FIDI Focus meets Darren Bromley, National Director for MoverOne International in Canada, which has just joined the FIDI family
As a result of the pandemic, the Canadian economy, housing prices, and rising interest rates, the overall moving market, both domestically and internationally, has seen a reduction of around 20 to 30 per cent. Fewer people are relocating and those who do are moving smaller amounts of goods.
Internationally, Canada is still a very import-heavy market when compared with exports. In 2022, the population grew by 2.7 per cent – just over one million people – which is the largest percentage growth since 1957. Inward migration accounted for close to 96 per cent of this growth.
Once the economy stabilises, and housing prices and interest rates return to manageable levels, the number of people relocating will increase. However, we feel that size of shipments, in both the private and corporate sectors, will remain smaller.
The reduced market, combined with smaller size shipments, means the biggest growth opportunity will be in activities such as groupage where shippers can achieve cost savings by sharing freight costs.
Within Canada, the most common destinations are major centres including Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, and Ottawa. However, with the expansion of remote working, we are starting to see an increase in people moving to smaller towns in various parts of the country.
Internationally, the common destinations are UK, mainland Europe, and Australia, which have large expat communities within Canada. These locations are major business centres for corporate clients.
We are also seeing an increase in requests for relocations to locations in the Middle East and Asia, with the UAE and Hong Kong being the most popular locations there.
Technology is currently leading the way in innovative change in the industry. Online survey platforms, such Yembo, are meeting customers’ ever-growing interest in online services. This gives greater flexibility to work with clients at times that suit them and allows surveyors to become more efficient and save travel time. It also helps provide services to remote locations.
Our strengths are threefold. First, our people. We have a very diverse team with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Our team works cohesively, like a family, and collaborates amazingly well to ensure the transferees receive the best experience possible.
Second, is our internal network. We have a network of more than 100 member locations, which gives us the ability to cover every inch of Canada from coast to coast. Finally, we have an incredibly strong network of partners around the globe through our association memberships, including FIDI, Harmony, and IAM, just to name a few.
Joining FIDI was a natural next step in our business plan. As we have grown over the years, we have placed extreme importance on quality. With FIDI’s high-level quality standards, and rigorous entry audit, having the FAIMPLUS accreditation shows the moving community we ‘walk the walk’ and work at the highest quality standards.
Of course, being a member of FIDI also opens the door to potential collaborations and relationships with new and existing partners globally.
The FAIM process was a heavy undertaking, but extremely beneficial. It gave us the opportunity to dig into every corner of our business and ensure that all aspects are driving towards the quality we expect. The team at the FCC was amazing to deal with and answered any questions we had along the way in a very expedient manner.
We cannot wait to dive into the association and attend the Edinburgh conference, our first opportunity to meet FIDI members. We are looking forward to the networking and hearing about the opportunities within FIDI’s committees, as well as the learning possibilities.
We have come a long way since our creation in 2002 and we are very excited for what lies ahead. Becoming a new FIDI Affiliate is the icing on the cake for us and will help greatly in our growth plans. We are looking to grow all our business lines and helping our member locations grow in the process. The future for MoverOne International is bright.
