Gav Boden has been involved in the furniture business for 40 years. He now works for Rhenus Logistics home delivery as the UK's sales director.

He started work in the 80s lifting furniture into vans and is now in charge of telling the world about Rhenus' global network.

He tells Ben about:

• How Ben and Gav met
• Trade shows
• How Gav got into the trade at 15 - and loved it
• His first sale of corner cabinets for £5,000
• Working on the road as a rep
• How outsourcing meant UK manufacturing took a hit
• Why having a full experience of the trade is so important
• The huge size of Rhenus
• Shipping and it's impact on retailers
• Why using a logistics network is cheaper
• Returns and the effect on their business
• What the future looks like for Rhenus in the UK
• The interest rates and how it's effecting trade
• UK manufacturers are now mid-to top end sales
• The Next empire after buying the rights to Made.com
• A new dawn for trade shows?

LINKS:

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

Rhenus Logistics

Gav Boden on LinkedIn

Podcast Production by Ginger Wizard Productions

We all know that photos of our stock helps it sell, but digital techniques can help customers understand how a piece will look in their house.

Using computer generated imagery, Lesley Edgar's company, Red and Grey, creates designs which means customers can virtually drop furniture right into their front room.

She talks to Ben about:

• How it works
• What you need to provide to generate the images
• What happens with copyright issues
• How the team transform your stock
• Costs
• How AI has helped their business
• Getting a perfect digital match for the physical product
• How they market themselves

LINKS:

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

Red and Grey

Podcast Production by Ginger Wizard Productions

When Joseph Shenton was 18, he was looking to make a bit of money. So he went to an auction to try and flip some stock, any kind of stock. But that's where he discovered the margin that could be made on furniture. From there, he is now the co-owner of two massive stores in the north of England - Joseph James.

In this episode he talks to Ben about:

• How he stumbled across the furniture trade
• Why Facebook marketplace was the starting point
• Covid and how that effected his brand new business
• Tik Tok and Ebay, and how they drive their business
• How they compete with the big companies like DFS
• Expansion and how they plan to grow
• Why importing isn't for them
• The importance of a decent delivery team
• Staff - and getting the right people
• How to make retail parks work
• Avoiding returns
• Breaking into the south and their plans to trade there

LINKS:

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

Joseph James

Grant Berry got into the trade completely by accident after he swapped a bit of carpet with a bloke in Lincoln UK. That was 35 years ago and he hasn't looked back since. It's hard to find anyone in the industry with a genuine passion for furniture and doing deals than Grant.

In this episode Ben finds out about:

• Grant's past life selling carpet
• How the seconds and returns trade started it all for him
• The financial crash and how it stunted his business' growth
• Retail parks and how the costs don't work for him
• Advertising and what works for him
• How business is his hobby - and how he adores it
• His first trips to China and the profit he made
• How he combats people using the store as a testing station
• The key to success is hard work
• Finance and how it works for him
• The Manchester Furniture Show and is it worth it?

LINKS:

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

Home World

Delivery services are becoming more popular in the furniture trade as companies outsource the service.

When Alex Bailo came to the UK from Brazil, he couldn't speak a word of English. Ben talks to Alex about his journey from being a vet, looking for work in Leeds to running one of the biggest delivery firms in the UK.

In this episode we find out about:

• Alex's journey from vet to delivery service
• How the furniture side of his business is growing
• The huge amount of the country they will cover
• How his dedicated team will go to any lengths to deliver their goods
• What they do to integrate with their customers systems
• The huge warehouse they operate from
• Why using a firm like Alex's can save you hassle and cash

LINKS:

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

ASB Delivery

Ben travels to China to talk to Paul Wray. He has been in the trade for almost 30 years, and has spent the last 18 living and trading from China.

He is a former police officer in the UK, went through a divorce after he left the force and he took a job delivering mattresses. From there, Paul has gone on to develop a passion for the furniture trade and run two successful businesses.

He gives Ben insights on;

• Living and working in China
• How world events are influencing shipping
• Dealing with very different cultures in business
• How keeping on top of quality control is crucial
• Keeping two businesses running at the same time
• The impact of high shipping prices on Chinese factories
• Fake fire safety certificates
• How the American trade war has made the UK a better prospect in the Chinese market

LINKS

Trade Only Furniture Group

B Womack Furniture Ltd

Find out more about Paul Wray

Wanting to find out more about the furniture trade in the UK? This podcast is for you. Join Ben Womack each week as he finds out more about the people and personalities behind some of the UK's biggest furniture businesses. Ben founded the Trade Only Furniture Group on Facebook and has many years experience in buying and selling furniture himself.