Seconique is moving. Over the last few months, the supplier has set about the gargantuan task of relocating to a larger, better-equipped facility – and while the new HQ is just 10 miles away from Seconique’s established West Midlands base, it is set to take the UK operation forward by some distance, says MD Helen Barker …
Any business that operates on Seconique’s scale will know that relocation is not a simple matter. As one of the UK’s largest furniture importers, Seconique faced a multitude of considerations when it began exploring the possibility of a move three years ago – not least of which was the reality of shifting one of the nation’s largest stockholdings without disrupting customer supply.
“The most challenging aspect of the move is the relocation of stock,” says Helen, who is relieved that the bulk of the work is now behind her, but is busy working on the final stages of the project. “It’s a mammoth task – co-ordinating the stock to be available to customers from day one has taken a lot of planning, as we didn’t ever want the move to prevent our customers from getting their deliveries on time.”
However, says Helen, the transition is a necessity. “There were so many reasons we needed to be somewhere different,” she says. “We were renting, and much preferred the idea of having our own building. We also wanted room to expand, should we need it.”
Seconique’s traditional home, on Woden Road in nearby Wednesbury, offers a floorspace of approximately 300,000 sqft – and while the new facility is around the same size, it is infinitely more flexible.
“We wanted to stay as close to our current location as possible,” says Helen, “but there wasn’t much around here that offered the outside space we required – so when this site became available, it seemed the obvious choice.”
Seconique’s new facility is set in grounds of 17.5 acres, and offers approximately 380,000 sqft of warehousing space.
“Initally, the site was very run down,” says Helen, “so we needed to give it a full makeover – a process which enabled us to design the space to suit our specific needs, and to offer better facilities for staff and customers. There are numerous benefits – for example, we now have our own direct access, without having to share the inroad with other companies.”
Although Helen promises that it is business as usual for customers, there are signs that the move is just the first part of a bigger strategy to modernise the company. Helen reveals that Seconique plans to implement a barcode system over the next 12 months, and will be enabling Wi-Fi throughout its offices and warehouse to improve productivity and enable greater operational efficiency.
And after that? “There is definitely scope for the expansion of the site, so this is something we will be exploring in the near future,” says Helen.
Seconique’s new address is Boulton House, Owens Trading Estate, Wobaston Road, Pendeford, Wolverhampton WV9 5EY. It is situated approximately 10 miles from the company’s existing site, and is easily accessed from the M54. The business will be operational there from late May.
“For more information regarding dates, directions and the address,” concludes Helen, “please call our sales team, who will be happy to help!”
