Brand Refresh For Mr Rental As Business Continues to Grow
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Mr Rental is always on the move and Invercargill owner John Beckley wouldn’t have it any other way.
John bought the business 17 years ago, it now covers the entire Southern area below Dunedin, and including Fiordland along with Queenstown Lakes and Central Otago.
“In 2001 we were one of the first Mr Rental franchisees in New Zealand operating out of a small shop in Yarrow Street.”
Now based in Don Street right in the city centre with a great retail presence, the business gets plenty of ‘walk-in’s but is better set up for online business, where staff can organise everything for the delivery.
And with a recent refresh of the brand, Mr Rental is going from strength to strength, and is often delivering not only around the city but making regular trips throughout the Southern lakes every week as well.
The core business has changed slightly over the years – once upon a time John would be providing things for movie sets such as washing machines and driers. He once accidentally stole Tom Cruise’ fridge from the Queenstown house he was staying in for Mission Impossible – thinking it was one that the security team had rented off him.
“The fridge was returned…unlike the 6-pack of Japanese beer left in Hayden Paddon’s fridge,” he said.
Supplying home furniture for home staging had become popular in recent years, both privately and through real estate companies, where some clients are wanting to go that extra mile for their open homes.
And out in the rural areas, farmers wanting fitness machines has become a popular trend, as they didn’t have time to exercise outside in winter as it’s too dark.
“We’ll also get people relocating and companies will set up houses for their staff that are working on different projects,” John said.
They can supply short term rentals too such as couches, display fridges, coffee table for those shows, dryers and washers during breakdowns, beds for seasonal peaks, “it’s all mission possible,” he said.
Queenstown was a particularly big market for Air BnB owners that wanted to rent house loads of furniture at a time – and many have become repeat clients as well.
The business has two big Mercedes Vans that transport all of the equipment and furniture around to clients, “our client base is significantly diverse,” he said.