Ms. Locke

Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment

Avoid Unpleasant Freight Cost Surprises

By Amy Locke, Director, Interior Design, Hatchett Hospitality

Quick - how much was the freight cost for your most recent FF&E order? You can probably remember the price you paid for each of your television sets or for the carpeting in each of your hotel rooms, but shipping is usually like sales tax - it's an "invisible" charge that seems to disappear or blend into the overall invoice.

So how you can keep your freight costs reasonable, avoid shipping surprises, and stretch your FF&E budget? Consider these suggestions.

Types of Freight

There are three types of FF&E freight:

How Should You Ship?

When selecting the best way to ship your FF&E products, you and your purchasing firm should evaluate several key factors, including:

There are many commercial freight carriers to choose from, but there are also a small number of private trucking companies that exclusively serve the hotel industry. These companies know the special perspectives and needs of hoteliers such as you.

Companies that control their trucks and drivers can also arrange delivery to the job site exactly when the product is needed for installation. You know all too well that if a product arrives too early, there is an increased risk of damage as it is shuffled around the construction site awaiting installation. On the other hand, if a product arrives too late, there is a domino effect that delays other aspects of the project.

What Should Happen With Your FF&E Order

When you place an FF&E order, your want your supplier to be able to get the right products to the right place at the right time - at an attractive price.

This means that when your supplier shops for the best source, he or she must evaluate several criteria. Cost is certainly an important factor, but other considerations on your behalf should include quality of the product, reputation of the manufacturer for service after sale, and proximity of the factory to your hotel job site.

If this last point is not properly considered, it can cost you unnecessary shipping dollars. For example, consider the FF&E supplier who purchases from a manufacturer on the east coast for a job site that's in California.

Obviously, longer trips cost more money - but they also can create more shipping delays and more handling damage.

So why don't purchasing agents always buy from a factory that's most conveniently located to your site?

Maybe the FF&E agent has a "sweetheart" relationship with the manufacturer. Maybe the purchasing people don't have the experience or expertise to properly look for "best source" manufacturers. Or maybe the FF&E company simply isn't paying proper attention.

Whatever the reason, it's the hotel owner that pays the price - and that's not right.

Questions To Consider

There are actually two parts to transportation - (1) cost and (2) handling damage. Here are some questions to consider about the costs and logistics of FF&E deliveries - so you can get your goods to a job site for lower shipping cost and with reduced handling damage.

So when comparing prices on FF&E products that require shipping, be sure to do your homework and nail down freight costs in advance. This will make sure that the line marked "freight" on your FF&E invoices is neither an unpleasant surprise nor an invisible "hidden charge" which eats into your budget.

In today's economy, hoteliers want suppliers who work hard physically but also work smart mentally. Evaluate your FF&E supplier according to some of the tips we've discussed here and you'll have a company who is working both hard and smart on your behalf.

Most importantly, you'll save dollars on your FF&E purchases - dollars that you can spend some other way.

Amy Locke is director of interior design at Hatchett Hospitality. She works with franchisers and franchisees on a wide variety of hotel brands, styles, and themes – from economy to luxury, from resort to business conference, and from traditional to modern. Previous to joining Hatchett, she held a position in interior design with Ethan Allen Interiors. Ms. Locke earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the Art Institute of Atlanta. She is completing a degree in feng shuiand is an allied member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). Ms. Locke can be contacted at 770-227-5232 or Amy@HatchettHospitality.com Extended Bio...

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