4 days to go, and we only decided THIS AFTERNOON to accept a counter offer from FJ Worldwide Movers to pack, warehouse, ship, clear and deliver our personal effects from SIN to MEL.
Why so last minute?
We were still trying to drive down the cost of the process, that's why.
It finally came down to 2 choices: go with my pal Eric's suggestion of hiring professional movers while he takes care of the sea freight and the Oz part of things, or engage a one-stop service provider like FJ for a fixed fee.
What helped us decide was the professional demeanour of FJ's rep John Wong, who made a 2nd trip to our place this afternoon to survey our (dismal) packing progress, explained what the breakdown of figures given by Eric translated into in $, and made a counter offer that pretty much matched what Eric's co had offered.
End result: JW lowered the quote by $500. So for a fixed figure of $3.5k, I can now sit back, put my puffy feet up and let the pros worry about what goes where and how to get our things from A to B.
I wouldn't say the exercise was a waste of time. Nothing's ever wasted. Now I know how physically gruelling it can be to do your own packing. I know what goes into a co's consideration before a quote is given. I also know how much margin there is for negotiating. I wouldn't have known all this if there hadn't been a competitor to compare with, or if I didn't have a contact in the freight forwarding industry who was willing to disclose info normally known only to industry practitioners.
So thanks a whole heap Eric! :-)
And thank YOU, Lord. *lol*
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