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Executive Report : Profitable Climate

A national operation has been launched to enable hirers to develop new revenue streams supplying heaters and air conditioning equipment. Alan Guthrie reports.

Wholesale Climate Hire is a new initiative designed to enable hirers to cross-hire cooling and heating equipment, plus other items, on a comprehensive national basis. It also offers technical advice, tailored marketing support and other services to help hirers develop business in this specialised, but unpredictable, market.

The operation is a dedicated brand of Climate Hire, the specialist heating, cooling and environmental activity of Hire Station. “We are offering local, regional and, even, national hire companies the opportunity to gain climate control equipment business without them having to tie up capital in seasonal products. It also removes the costs of storage and maintenance, as well as depreciation,” says Dave Matthews, Climate Hire Director. “Wholesale Climate Hire can supply cooling, heating, air cleaning and drying equipment, as well as specialist Zone 1 lighting and floodlighting, plus power generation items.”

A dedicated web site has been established, giving full specifications of the equipment available and the services offered. There is also an on-line room calculator that suggests the type and capacity of product needed for a particular application, and a link to a local weather forecast is provided to help staff to estimate the length of time the equipment might be needed for. “Once a user has registered for an account, pricing options are shown and orders can be placed. Product details and technical information can also be downloaded in PDF format, printed out and given to customers.

“Hirers can have items delivered to their own premises, to a client’s site, or they can come and collect them from one of our 13 nationwide outlets, or even from the depot of one of our sister operations. We will also install products if required. Equipment is supplied un-liveried,
so hirers can apply their own stickers if required. This should provide reassurance that we will not chase anyone else’s customer.” Enquiries, orders and support are handled by a dedicated Wholesale Climate Hire operation based at Climate Hire’s Alfreton headquarters, and customers can monitor equipment they have on hire via an intranet section on the web site. The service also includes a breakdown and exchange service if and when required.

Companies can also benefit from extensive marketing support. Under agreement, a full Climate Hire catalogue can be produced in digital and printed format, branded with an individual company’s name and logo, and with its contact details and web address on each page.

“We can also create seasonal catalogues offering summer or winter products, again personalised, so that hirers can undertake mailshots in their own local areas,” says Dave Matthews. “In addition, we will produce a dedicated event hire equipment catalogue to target that particular market, including customers such as show managers and wedding organisers. Supporting materials also include posters for each of the major climate control product groups, which can be displayed in hire shops to promote the range available, complete with a company’s own branding and contact details.“

Dave Matthews believes that, with fewer specialist hirers operating within the climate control equipment market, the scope for Wholesale Climate Hire is substantial, especially since the British weather is so unpredictable. “Hirers can quickly source the products that customers require to meet unexpected conditions, which is business they previously might have had to turn away.” •

0845 600 3720
www.wholesaleclimatehire.co.uk