Moving on up
Target the wealthy with premium services.
Flat is the new up, especially in any business that touches on real estate. That's why Ram Katalan is proud that his company's revenues are holding steady - a feat he has worked hard to achieve, while many of his colleagues in the moving and storage industry are suffering 20% declines. As president of NorthStar Moving in Los Angeles, Katalan began to see a sickening slide in his bookings about a year ago. When he realized his business was weakening most among middle-income clients, he refocused on the high-end market, which is less susceptible to economic fluctuations.
To attract luxury customers, Katalan, 43, expanded his premium services and launched new ones, including Photo Perfect Packing, in which every object is photographed and inventoried before being loaded onto a truck. Movers then arrange everything in the new home to correspond as closely as possible to the previous layout. The service has been particularly popular with reality TV shows, including America's Next Top Model, which contracts with NorthStar to handle the temporary packing in homes borrowed for filming.
NorthStar's premium services now account for about half of its jobs, up from 20% just four months ago.
"It's a lot more expensive," says Katalan. "But the people willing to pay for it are not as affected by the economy."
Through partnerships, Katalan has added services that include pet sitters, professional organizers, and nannies - as well as a decoy truck for celebrity customers keen to avoid leading paparazzi to their new abodes.
NorthStar also changed its storage business, contracting with commercial retailers as a way to offset shrinking revenues from private and residential clients. About 20% of its 107,000-square-foot warehouse is now dedicated to retail storage. - By Malika Zouhali-Worrall
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