POOL & SPA INDUSTRY
Malibu Hot Tubs –
A Moving SuccessStory
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. NEVER WAS THE SAYING MORE TRUE FOR MIDLANDS BASED MALIBU HOT TUBS, WHO AFTER TWO MOVES IN JUST THREE YEARS, HAVE FOUND THE PERFECT LOCATION FOR GROWTH AND CONTINUED SUCCESS
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stablished in 2007, BISHTA members Malibu Hot Tubs have developed an enviable reputation for providing their customers with a warm, friendly and non pressurised sales experience, coupled with a “second to none after care service”.
The name was chosen to give an ‘exotic’ feel to the business and the owner Franklin Hill runs the business single-handedly with occasional support.
Initially based at a large garden centre in
Trentham Gardens on the outskirts of the ‘Potteries’, Franklin quickly recognised that the general visitors were not looking for hot tubs and he realised that he needed quality and genuine interested people to make the business a success. With this in mind, the business moved to a different location in an industrial estate in Stone, Staffordshire in December 2009.
The site was selected because it already had a large retail presence and predictably, the overall footfall reduced, but sales increased substantially the following year. However, the growth slowed and Franklin realised the need to find a location which would make them more visible. In late 2012, the opportunity arose to move to an old car sales showroom and petrol sales forecourt only three miles away. The
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new showroom is located between Stone and Stafford on the A34 trunk road (which doubles up as the M6 when the motorway closes between J14-16, which is at least once a week!).
Statistics have revealed that a whopping 4.7 million vehicles drive by the premises annually (plus that additional diverted traffic off the motorway). From day one, Malibu’s philosophy has been to provide it’s customers with the ‘best quality and value for money’ products that they can. Their first supplier of hot tubs was Spa Crest Europe (also a BISHTA member), who they felt offered them exactly what they were looking for. This decision has proved to be the right one after having built up a strong relationship with both distributor and
manufacturer over many years and with both companies sharing the same business ethics. In 2009 Jacuzzi invited Malibu Hot Tubs to be appointed as authorised dealers to strengthen their presence in the Midlands. This has also been a very successful union and has produced good growth, year on year. Malibu are seeking a substantial growth this year in sales for both Jacuzzi and Spa Crest Europe products, despite the late start to the season and believe a 25-30% increase in growth will be achievable from the new site. To aid this, the company will be offering their customers interest-free options when purchasing either of it’s hot tub brands. This growth will hopefully also be reflected in the sales of chemicals and accessories too. Once completed, the refurbished showroom will accommodate 12 display tubs (two of which are located in a ‘Wet Test’ area). This area can be closed off from the rest of the showroom to allow potential buyers privacy when ‘test driving’ a hot tub.
The showroom is so large that Franklin has been able to sub-let a substantial part of it to a kitchen and bathroom retailer and installer. He feels this complements his business perfectly, bringing in similar discerning customers who may also be interested in the lifestyle and leisure products that his business offers.
In their quest to provide customers with the ultimate shopping experience, Malibu can also offer saunas, hot tub enclosures/ buildings, weather proof TVs, traditional in-and outdoor games, fireworks and eco friendly palm wood designer furniture. All the hot tub enclosures are manufactured by Cedartree UK and are of beautiful design and quality, offered in a vast range of options including cedar shingle or atrium roofs, glazed sides, solid sides, louvre sides, French doors, bi-fold doors. These are all available from 2.8m square. The company is also licensed to sell fireworks during the usual festival dates, but are looking at obtaining a year-round licence shortly and are expecting their location to produce a significant increase in sales of these ‘Big Boys’ toys! Franklin holds charity events in the grounds of his showroom in aid of his favourite charity ‘Help for Heroes’. Constantly looking for new and innovative complementary products, the company intend to keep adding to the already large range that they have available for it’s clientele, in an aim to keep the shopping experience ‘fresh’. The new showroom is not yet completed, with flooring, second fix carpentry, electrics, signage and point of sale material still to be added. Franklin anticipates that the final completion date will be in early June and is looking forward to the continued success of the company and strengthening existing and forging new partnerships.
Malibu Hot Tubs 01889 508787
www.malibuhottubs.co.uk
SPN June 2013 39
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