Local trades Move Up to Trade Central - 8th September 2006

MAB Corporation's Trade Central is meeting the needs of small trade businesses with its affordable, conveniently located and well-size warehouses.

The warehouse shells in the first Trade Central release range from 80 to 155 square metres and provide a professional work environment for small businesses looking to streamline their operations.

Trade Central is prominently situated on Keilor Park Drive, Keilor Park and 60% of warehouses, corporate office warehouses and showrooms have been committed in the first stage.

According to MAB Corporation's Senior Development Manager, Mr Will Vorrath, the key factors bringing local tradespeople to the warehouses are price, location and size.

"It would be difficult for a small trade business to buy a brand new, small warehouse for $155,000 to $255,000 anywhere else", Mr Vorrath said.

"Many of these tradespeople use their homes as an office and work base for equipment, products and tools. If they need extra storage, traditional warehouses are typically too large and expensive for a small business owner.

"Local tradespeople also spend their time driving from one trade supplier to another for materials, which often isn't convenient or productive. A warehouse owner can come to their store in the morning, grab the things they need for the day and be on the job efficiently.

Two warehouse purchasers endorse the benefits of this professional trade environment.

Tony Topcic of Advance Management, office fitout and refurbishment group, lives locally at Keilor Village and currently has his business in the city and storage space at Sunshine.
"For the first time, I will be able to combine both into the one unit at Trade Central, which for me has the added convenience of being close to my home", Tony said.

"The added bonus is that because of its size, it is very affordable and therefore represents the opportunity to own something at the end rather than just leasing it for years."

Size and location were also the motivating factors behind Paul Falzon's decision to purchase a warehouse.

Paul lives in Sunbury and owns PFC Communications, a telecommunications data cabling business. "I have been working out of my home garage and the warehouse is exactly what we needed", Paul said.

"We had been looking for a factory of 200 square metres or less that was well presented, so that we made a good first impression on our customers.

"Other factories in the area that we had looked at were shabby compared to Trade Central and the one we bought will also be able to accommodate any future growth of the business.

"We purchased a larger unit which is a good size to meet our current needs, but as the business expands we can look at building a mezzanine level."

Highlighting the complementary nature of the trade store environment, PFC Communications recently installed the telephone system of another trade store business.