I seek to bring sanity in the house moving business

For majority of urban residents, moving houses is an inevitable reality. A common experience for those changing residence however is loss, frustration, fatigue and even regrets.

Take Mr Jefferson Koyi, an accountant, for instance. When he was transferred to work at the airport from the western side of Nairobi, he says everything worked well except moving his house.

“I had no choice but to relocate. The house I had was spacious and finding one that would fit my belongings was hard. When I finally found it, I hired a lorry parked at Outer Ring Road and after we agreed on the charge, the dealer took some boys to help in packing the items. By the time I was in my new house, I counted many losses,” Mr Koyi regrets.

His experience is not isolated. Many city residents rarely take precautions when moving house. It is in the backdrop of these challenges that Cosmas Kimuyu started Nellions Moving and Relocations Company a year ago.

ONLINE, PHYSICAL ADDRESS

“The house moving business is not regulated in Kenya; in fact there exists a faint line between house movers and transporters. Transport pick-ups and lorries with ‘ask for transport’ labels are not professional movers. They have no address. If you lose something, where do you start tracing them? Some of them barely know each other,” Mr Kimuyu told Money.

His company trains and employs permanent workers. Its online presence and physical address, he says, ensures that it can be traced.
His staff have sophisticated equipment for lifting household and office items during loading and offloading.

He says the rapid growth of the real estate sector has spurred relocation with consumers seeking new residences even as others move to their own houses in the outskirts of the city.

“People have also become more educated and as employment opportunities arise overseas, they ask to be relocated, which we also do. The high-end market comes with sophisticated and expensive furniture, which the owners value a lot. That is why we have equipment to ensure their goods are safe and secure during transit and on arrival,” Mr Kimuyu said.

Those travelling abroad also have an option to request for safe storage services for the period they will be away.

The entrepreneur says that house moving business segment has not developed for about 15 years but a few investors have now seen the light.

According to him, customers have become more sensitive and the Internet has become a helpful tool in making comparisons from different service providers.

Contrary to the open lorries used to transport wood, sand and hard goods, Nellion vehicles have a soft interior and rails to cushion goods. The trucks also have both interior and exterior lighting.

The uniformed workers complete with protective gear make the company stand out in an industry largely composed of informal dealers. There are also special blankets and packaging materials to protect furniture surfaces and screens from scratches.

CHARGES

“For a local relocation, a moving company should carry out a pre-pack survey and give up to two weeks for international relocation. You need to be keen with how they carry out the survey. Let them explain how they are going to do it, for example, and ask questions as you observe any warning signs such as changing time lines,” Mr Kimuyu notes.

And just like any other contract, he says, there should be documentary evidence giving the customer specifics on who bears what responsibility.
As for the charges, he advises that one should ensure that it does not exceed the rent by over 60 per cent.

“The moving industry is tending towards the hospitality way in terms of how customers are treated and that is why we even clean the customer’s new house, arrange the equipment and simply ensure that their life remains un-interrupted.”

“If someone can grow up aspiring to be a mechanic, or a carpenter then my target is to make this industry as formal and professional so that people aspire to work in it,” he said.