FAMILY-owned cleaning equipment distributor Craigmore has opened a new 5,000 sq ft Kärcher showroom in Belfast's Windsor Business Park in a £300,000 investment which has created 10 jobs.
A Kärcher dealer for 25 years, Craigmore has experienced significant growth over the last two years and identified the potential of a dedicated Belfast centre to capitalise on the growing demand for Kärcher's cleaning technology products.
And Craigmore's founder and managing director Geoff Baird believes the in-store and online sales potential for the new showroom is around £1 million a year, with exports to the Republic representing a significant proportion of that
He said: “This showroom is the first of its kind in the Kärcher network and represents the Gold Standard for our fellow distributors, with bespoke innovative software and hardware solutions to assist in the sales process as well as back end information gathering and sharing.
"Our location on the Boucher Road gives us access to the greatest concentration of potential customers with a dedicated site to service our all-Ireland customer base.”
Offering the full range of products for home and garden, professional, industrial, spares and accessories, the Kärcher 'center of the future' (www.karchercenterbelfast.com) has been designed to revolutionise customers’ expectations by offering an experience more akin to a high end car showroom.
It includes a 900-shrub living wall featuring the Kärcher irrigation system, refreshments from Nespresso and Hotel Chocolat and a nine-screen LCD wall demonstrating the Kärcher portfolio of cleaning solutions.
“We currently supply Kärcher cleaning equipment to all sectors of businesses including haulage, car dealerships, car valeting shops, engineering, food, retail and hospitality, offering everything from £100 vacuums up to £75,000 bespoke cleaning systems or multiple machine installations,” says Geoff.
“But this new showroom has been tailored to maximise appeal among domestic customers who will feel more comfortable shopping in the engaging environment we have created.”
Geoff's other Kärcher outlet is in Portadown and is one the fastest growing and largest Kärcher dealerships in the UK and Ireland. The company has grown from 14 staff in 2015 to 24 at present and it is currently recruiting more staff for Portadown.
