‘I work for a moving company’. When people ask me what I do for a living, I always have been proud telling people about my business.

In the minds of a lot of people, moving a house just means moving furniture and boxes. Just put them in a truck and go. Drive carefully, park the truck at the driveway and unload. The customer says ‘thank you,’ pays the bill and continues their daily routine, somewhere else.

Local Moves

Things definitely have changed - even a local move in the Netherlands. Traffic jams, construction works, access difficulties, parking permits, EURO zones…dealing with these aspects is just part of the daily routine.

Customer demand has changed too: housecleaning, handyman services…..’I am at work…here are the keys of both homes, good luck and we’ll show up at the end of the day to sign the paperwork’. We offer full service, at your service.

While domestic moving has changed, the world of international moving truly has changed dramatically. Being in the moving industry for over 25 years reminds me of a simple process of loading a removal in a container or liftvan, putting it on a vessel (plenty of choice, plenty of space), clearing customs abroad and delivering the goods into the new home. Most procedures were simple. It’s been a true people business.

And now, we let the customer into a new world of relocation. Just send an e-mail and we’ll arrange everything.

More Complicated Moves

So you are moving to Hong Kong? Arrange schools for your kids, search for a house? Researching a city preview, arrange language training? Oh and by the way - we also will move the boxes! Yes ALSO….Moving the household effects has become just a small part of the demand.

Corporate buyers want expense tracking, can you do it ? Yes, we can! Management information, tracking & tracing, a personal move manager, can you do it? Yes, we can!

One fact remains true. It’s still a people business!

Emotional Moves

Working in the moving industry makes movers deal with all kind of emotions. Not everybody is moving because they want to. Needless to say, given the fact that movers ‘touch’ people’s dearest belongings, attention to detail is one of the most important skills a mover should have.

People will always keep moving. The world will continue to get smaller, despite the financial crisis our world is in today. I feel our industry has developed in a way we can really make a move as smooth as reasonably possible.

Moves of the Future

And moving into the future? As soon as the moon offers any kind of infrastructure and customer demand, we will be the first to move you there.

My name is Maarten van Zutphen. I am the Managing Director of KHZ Movers (www.khz-movers.com), a leading removal- and relocation organisation in the Netherlands (the Hague area) with one of the largest networks throughout the world. I will write articles for thehagueonline.com on a regular basis. Do you have questions or suggestions? My e-mail address is: m.vanzutphen@khz.nl.

If you wish to comment or express an opinion about this article please e-mail the editor@TheHagueOnLine.com