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2020, Local Trumps Global

As 2020 becomes a distant memory I think we can all agree that it is a year that we will never forget for all the wrong reasons. They're are lots of media outlets to offer fact and opinion on the Pandemic of 2020, I'll stick to stoves and trade and leave the other to the experts.


For us change was inevitable with or without a pandemic as we had started the process in 2019, the virus just changed the timelines.


Last year we had launched our new website as a brochure type website for information only. This helped us to get our message to our potential customers. By March 2020 Ireland had went into full lockdown, and by chance we had just upgraded our phonelines to a new VOIP system which meant we could take calls anywhere. On the Friday that our Taoiseach announced the lock down I literally went to the factory at 10.00 that night and grabbed a couple of phones, computers and some office stationary. That night was by far the strangest of my life to date. My outstanding memory was the deafening sound of silence in the 85000 sq. ft. factory and the normally busy main road outside.


On Monday morning I reported to my kitchen table where I had set up the new makeshift Boru mission control much to my wife's deep dissatisfaction. Call after call I took over the coming days with people desperately looking for spare parts. Local dealers were closed and dealers that were open had not ordered in spare parts. I'll never forget the stress of that first week and the frustration felt by customers trying to get their hands on a part that would ordinarily be easily obtained.


With a week down I had realised that something major had to be done and quickly. Our customers deserved more and as a company so did we. Having built our brochure website myself I felt I could have an online store up and running fairly quickly just for spares and glass. I started cataloging the products that night and went live with our e-commerce site exactly 40 hours and 18 double espressos later. The site has proven a massive hit and has now started to diversify into fireside accessories while still upholding the integrity of our dealer network. Check it out for yourself HERE


All of a sudden I found myself back in a customer service role which I had managed at a distance since 2008. Here I was fighting the urge to tear up the handbook that I've been adding to since we started in 2008. As with any company that experiences large growth in a short space of time, we had layered the company with well intentioned bureaucracy. The most common query I had was "Is this stove suitable for my fireplace" and "what size is that stove" To sort this, we set up the Boru Room Calculator and also uploaded PDF drawings of each model to the site. We also put a whatsapp link so we can connect easier and remove the barriers usually associated with companies.


We're all more conscious about buying Irish, especially since the uncertainty surrounding Brexit which thankfully has finally been negotiated (for now). We have had customers, partners and suppliers flying the flag for us this last year. Never before have we seen so many industries devastated by any single event. We noticed a scarcity of foreign stoves being imported especially Asian products. This also led to shortages in spare parts which is very bad for any industry. We were luckily in a position not to be too affected and luckily had by chance purchased large stocks of raw materials.


2020 saw a new Government formed, with the unlikely coalition of Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and The Green Party. As a producer of solid fuel appliances we were worried that The Green Party would outlaw all kinds of combustion but thankfully they have been  practical. Sure, they're driving electric, solar and wind substitutes for cars, primary heating and electricity production. I'm not going to get into the rights and wrongs of the policies as I'll leave that for another post. However they are behind the use of wood as a renewable source of fuel. I've always preached of the benefits of wood in its raw state. What other fuel can be crated within a few miles, harvested, processed and then burned and the whole process starts again. This is green, it's renewable and most of all it's good for the environment and your pocket. It's taking control of your own warmth and not leaving it to a faceless energy company that reports to a hedge fund probably located in the Caribbean. They cant cut off your heat if times become more difficult as they are for so many at the minute. When burning wood sustainably you are part of a very exclusive cohort of people that not only care for their own welfare but the welfare of the world we live in.

Electric Stoves. 2020 saw us partner up with Amantii Electric Fireplaces. Amantii are a Canadian based company that specialize in electric fireplaces. This gave Boru access to a massive range of fires that would have taken us years to develop. It makes perfect sense to use a company with the knowledge and expertise of that particular market which in turn we can pass that knowledege onto our own customer base. We hold large stocks of electric fireplaces in our warehouse and they are on display in our showroom in Thurles. 

We also used the last few months of 2020 to renovate our showroom. We installed Boru inset and free standing stoves with elegant marble fireplaces. We can now design a feature wall for your house and project manage it for you, so whether it's an abstract themed wall paper or a natural slate finish we can make it happen and the beauty is we will source all materials locally through our dealer network.

2020 was the year that the garden became the 4th bedroom. With this in mind we have created a range of outdoor products to recreate the same balmy feel you have in your living room.

To conclude I think 2020 was the year that Outdoors became the new indoors, staying in became the new going out and local trumps global.

Stay safe, stay at home and we look forward to seeing you in person when this pandemic passes.

Dermot & Siobhan Fitzgerald

   

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