Here at Castfireplaces a few weeks ago we altered the layout of our Modern Fireplace Packages to make it clearer for our customers.
We now have sections for each individual type including our original modern suites, and seperate categories for Portuguese Limestone, Micro Marble and Jura-stone.
This i feel has made it simpler for our customers to navigate around and im pleased to say we have seen a large increase in the sales of Modern Fireplaces due to this.
With our website name being Castfireplaces it leads itself towards the more traditional type of fireplaces and sometimes our customers do not realise we also offer modern fireplaces.
So we have had a these new categories done so its simpler for our customers to navigate and with an increase in our SEO strategy we are now seeeing good returns on our investment.
We will continue to monitor this over the winter months and with sales of these modern packages inproving both us and our suppliers are quite happy.
As we offer the best delivery service online you can be assured it will arrive in one piece, believe me these items are very fragile and need very special care when handling.
They are wrapped in a cradboard box with plenty of wrapping inside but as they are stone will break if mishandled, Castfireplaces are fireplace experts so are very used to handling items like this.
Right of to the showroom to meet one of our out of hours viewings bye for now
Posts Tagged ‘Fireplaces’
Modern Fireplace Suites are selling really well
Wednesday, June 29th, 2011Fireplace Logs are going to be in short supply again this year
Tuesday, November 9th, 2010Speaking to Various people as you do when you see them out and about i bumped into Mr Walvin this week from Walvins timber in Ripley who has a huge yard at Ripley wwhere he supplys fencing timber and also has Ripleys biggest mound of cut and split logs for fireplaces and stoves.
Last year for the first time i had to but some as i ran short and i called on him as i know him reasonably well and have passed our customers his details.
Anyway he asks me how were doing etc and how busy we are and he then tells me he has sold triple the amount of logs last month October than he did the year before.
He then tells me all the trees he had bought in all summer and last year he will cut and split within the next two months but expects to be out of stock by the start of February.
He says he has tried everyone he knows in the timber trade to buy seasoned felled trees in but no one is selling any wholesale as they all know how short supplys are going to be.
So my advice to anyone who has a wood burining or multifuel fireplace or stove is to stock up on logs now before
A the price increses due to the cold winter months
B stocks do run out and people start selling unseasoned timber which does not burn well.
Writing this makes me think how lucky i am to have got drates full of it in the summer months that should keep my Tiger Plus stove burning away all winter
Weather has turned cold time to light our fireplaces and Stoves
Sunday, September 26th, 2010Ok im sat in my office tonight writing this little blog and i must admit the central heating is now on.
You can tell the weather has started to turn cold as when i was returning from taking my dog a walk early this evening i could see quite a few chimney pots with smoke coming out of them.
This really is a sure sign that inside they have a lovely roaring fire going either burning coal or logs, what better way can an evening be spent than in front of a real fire with your family around you.
Call me old fashioned or nostalgic but i really do love solid fuel and the warmth it supplies.
So our Stove is now made up ready to light and the log basket is brimming with seasoned dry ash and oak logs all ready to light at the slightest hint of the next cold weather snap.
All i need to do is to fill up our bin full of kindling ready to start the stove for the next few months of cold weather.
Our Tiger Plus stove is in for another winters hard use i hope it really does fill the house with a glow and the noise of it crackling away is fantastic, something you do not get with radiators and a combi boiler.
Im not saying i would exchange them but to have a solid fuel fireplace or stove is great and every house should have one.
With so many people returning to burning wood and coal sales are still really high and we have loads of stoves arriving again this week to replenish stock levels.
So if you wish to purchase a solid fuel fireplace or stove you are already at the best place so have alook through our website and order something to heat your home in mans most ancient form of heating Fire there really is nothing like it.
Paris Highlighted and Daisy Fireplaces are Out Of Stock
Thursday, August 19th, 2010Quite unusual for us i know but as these two Fireplaces are ordered directly from China and not available anymore to most shops that deal in Gallery Fireplaces we have a little bit of a supply problem concerning both of these fireplaces.
We have sold all those we had left in stock infact we oversold the Paris Highlighted as a customer in Skegness ordered three and has now swapped two to the Nottage Fireplaces instead.
I was not aware of the stock shortage so please accept my apologies for us being out of stock.
They are due in again but not until October at the earliest which is not ideal but there is not much we can do as no other people in the Gallery group stock them anymore so it really is a waiting game.
We do have Paris Black in Stock which i will be adding to our website and also the Defra approved Carron Stoves arrive on Monday so they will be listed too.
On our website when anything is out of stock for a long while we have a little notice near the add to basket stating when it will be back in stock see photo below so you can see what i mean this advises our customers of delivery date.
When this has been removed or with all the other items on our website theres nothing there you are fine to order.
Sorry again for this happening it is beyond our control as to when they arrive
Crates of Fireplaces and Wooden Surrounds Arrive
Wednesday, August 18th, 2010It was like a scene of devastation at our factory today when 1st thing this morning we had some cast iron fireplaces delivered which were promptly unloaded by the forklift and john was back on his way to our suppliers to relaod his van with all the other things we need to dispatch this week.
After that little job had been done we had a load of Oak Mantels some made to measure that have been done whilst i have been on holiday arrive that were also unloaded and stacked away with customers names on to be despatched this week.
Friday we have all the Pine Bedfords and Worcester mantels arriving that have been made too and this is really just in time as i have let stocks drop a little low whilst i have been away.
Just to top it off all the extra Stoves we have ordered to increase our stock levels are arriving too this week and will be stacked in new Factory awaiting dispatch.
Luckily for us we have use of this building till the sale is completed otherwise i have no idea where i would have put it all.
Along with the Limestone Mantels that are due any day now we are really full of stock ready in time for the “Heating Season”.
All office work is now up to date with all the weeks routes planned and it is a very busy week so i only have Sundays customers to ring tomorrow regarding the Souths 3 delivery runs and then all is complete.
Thats not bad at all two days to catch up im pleased with that but i did cheat again and come in early this morning before the phone starts ringing it does give me a chance to get things sorted.
Im out delivering Fireplaces and Stoves around Birmingham tomorrow as there are too many for Stuarts Friday Run to the South west and South Wales.
So im back around lunchtime so untill thenm you will get the Lovely Rhian answering phone.
Can we buy spares for gas fireplace
Saturday, July 24th, 2010Today we have had two customers visit our factory only from Chesterfield which is a short drive to our factory and Showroom in Langley Mill.
They were unsure when they came as to what type of fireplace they wanted in the house but they knew the rough dimensions they wanted it to be, im quite used to this now and went through various options and styles and explained what was on offer for them.
After discarding the more modern type fireplaces they decided they wanted something more traditional for there 1960s built home and it had to be a gas fire.
After finding out they only really wanted it for decorative purposes i explained about the living flame fires, on this he asked where they were made which is quite normal as his fitter had told him only to buy a british made gas insert as you can not get spares fro the foreign fires.
This is quite true im afraid thats why all the gas fires we use are made in the UK and we can get sapres for any of these.
Not so important when the fire is brand new but a few years down the line when you require matrix sets or coals etc you do not want to be replacing fires because you can not obtain parts for it.
After i explained all this he was quite happy with the Jubilee and Brompton suite and wanted to order this, as he was a little unsure whether to choose 54″ or 51″ i told him to go home and draw both mantels on his wall to check which one would work best with his Television which is sat in the corner of the room near the fireplace.
We are never pushy with sales and our customers enjoy this when shopping with us, i want our customers to get it right as when it is fitted you will have to look at it everyday as your main focal point of the room so spend a little time taking and checking measurements and then if your happy with it we are too.
Both fireplaces would have fitted but you dont want a mantel shelf to come into view whilst watching Coronation Street and as for gas fires make sure you buy a british made one as mistakes will be costly in the future.
Introducing the New 42″ and 48″ Agean Brompton Limestone Mantel
Monday, July 19th, 2010So at last the new brompton mantel arrives in the 42″ and 48″ versions we have been waiting for and im sure you will agree it has well worth been waiting for.
It opens up a whole new option of limestone surrounds that have previously only been available in 48″ versions and larger to customers with smaller chimneys.
So now if you do have a small chimney breast and you want to use a limestone surround we do have an option for you not only in the brompton mantel but also the Ripley and our new plain corbel design.
Im the same at home i have a 48″ pembroke fireplace on my 50″ chimney breast and Rhian already tells me this is being removed and new 48″ Brompton limestone going in its place with the Henley arched insert.
So we do have them in stock ready to go with more arriving shortly and today i will be adding pictures and size options to our website so they will be available to buy from later today.
Im 100% sure these will become a great fast seller of ours and at the price we sell them for they are an absolute bargian.
Just one more thing they are 100% solid agean limestone which is a natural product so rest assured we do not compromise on quality to deliver our outstanding prices.
Take a look at the preview photo below as to what is heading into our front room
Do we buy Antique or Victorian Fireplaces
Wednesday, July 14th, 2010Often we get asked the question i have some antique fireplaces from our house would you be interested in buying them ive emailed you some photos.
Hera at Castfireplaces we only sell new fireplaces and stoves from the gallery and carron range and thats exactly what we do.
We do not have the time to restore original fireplaces and i even have some in stock that i bought 6 years ago and have never got round to having them renovated.
The problem with original antique fireplaces is the fact that they always sem to have bits missing whether it be bars hoods backs shelves etc they never seem to be complete and thats where the time factor comes into it sourcing them.
Also we do not have the facilities at our factory for proper restoration yes we can have them blasted and blacked up but as to welding and repairing them its not something i wish to undertake as a business.
I know of a few good firms who do nothing but originals and can point you in the right direction for you to sell them too but im afraid it is not something we undertake here at Castfireplaces.
I know most of you find us in google under antique fireplaces its just basically a phrase we use such as victorian fireplaces we dont sell them but people searching for those items do buy reproduction fireplaces confusing i know but thats the way it is.
Do you supply Stone Samples for your fireplaces
Tuesday, July 6th, 2010A nice simple question and the answer is yes we can supply colour and materail smaples for all our gallery fireplaces that we sell on our website.
Today we have had the following email
“I am looking to place an order on your website, however i am not sure which fireplace to go for as it is very difficult to get a true representation of the colour online – i was wondering if you had any samples in the JuraStone (cotsworld and chiltern) finishes as i am not sure which one to get.”
So its simple to sort out we do have small squres of stone that we can post out no problem at all free of charge.
This particular customer is based in Plymouth a little to far to come and view our showroom so i have emailed them back informing them samples will be sent 1st class in the morning.
So if you are browsing our Modern Suites section where we have all our Jura Stone range and you too require a stone sample so you can view colour and also feel the texture of the finish let us know and we will will post of sample for you too.
Its simple things like this what we do here at Castfireplaces to help our customers make a choice instead of just saying No we always try to find some soloution and over time we have had loads of business from it.
So on that note im now going to dissapear and wrap up the jura stone samples.
Dont forget we also have timber samples in Oak and Pine along with Limestone,Granite and Slate in stone
Bye for Now
Original Cast Iron Fireplaces at East Lodge
Thursday, July 1st, 2010Good afternoon to you i have had a lovely morning today after stopping at the East Lodge Country House Hotel last night for dinner and stopping in the luxury four poster room and returning back to work this morning just before lunch.
We both really had a nice evening and a lovely meal.
The East lodge Hotel also has some very nice fireplaces in it all original to the building and i must say the saddo that i am had a little look at a few of them whilst my wife was eleswhere.
The one in the four poster suite was a white marble surround with a large horseshoe arched insert to it which was painted with gloss paint.
Not a very good restoration job im afraid and the bars were missing but im sure most of the guests would not bat an eyelid at this but being in the fireplace trade i noticed straight away.
I an pretty sure we could source some bars for it if they really wanted them anyway thats another story, so im now sat at my desk completing orders and arranging delivery times for the work our fantastic website did whilst we were away.
Thats the joy of being in this job you can go away for a few days and then come back to a pile of work but on the downside when you do want some time away you can not just switch it off.
So thanks again to the Eastlodge for our complimentary champagne and i would really recommend stopping there if you fancy a really nice evening away