35 Years of ‘Moving Excellence’ By Mary Savage
W
hen you enter the double doors at Premiere Van Lines, your eye is immediately drawn to the wall of awards in reception. Most of the wall space showcases the awards that Premiere has won; in fact, they ran out of space several years ago. They have received recognition on both the regional and national level for outstanding quality, service and sales. are and General Hardware Premiere is a national franchise and also one of the largest agents under the Atlas Van Lines umbrella, and unequivocally, they represent remarkable business practices in a highly competitive industry. Today, as Premiere celebrates their 35th anniversary in the Calgary marketplace, they are also recognized as one of the largest and oldest moving companies in Calgary. And they are proud of their reputation – guided by the leadership and vision of Paul Phone, president and founder of the Calgary branch. Over the decades, Premiere has raised the bar and instilled a level of excellence in everything from customer service to industry standards. They are proud of their long-standing A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), and in the moving industry they are a tough act to follow.
Originally, Premiere Calgary was established 35 years ago as Classic Moving and Storage Ltd. when Paul was presented with an opportunity to obtain a new agency approval under Atlas. With Atlas celebrating their 50th anniversary this year, and Premiere Calgary celebrating its 35th anniversary, Paul reflects on this longevity – knowing the partnership continues to be a good choice. Over the years, Classic Moving grew, but still operated very successfully as a smaller business that focused predominantly on the local and long-distance relocation market. Since their inception, Classic Moving has always operated as an agent under Atlas, which granted them access to the services of other Atlas agents enabling them to facilitate long-distance moves for customers. In 2005, Classic Moving was rebranded and the company became a franchise office of Premiere Van Lines, a coast-tocoast group of agents still under the Atlas Van Lines banner. In the years that followed, this move proved to be a turning point for Premiere Calgary: inside of two years, the company had doubled their operation and then doubled again within another two years. Premiere Van Lines represents the joining together of
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Premiere’s Residential Services
Premiere’s Commercial Services
Local Moving Long-Distance Moving International Moving Packing and Crating Packing Materials Appliance Servicing Auto Hauling Storage and Warehousing
Office Moving Office Services Installations Equipment Rentals IT Services Recycle and Disposal of Assets Project Management Storage and Asset Management
When it comes to office moving, Premiere has developed and positioned itself as arguably the largest and most recognized office mover in Calgary. It’s most recent project success includes the relocation of a major tenant into the Bow tower – Calgary’s tallest skyscraper that was also recently recognized as the world’s most spectacular corporate building according to Emporis.
Congratulations to Premiere Van Lines, Calgary On 35 Years of Serving Families on the Move Atlas Canada is very proud to have you as an agent and wish you continued success in the years ahead.
When a corporation moves, typically they have contents, electronics and furniture, but in Calgary, it’s not always as simple as just moving from one office to another. “Corporate Calgary is very generous when it comes to donating furniture and equipment to charities,” says Paul. Premiere is currently working with several companies to dismantle, remove, store and deliver excess furniture and equipment to the various charities. “There are many charities that have benefited from the corporate sector including schools, hospitals and like organizations,” he adds. Looking back over 35 years, Paul attributes Premiere’s success to four key areas: leadership, adapting to change, having a vision and achieving goals. “In the service industry, it’s all about the people. You are relying on your staff, so I lead by example. We set goals and achieve them, and helping people achieve their goals is how we’ve built the business,” he says. “Our company is a vehicle to help people achieve their dreams and for young people who are ambitious and want to be leaders, Premiere is an excellent place of employment,” he adds. “We have built our business via ‘word of mouth.’ We have worked hard to make Premiere a household name in the moving business and we are proud of the reputation we have earned.” As Premiere celebrates their 35th anniversary, they would like to extend a sincere note of gratitude to all the business partners, employees and customers who have helped them achieve this milestone. As they look to the future, they are confident the next 35 years will be even more gratifying and successful. “After 35 years, I am still excited about coming to work every day!” Paul says with an unrelenting passion in his voice. “I work just as hard as the young people and I still enjoy the challenge.”
www.atlasvanlines.ca Premiere Van Lines 35th Anniversary | 2
Premiere’s Leadership Team (starting top left): Shirley Leaming, Rod Schwartz, Kevin Phone, Lance Laliberte, Cyndy Trigger, Mike Phone, Charlene StJules, Paul Phone, Fawn Der, John Ba. Photo by Mary Savage.
offices led by individuals with the same commitment: to provide excellent service to their customers. Unlike many other franchise operations, ownership of the Premiere Van Lines head office is held by the individual branch offices. Therefore it is the operating companies, such as Premiere Calgary, that control the future and direction of the Premiere group. The benefits of being part of this group include an increase in national exposure, name recognition across the country, the ability to draw upon each other’s knowledge and experience, and the common interest of promoting and developing the Premiere group and its reputation. “Currently Premiere has 16 locations with 20 branch (franchise) offices from coast to coast,” explains Paul. “Customers who move long distance want to be able to deal with the same brand and same company when they arrive at their destination, and Premiere has that ability.” Today Premiere Calgary employs over 70 full-time staff, which rises during the summer months to accommodate an increase in seasonal business. They have over 100,000 square feet of warehouse space in several locations throughout Calgary – from downtown to the four quadrants of the city. Nationally, the Premiere Group employs over 1,000 staff with over 200 units within its fleet. Premiere is a full-service mover. “We are not just a typical moving company – we move
homes, businesses, special products and we offer a wide range of other services,” notes Kevin Phone, vice-president. Whether it’s a residential or commercial move, Premiere offers specialty services that are not always readily available. “There are many secondary services that fall outside of what a customer would normally consider when moving, and we provide all those specialty services,” he adds. “Moving is a sensitive service: it’s not every day that you have strangers come into your home and take your belongings whether it’s for a day, a month or into long-term storage,” remarks Kevin. “There has to be a level of trust with the moving company because they are packing and moving your life belongings.”
Unprecedented Accolades…
Years ago, Atlas Van Lines started a recognition program to acknowledge their top-performing agents within Canada. Every quarter, Atlas sends a letter of recognition to the branches that qualify and Premiere has received a letter – every quarter – since the inception of the program.
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Premiere Office Movers - another division of the company
When it comes to the commercial side of moving, there is just as much trust required. “Businesses depend on our promise of service in order for them to be up and running again. Timing is of the essence and accuracy of the relocation is crucial for their staff to come back to work with minimal downtime,” adds Kevin. As Kevin has observed, most people have had a bad experience with movers largely due to the lack of regulations
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within the industry – meaning anyone who has a truck can advertise as ‘movers.’ “When you check the BBB, moving companies are always within the top three companies for filing complaints annually and moving is considered the second most stressful event in a person’s life – the first being the death of a loved one,” he says. Given the stress associated with moving, it’s even more important Premiere delivers a consistently high standard when it comes to customer satisfaction. “It’s a personal standard: we believe in image and reputation, and in order to achieve this standard, we continually invest in the company. Our fleet of vehicles are newer, our movers are trained and dressed in uniform and our salespeople are professionals,” Kevin adds. “When you instil these standards from the top, it trickles down through the company and it doesn’t matter if we’re moving one piece of furniture or an office with 3,000 employees – we complete every job with pride and we always provide a high level of service,” says Kevin. •
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Congratulations to Premiere Van Lines on their 35th Anniversary!
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Premiere goes ‘Undercover’ Last year, W Network featured Premiere Van Lines on their reality television show, Undercover Boss Canada, and given the network only selects about 10 Canadian companies each year, it was a feather in Premiere’s cap. The network requires specific criteria and Premiere was a perfect candidate. The popular TV series takes an executive and places them on the front lines of the business – unbeknownst to the employees. It was the first time Undercover Boss Canada had featured a moving company and it proved to be a popular profile. The Premiere episode originally aired in Canada on October 18, 2012. It re-aired in the U.S. in January 2013 and most recently, it aired again in the U.K. “Many of the national companies have been featured on the TV show and from a viewer standpoint, it shows you the heart and soul of the company, the people who are on the front lines and how committed they are to provide a high level of service,” asserts Kevin. “You have a new appreciation for what the employees do and how hard they work. As the leader of your company, you go undercover for your own benefit: to improve your company’s operations, but it also allows you to acknowledge the top-performing employees.”
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WestKey Storage, proudly providing Premiere Van Lines & Calgary with storage solutions
Congratulations Premiere Van Lines
for 35 years of outstanding service and success!
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PH: 403.400.2814
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Congratulations on 35 years, from A1!
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Looking forward to a great future.
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www.victorypackaging.com Congratulations Premiere Van Lines on your 35th Anniversary! Proud to be working with you and wish you continued success.
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