I was in my late teens when I did the removals job.
One job involved moving a landlord from one local pub to another…he left pub one in a filthy state, which my driver and I did our best to clear up as we went along. We had to go back to the first pub to collect some stuff (ironically most of it unused cleaning materials) from a shed after we’d done the main move…and so met the new people who were moving in from outside the area.
They had heard from somewhere about our efforts to clean up…and were very grateful.
The landlady then asked if I was single…and would I like to take her daughter (who was about my age) out because she was new to the area and didn’t know anyone!
Sadly, it didn’t develop into a ‘Confessions of a removal man’ situation (most of my friends were biker/farmer types, and I think the poor lass found us a bit unsettling) …but was probably the most unusual ‘tip’ I was offered!
But, as I said before, it was a physically hard job, but also great fun. You met loads of people, most of them nice, got a few tips and gifts, and no two days were the same. If you’ve got a good back and are a ‘people’ person then removals is actually a great job.
My mate worked for a removals companys, said it was a brilliant job and well paid too, only came off it because he wanted to start his own business so got a job at a builders marchant doing less hours. He said he went all over the place, everywhere from them very north of scotland to mainland europe. He said it was a pretty hard job but would often get tips off the customers and he could get away with charging them bit extra on site to lift say a grand panio up to the first floor which hadnt been priced for.
AlexWignall:
As a random fool who drives a lorry up and down the Motorway all day I still have to agree with the above post.
Well said!
W
Good day Alex,
No offence was meant nor should it be taken.
The principles of how you learn in any job are universal…easy jobs generally teach you nothing.
I did removals through my youth, 10 years of Eastern Europe and for the past 8 years I too have been a ‘random fool’ driving in this country (mainly for Waitrose). Don’t like it because it’s boring and too easy…which is why my name is on a work permit to go to Canada soon.
Out there, they want people whom are prepared to work in the way we used to over here…which i suppose is the issue in this post.
It’s okay Nigel,
No offence taken, as it happens I still do the same kind of General Haulage as I did when I started out twenty years ago. Except these days I pull the curtains instead of the sheets (I know which I prefer too…) Funnily enough, I enjoy haulage as much now as I did when I got in my first wagon on my own, which sometimes, feels like a lifetime ago.
I actually feel sorry for new drivers whose first introduction to transport was Ice Road Truckers or that idiot Stobart thing and have no realistic expectation of what our Industry actually has to offer. I think the OP has been a classic example.
Anyhow, good post and as I said I completely agree.
The 1st driving job i had was very similar to removals. i worked for a catering equipment company.
we used to deliver tables,chairs,ovens,fridges,crates of cutlery,plates etc… up stairs in office blocks or across fields to marquees.
Seriously hard work at times.
on the upside, we did all the major sporting events and music festivals.
Got to see the 1999 Silverstone grand prix as we were there for the whole weekend.
It taught me about team work, loading and honed my driving skills getting in places i wouldnt normally go.
some days it was 90% loading others were 90% driving… a mixture.
met some interesting people and it was one of the best jobs i ever had
GasGas:
My first job in road transport was as a porter for a removals company.
It was hard work, but also great fun…with some unexpected bonuses!
You’ve missed out.
Best of luck finding a job where you don’t actually have to do anything. Most people have to work for a living, you know.
Same here, started with White & Co at Winchester and then Pickfords in Basingstoke, was hard work but a good laugh
Oh, I don’t work for a living, I drive a coach - drive from A to B sit for a few hours then back to B, but might not suit the OP
Now I’ll be direct…for your own good.
I started out the same way with Baters of Sidmouth. I agree, with the guys above, it was a great job and Baters, at least, was and still is a great firm to work for.
For those questioning the value of experience you gain?
Loading skills?
Customer service?
Getting large trucks (40’ rigids are big beasts) into gateways and lanes that trucks never usually have to. (getting in the driveway will save you and your mates a lot of walking). Removal vans have to go into some dreadful places and that takes a proper driver. Then of course you become the hero of the hour and the tips start rolling in. Anyone ever get a tip for delivering to a D.C?
It also stops you turning into a fat slob who’s past it before he gets to 50.
Oh…and people are actually nice to you, not barking orders through a hole in some glass.
The fact is that it is super experience for starting out and those skills are widely transferable. It’s not so much how many miles you drive, It’s WHAT SORT of miles you drive.
Any fool can drive a lorry on a motorway to a D.C but that isn’t learning your craft as a driver. After 20 years of that, you’ll have learned precisely nothing at all.
Now are you seriously interested in being a driver or are you lazy and just want easy money? If you’re the former, I welcome you to the job. If you’re the latter, you and your kind are why the job isn’t as good as in years gone by- so I would rather you go and work in a shop somewhere.
I did it and so did my father before me…it never harmed me one bit and i went onto much better things after. I believe it helped me in that to, by the way.
Before you call a firm again…I suggest you do some research.
Cadogan Tate had a lucky escape IMHO
glad i saw this as i was scanning through as i was going to write something similar. i went to work for johnsons removals of doncaster(blaxton) to be exact, they have gone now but they were a third generation family firm and in the time i was there which was about 18 months i had a great time, met all kinds of people, good and some bad, i’ve got some really good stories to tell from those days, if it wasnt for my uncle needing me to work for him i wouldnt have left when i did, but then maybe i wouldnt have took my class 1, who knows? i think doing this kind of work has far more advantages than disadvantages, i’d love to get back into it with my own wagon but its just knowing where to start!
It’s a difficult market at the moment…property not selling = people not moving.
Two ways in, really:
Buy an established operator who will already have links with estate agents, a good local rep, staff, vans etc.
Start at the bottom. A clean 3.5-tonne Luton van (low overheads) and a squillion business cards and flyers. Put the cards and flyers through doors of houses with for sale or sold boards (start with smaller houses where they won’t have much furniture).
Have two or three strong, honest, reliable and well-presented people that you can call upon for when you need a porter.
Also worth touting your services to auction houses and furniture shops.
Build it up from there. Ultimately you’ll need a warehouse (the real money is made in storing stuff for folk).
AlexWignall:
As a random fool who drives a lorry up and down the Motorway all day I still have to agree with the above post.
Well said!
W
Good day Alex,
No offence was meant nor should it be taken.
The principles of how you learn in any job are universal…easy jobs generally teach you nothing.
I did removals through my youth, 10 years of Eastern Europe and for the past 8 years I too have been a ‘random fool’ driving in this country (mainly for Waitrose). Don’t like it because it’s boring and too easy…which is why my name is on a work permit to go to Canada soon.
Out there, they want people whom are prepared to work in the way we used to over here…which i suppose is the issue in this post.
It’s okay Nigel,
No offence taken, as it happens I still do the same kind of General Haulage as I did when I started out twenty years ago. Except these days I pull the curtains instead of the sheets (I know which I prefer too…) Funnily enough, I enjoy haulage as much now as I did when I got in my first wagon on my own, which sometimes, feels like a lifetime ago.
I actually feel sorry for new drivers whose first introduction to transport was Ice Road Truckers or that idiot Stobart thing and have no realistic expectation of what our Industry actually has to offer. I think the OP has been a classic example.
Anyhow, good post and as I said I completely agree.
W
I feel very sorry for new drivers…period.
I had the chance to learn things and improve…because a lot was expected from me. A lot of drivers now are managed by people who don’t know the job and ‘trained’ badly by people with precious little real experience themselves. As an example, we’ve got a young guy where I am now that, I can see, has what it takes to be a proper driver. The sad thing is that in this D.C setting he’ll never achieve his full potential. I hope he’ll move on to better things but a lot of the other guys will be there in 20 years time…at exactly the same level as they are today.
So, to keep the thread on topic, It’s the easy jobs that ruin drivers who are hopeful of gaining experience. Slating a firm whose only offence is to expect a reasonable day’s work in order that they can survive as a business (and pay the wages) is bang out of order.
The jobs that require you to show your mettle (ability to cope/resilience) are the only ones that can do that. General haulage and removals (among others) can both go a good way to achieving that. If you can mix a few of those into your c.v then even better.
What I know for sure though, is that lazy people are no good for ANY business and only make it harder for the others who take up the slack. A lazy guy in a removals team is soon weeded out by the other guys because you are, by default, forced to pull your weight within the team.
The idea that ‘it’s easy money…I don’t care’ is offensive to those of us that still believe in this job. I’m glad you’re with me on that!
GasGas:
It’s a difficult market at the moment…property not selling = people not moving.
Two ways in, really:
Buy an established operator who will already have links with estate agents, a good local rep, staff, vans etc.
Start at the bottom. A clean 3.5-tonne Luton van (low overheads) and a squillion business cards and flyers. Put the cards and flyers through doors of houses with for sale or sold boards (start with smaller houses where they won’t have much furniture).
Have two or three strong, honest, reliable and well-presented people that you can call upon for when you need a porter.
Also worth touting your services to auction houses and furniture shops.
Build it up from there. Ultimately you’ll need a warehouse (the real money is made in storing stuff for folk).
the trouble is, its hard to start doing anything new when your away from home mon-friday or more sometimes and you need to be away to pay your present bills, option 1 is a no no as thats got to be serious money, option 2 could work but what i was thinking was buy a twin axle step deck box trailer - not to high but not too long either and calling on that as and when rquired.
i hear what your saying about the market, thats why i wouldnt want to chuck a pile of money into it (not that i have a pile of money).
GasGas:
It’s a difficult market at the moment…property not selling = people not moving.
Two ways in, really:
Buy an established operator who will already have links with estate agents, a good local rep, staff, vans etc.
Start at the bottom. A clean 3.5-tonne Luton van (low overheads) and a squillion business cards and flyers. Put the cards and flyers through doors of houses with for sale or sold boards (start with smaller houses where they won’t have much furniture).
Have two or three strong, honest, reliable and well-presented people that you can call upon for when you need a porter.
Also worth touting your services to auction houses and furniture shops.
Build it up from there. Ultimately you’ll need a warehouse (the real money is made in storing stuff for folk).
the trouble is, its hard to start doing anything new when your away from home mon-friday or more sometimes and you need to be away to pay your present bills, option 1 is a no no as thats got to be serious money, option 2 could work but what i was thinking was buy a twin axle step deck box trailer - not to high but not too long either and calling on that as and when rquired.
i hear what your saying about the market, thats why i wouldnt want to chuck a pile of money into it (not that i have a pile of money).
I would also be inclined to tout myself to some of the larger operators that operate artics and put your name around. Tell them you can pull their trailers if there are short handed. Someone like Pearsons of Middlesborough who are doing all of Pickfords european work might be worth a call. UTS Baxters are also artic operators that get about.
It might give you a foothold without having to invest anything. If they need a unit and they have your name it might lead to something? Rates are pretty crap at the moment so don’t expect to become a millionaire, but might give you another string to your bow.
Here’s another one that worked on furniture. I did a couple of years for Williams Furniture, delivering new stuff and often picking up old stuff, either PX or for the dump. Most of the drops were local (London) with the very occasional “trip” to Croydon or some other far flung place Another one that learnt the hard way… staring at the bottom.
