A BARRY business has left the ‘dark ages’ after coronavirus forced them to adapt.

HWB Mobility, a family-run business opened in 2010, has changed their way of working to keep their business afloat during the pandemic.

The company, which specialises in furniture for people with disabilities – such as reclining chairs, adjustable beds, and more – is owned by Julie Campbell whose partner, Andrew Morgan, is their sale consultant.

Mr Morgan said: “We didn’t have a shop. We used to visit clients in their homes with brochures, swatch books and demonstration models.

“This came to an abrupt halt because of the pandemic, with us no longer visiting clients face to face.

“This was a moral decision we made early on, as many of our customers are in high-risk categories, and we won’t be operating like this until it’s safe.”

Mr Morgan, who had five years’ experience in the industry before the couple launched HWB Mobility more than a decade ago, added that he misses the old way of working, but the business has now gone online, with the delivery and installation team still operating in a covid secure manner.

“Prior to the pandemic our business was in the dark ages,” joked Mr Morgan.

“We had the ambition to make the website, but we kept putting it off and making excuses.

“When lockdown came, we ran out of excuses, it was either make a website or go mental.”

IN OTHER NEWS:

This is when Graham Davies’ Barry-based graphic company, GD Graphics, stepped up, building a website for HWB Mobility.

Mr Davies said: “We were pleased to win the commission to design and build the new HWB Mobility website.

“Andrew wanted to keep the project local and explained how he wanted to challenge the larger companies in his market with competitive pricing by reducing overheads and moving everything online with a new website.

“Andrew had a clear vision for the website and challenged the team with his exceptional attention to detail. The products he is selling have many variables associated with them including finishes, add-on facilities and a range of optional accessories that all determine their final cost.

"We are pleased to have met the brief within budget and presented the offerings in a way which makes it easy for customers to select the options and styles they want.

“The challenge now for HWB Mobility is raising awareness of the website and ensuring it is seen by the target market as they really do have a compelling offer.”

HWB Mobility is based at www.hwbmobility.co.uk

The business boasts that it offers the nation’s lowest prices. When it was established the employees checked various price lists and ‘meticulously’ trawled the internet to see competitor prices for every product they offer.

“Business is better now, as no website meant no sales,” said Mr Morgan.

“It’s a slow burner though, certainly not a get rich quick scheme. Now it’s just about getting our name back out there.”