Mayfair to Zurich: A Williams & Yates Removal Story

Two Collection Addresses

The first thing worth mentioning is that this move had two collection points. The client had a second home in Surrey, and the bulk of the contents came from their main property in Mayfair. That’s not unusual for the people we move, and it just means a bit more planning. We work out what’s coming from where, schedule the days around it, and pull it all together into one consignment.

The Fragile Pieces

There were eight gilt-edge mirrors on this job, and they need real care. Because they’re so fragile around all of the edges, they can’t simply be wrapped and laid flat. If a gilt mirror rests on its edge it’ll damage it. So each one goes into a bespoke crate built specifically for the mirror, and inside that crate we fit a batten so the mirror can hang. It’s effectively hanging on a wall, just inside the crate, which keeps it properly protected for the whole journey.

The chandeliers were the same kind of specialist work. There were six of them, and these weren’t standard light fittings, they were proper chandeliers that have to be completely dismantled. We bring in a chandelier specialist for this, and there are only a handful of them in the UK. They strip each chandelier down, take off every crystal, and wrap each piece individually, because there’s a specific way it has to be packed. Some of them go into special chandelier crates that have a hook in the top, so the chandelier hangs inside the crate rather than resting on the base. Then at the other end each one is rebuilt and reinstated at the new property.

On the Ground

The UK side ran over three days. There was a day in Surrey and two days in Mayfair, with a team of four across those days. We also had the chandelier specialist on site to dismantle and pack the chandeliers, and a handyman in to take the bolts out of the safes and dismantle a couple of four-poster beds.

At the destination it was two days. Day one was delivery and reassembly, getting all the content in and rebuilding everything we’d dismantled at the collection addresses. Day two was the full maid service.

The Full Maid Service

We offer different levels of unpacking. At the lighter end, we’ll unpack boxes to a flat surface and clear the packing materials, which suits clients who’d rather put things away in their own kitchen, cupboards and wardrobes exactly where they want them. This client paid for the full maid service, which is the white-glove version. We unpack every box, wipe down all the cupboards, put everything away, and we dress the beds with duvets and bedsheets. Everything is set up so the family can move straight in and sleep that night.

The Safes

There were two safes on this job, both bolted to the floor. We get a specialist in to unbolt them at the collection property, and at destination we reinstate them in situ for the client. One point worth making here: the safes are always emptied before we move them. We handle the safe itself, but not the contents.

The Wine Fridge and the Wine Collection

This was the interesting one. The client had a large double wine fridge, an American fridge-freezer size, very heavy and genuinely valuable.

Getting it into the Zurich property was the challenge. It wouldn’t go in the normal way, so we arranged a glazier to remove a window and hired an external elevator to lift the fridge up and in through the opening. Before any of that, we made sure we’d asked all the right questions about the window so we turned up with the right plan.

The wine itself travelled separately. The client had an extensive collection, and it had to go temperature controlled, which means a completely separate refrigerated vehicle. Red and white sit at different temperatures, so they’re kept in separate zones in the van to hold them at their ideal temperature for transit.