As a registered charity, County Durham Furniture Help Scheme collects donated furniture and whitegoods across the County free of charge.
CDFHS then cleans, restores these items alongside new entry-level whitegoods and furniture supplying it at an affordable price to low-income families or anyone looking for a bargain.
The primary aim of CDFHS is to provide any individual in need with low-cost, affordable items – primarily furniture, but their scope has expanded in recent years to include all types of household items including new ones from beds to cookers.
OVERVIEW
As a registered charity, Chilton-based County Durham Furniture Help Scheme collects donated furniture and whitegoods across the County free of charge. CDFHS then cleans, restores these items alongside new entry-level whitegoods and furniture supplying it at an affordable price to low-income families or anyone looking for a bargain.
As a not-for-profit enterprise, a cost-effective approach to running their business is of paramount importance to County Durham Furniture Scheme. Aware that any potential savings could be reinvested into the business, CDFHS identified in GAS a company with the expertise and industry-leading portfolio of services they required.
GAS’s experience and unrivalled buying power in the sector enabled them to identify a new energy supplier that not only provided significant cost saving on their current contract, but was also an ideal fit for their business model.
SOLUTION
After identifying that CDFHS were paying more for their energy than they needed, GAS’s team of industry-leading energy procurement specialists utilised their extensive knowledge of the market to identify a new supplier capable of providing the same high-quality service at a more cost-effective rate.
GAS’s experience and unrivalled buying power in the sector enabled them to identify a new energy supplier that not only provided significant cost saving on their current contract, but was also an ideal fit for their business model.
In order to maximise their savings across the business as a whole, GAS consultants were also able to work side-by-side with the team at CDFHS to substantially reduce their current VAT charges, with GAS ensuring this dropped from 20% down to just 5%.
BENEFITS
- Experience significant cost savings of £22,700 throughout their relationship with GAS.
- Establish long-term control over their future business costs.
- Maximise the accuracy of their financial forecasts with a tighter control over spending.
- Reinvest savings back into the business and improve the service they offer to the local community.
TESTIMONIAL
“The money that GAS has helped us to save has enabled us to make our household items more affordable for the people who really need them. We will continue to work with the company to identify other areas where we can reduce costs and improve our efficiency.
“Coupling the tangible cost saving with advice, guidance, availability to bounce ideas off, support at meetings and pro-active participation, GAS’ service has been priceless. Our work together has categorically helped CDFHS get where it is and allowed us to keep firm, demonstrable control over the costs we are passing on to our customers.”
Steve Mitten, CEO, County Durham Furniture Help Scheme