Retailer Spotlight: Mendip Mobility
Meeting customers’ needs
Mendip Mobility recently welcomed new customers into its new showroom in Bridgwater, Somerset…
Mendip Mobility opened its fourth mobility showroom in Bridgwater, Somerset earlier this year. The family run business has been running in the southwest of England since 2007 and also has retail outlets in Street, Trowbridge and Yeovil in Somerset and Wiltshire.
Stocking mobility scooters, powerchairs, adjustable beds, rise & recliiners, wheelchairs and more, Mendip Mobility stocks brands such as Able2, Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare, Motion Healthcare, Pride Mobility, Dash Rehab, CosiChair and Electric Mobility with its team priding themselves on their product knowledge and customer commitment.
Helen Allcock, Store Manager at Mendip Mobility in Bridgwater, explains that the customer has always been at the very heart of Mendip Mobility’s service.
“We want to provide a valuable service to people in the community,” says Helen. “Disabilities can affect anyone at any stage of their lives and they can have a huge impact on the people around us and this was something close to the heart of the family when the business was established. 
“We have a commitment to putting customers first, helping to ease their daily challenges and pride ourselves on our approachable nature and industry knowledge.”
Apart from Helen, other key people at Mendip Mobility include Jason Delange, who is the General Manager of the showrooms at Bridgwater, Yeovil and Trowbridge.
Says Helen: “At the moment we just have two staff members at Bridgwater but we will be expanding soon.
“All our staff across the stores have their specialities which offers an extensive knowledge base to our customers.”
Mendip Mobility also has a technical team based at its Street branch which cover the local area for all technical issues arising for their product users.
New showroom
The Bridgwater showroom is located directly off Junction 23 of the M5. Bridgwater itself has a rich industrial history and the showroom sits within a large unit at the industrial end of the town. There is plenty of free allocated parking and the location is easily accessible from town.
The site works really well, Helen says: “Having such a large open interior allows the products to be really visible to the customer. There’s an indoor area to test products on colder days but plenty of outdoor space too.”
Finding a site suitable for their needs had been challenging, Helen explains, as with any location there’s always pros and cons but there were a few key factors on the checklist that they were lucky enough to encompass within the unit in Bridgwater.
“Space and parking were two big considerations and we have an abundance of both,” add Helen. “We wanted to be accessible. Bridgwater is a very busy place, and we have lots of passing traffic, but we’re also a stone’s throw from the main stores like Sainsbury’s and Marks and Spencers.”
This was a huge space to prepare for the opening, she says. “There were many challenges getting it up and running. Just getting the keys took longer than expected but with an active deadline to work to we managed to pull together and get everything set up and looking great for opening!”
The store has a large open space which Helen says enables them to stock a wide variety of products from different manufacturers. “We particularly love that there’s plenty of indoor area to test drive and lots of product visibility so customers can peruse. We wanted to keep the feel of the open nature of the space by not overcrowding.”
Helen explains that opening the store in Bridgwater has opened them up to a younger demographic than some of their other stores and the Motability Scheme is already proving to be very popular. Many older customers visit the store as well and there’s a real variety of product interest.”
Word-of-mouth has been the best source of footfall, with many people locally recognising the Mendip Mobility brand as it has been in the vicinity and fostering good relationships with customers for 18 years. Local advertising and leaflet drops all helped to promote the new store opening, with some finding out about the store through online search engines such as Google.
Innovative products
Staff at Mendip Mobility all have different skill sets and specialise in different product areas. Jason, the General Manager, has a special interest in powerchairs and wheelchairs, while Helen particularly enjoys working with rise & recliners and beds.
Pavement scooters such as Motion Healthcare’s Airscape mobility scooter and lightweight powerchairs are proving to be particularly popular at the moment with many customers looking forward to getting out and about in the summer months.
Helen says: “The local area has a wide variety of product users because of its location, the roads carry lots of heavy lorries and so some users want a robust product but want to avoid road use due to the traffic, so pavement scooters have been a great solution to this.”
Mendip Mobility has seen an increase in the sale of lightweight folding powerchairs at the showroom. “With these more readily available they make accessing the local area easier for people with mobility issues but are lightweight and small enough to pop in the boot of a car without any hassle.
“We’re not far from some wonderful countryside and the seaside so our products definitely have to be capable of coping with all kinds of situations.”
Pride Mobility’s Outback powerchair, which has designed to handle rugged terrain with ease, is one of the newer products to be stocked in the showroom, and looks set to appeal to customers seeking to experience the freedom of the great outdoors.
Helen says that Mendip Mobility has a good relationship with their suppliers and like to work closely with them. “We aim to maintain a responsive service to customers supported by our positive supplier relationships. We’re always interested in new products, especially those that bring something different to the table.
“Our commitment to customer service also means we need to rely upon our brands to be supportive when issues arise and we’re lucky to work with some great industry leaders.”
Community links
This year Mendip Mobility is focused on reaching out to the local community and fostering links, says Helen. “Our ethos is integral to our service and it’s important our customers know what type of business we are. The business has already started to pick up pace as the sun has started to shine so we’re looking forward to a busy summer and hopefully some product expansion.”
The firm’s ecommerce site allows customers to see the range of products the store has available before popping into store. “Our website has been a valuable point of reference for many customers though nothing beats popping into store and being able to test out a product and speak to our staff in person!”
Helen continues: “E-commerce is important, especially when customers know what they are purchasing. It also provides an opportunity for them to research what they want and is often a first point of reference for many people, particularly younger product users.”
As for its future plans, Mendip Mobility just wants to get the word out that they are here and let people know what kind of company we are.
“We love helping our customers and are looking to expand our team accordingly so we can hopefully open for longer hours.”
Helen admits that there are challenges within the market with a wide range of products more readily available online, and acknowledges that price is a particular consideration for a lot of people when purchasing.
“It’s important we stock a range of cost effective products that serve those people with limited budgets.
“On a more practical level we believe there’s a wider variety of product users with different requirements and ages and so the challenge of the sector will be making products flexible enough to cater for that range of need. New innovations are needed constantly.”
At present Mendip Mobility have four stores and so have plenty to manage but Helen says that they are always looking for products to improve and extend their range. “We want to be able to meet customer’s needs and provide the best quality products we can so that’s where the innovations from our suppliers comes in.”
