Gentle Giant Speed Stairs Do Their Part to Help Win War in Afghanistan

On Tuesday morning I took our Gentle Giant Speed Stairs down to Rhode Island to help a National Guard Troop train at Camp Fogerty. These Troopers blasted up our stairs with such an intensity I thought they had been assigned to sprint over to Afghanistan that afternoon. Let's just hope the Afghani rebels don't get any ideas and start building their own Speed Stairs... All kidding aside, these Troopers are some of the most upstanding folks I've ever met and their bravery is inspiring. I was so proud to be able to help them train and I look forward to bringing our Speed Stairs to future events, like the Air Show in June and the Jump Show later in the summer. Stay posted for more details.

Award-Winning Service

I am so excited to announce that Gentle Giant is once again the recipient of the Angie's List Super Service Award in our Charlotte, DC, and Boston locations. This honor is bestowed annually on approximately five percent of all the companies rated on the Angie's List.

“Our Super Service Award winners are the cream of the crop when it comes to providing consistently high quality customer service, as judged by the customers who hired them,” said Angie Hicks, founder of Angie’s List.

Brrr! It's cold in New England!

It's a chilly 12°F today in Somerville, MA, the location of Gentle Giant Moving Company headquarters. With winter in full swing, we are taking all necessary precautions to make sure every move is safe and efficient.

Here are some great winter moving tips:

*Slow down--Our moving trucks do not move as fast as cars and we are certain to be extra careful in the winter months. With school back in session and plenty of weather challenges, we make sure to allow for extra time on the road.

*Be Prepared--We carry shovels and other ice and snow removal tools. This allows us to clear a safe and ice-free path when moving your most precious items.

*Protect Your Floors--The slush of winter can create quite the mess. We are sure to cover floors and carpets to avoid tracking in snow.

*Keep Warm Things Warm--Consider which of your belongings are sensitive to temperature. Plants, food, and materials that expand or contract with extreme temperature shifts should not be stored overnight in a moving truck. We recommend transporting these items in your own vehicle or enlisting Gentle Giant Storage for your climate control needs.

*Be Flexible--Although many moving companies are seasonal, Gentle Giant operates year round. With fewer customers moving in the winter months, the more flexible you are with your date of move, the more likely you are to get a better deal.

Stay warm out there!

Celebrating Milestones this Holiday Season

It is always exciting to get the whole company together, along with friends and families, to toast to our hard work and fantastic employees. At this year's Gentle Giant holiday party, there was much to celebrate! Not only is it our 30th year in business, I was surprised with this incredible birthday cake for my 60th birthday.

The night was filled with great food and dancing. We even had a photo booth. We were able to put together a collection of party attendees using the photos from the booth, a great way to capture the event. Check out these great photos:

New York Times article on Gentle Giant's recent pro-bono work

This week the New York Times released on article on small businesses that are still finding ways to give despite the poor economy. Gentle Giant was featured in the article which included an interview and photo of myself as well as a summery of our efforts to help out those in Haiti who have fallen on hard times due to the earthquake. Finding ways to continue giving is important part of our company culture and we pride ourselves on being able to maintain those efforts. Click on the link below to check it out!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/16/business/smallbusiness/16sbiz.html?_r=1&ref=business

GG's Annual Summer Party Fun

Check out these great photos from our annual Summer Party! A

few weeks ago, the whole company was invited to partake in this important, and very fun, annual event. Each year, we take time out to spend a day together to have fun, relax, get to know each other better, and compete in lighthearted games. This year is extra special because Gentle Giant is also celebrating it's 30th anniversary (hence all the cupcakes). In the other photos,

there's evidence of how mighty even the smallest Giants are (beating me and some of our crew members at tug of war), and finally, a bunch of guys enjoying the water slide!

Inc.com Interview about Feedback

Today on Inc.com there was a Q&A published in which I discussed the critically important art of giving and receiving feedback with editor Leigh Buchanan. Check out the article here!

At Gentle Giant Moving Company, our success and often our very survival relies on people's ability to give and receive feedback. It is a skill that we invest a considerable amount of time and money to develop within our workforce. Without this skill, we would not be able to understand what our customers need and want from us or be able to communicate with one another about how to do a better job.

As giving and receiving feedback is a skill, one can never been perfect at it, so feel free to let me know if you have any feedback on how I did with this interview!