we have been finalists in the best SME (small, medium size enterprise). Unfortunately we didn’t manage to win, but we had a great night and the fact we have made the finals two years in a row shows the excellent work that all our team does, both in the office, but also the fantastic work that all our teams do working with our clients. 

The great thing about entering business awards is that it forces you to have a hard look at your business to see what is great about your business, but also areas that you could do better. It also forces you to dust off the business plan and to review your goals and what you have achieved. 

We may not have won this year, but we are fortunate to work in the Borough of Wandsworth which has a council with a very positive attitude to business. The Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce are also a very proactive organisation, with networking on an almost weekly basis and well run events such as the Wandsworth Business Awards. 

We’ll keep working hard and working to improve our business, but with a great team we know that winning isn’t far off!

Recently we have been doing some work for the nice team at the Handel House Museum here in London as they refurbish Handel’s old home. You can read all about the recent work and the move we did by clicking on the link here.

http://hendrixathome.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/post-52-on-the-move/

Yesterday marked the 100th anniversary of the start of WW1. The conflict would rage for 5 years, across three continents and claimed some 37 million died. Beside the obvious devastation the war also created the conditions which gave us WW2 and shaped the modern world.

In New Zealand and Australia, WW1 and specifically, Gallipoli, is regarded as the birth of these two nations. It was from this conflict that they started to see themselves as distinct from the UK and took on their own unique personalities and independent foreign policies.

One can not help to be moved though by images of the poppies at the Tower of London which creates an incredibly evocative image and shows the sheer number of British dead in WW1.

On a personal level, my family was deeply involved in the war. My Great Grandfather George (standing) and his younger brother John (sitting) both signed up early on and fought in Gallipoli with the ANZAC’s where both where wounded in 1915. John died within months of his wounds and George died from complications of his wounds in 1920. Another relative fought in Palestine and the Middle East as an Engineer, surviving the war, while another died on the Western Front. Fortunately New Zealand has kept a vast array of records and I have been able to collect the war records for the two brothers below, including their medical documents, giving a fascinating snap shot of the past and indeed a glimpse of what my relatives went through.

As we remember the tens of thousands of other young men who died, it is easy with the hindsight of time to be critical of the decisions made that would prove so costly, but in reality no one could possibly have envisaged their consequences. Instead, I believe we should study the past and apply these lessons to the present, but also be grateful for the sacrifices made and for the freedoms that we in the western world are able to enjoy as a result. We should also be grateful that in an uncertain world we still have young men and women who are prepared to defend our interests and freedoms in far of lands.

Do take the time to learn more about WW1, if you don’t already know your own family’s history with the war you may discover some interesting facts.

Lest We Forget

Regan McMillan

Managing Director, Kiwi Movers

When you secure your goods in self storage or containerised storage you do so expecting them to be safe and secure. With our Kiwi Storage we ensure that your goods are constantly under surveillance with restricted access. 

If your goods are stored in our containerised storage, the container is sealed with the date on the tag. Our systems ensure that all information is recorded when entering your goods into storage, including any oversize lane items. Our modern and state of the art container warehousing has 24/7 surveillance by camera and includes fire protection systems. 

If you choose to use our self storage in battersea, Surrey, Chelsea or Twickenham you will have 24/7 access with your own lockable unit. To access your storage unit we will provide a combination lock and access code to enter the facility whenever you need to. Recently our Battersea location underwent a further upgrade with 8 new security cameras, including HD, and number plate and facial recognition. This also includes the lifts. 

It is our aim to ensure that no matter what you are storing, from household goods, business items to antiques, you can feel secure in the knowledge that your items are well looked after as a premium removals and storage company in London.

To learn more about storage options, please call us on 020 8877 9682*

Living Medicine has recently won an Award of Merit from the Conservation Foundation’s ‘Gardening Against the Odds’ competition, for their work to educate people in the London Borough of Newham on how to use plants and food for health and wellbeing.

Quick survey

We are always trying to improve our services so we have put together this quick survey.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on the following.

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When were not just providing Movers London our staff are also getting up to all sorts of things, such as  crew member Scott Burrows who is about to make his way around the UK and Europe over the next six months.