What is "wridgways"

Santa Fe Wridgways is a removalist and relocation services company based in Australia. Founded in 1892, Santa Fe Wridgways specialises in household and commercial furniture removals, employee relocations and fittings and equipment relocations. The company has 30 offices and approximately 470 employees in Australia.

In September 2010, Wridgways went from being a public traded company to private limited company and agreed a $2.80-a-share cash offer (plus 11c final div) from Hong Kong-based Santa Fe. Wridgways management had acknowledged the limited local growth prospects in a close to saturated Australian market. The sale was made possible after an Australian court approved the sale after winning 75% of the shareholders support.

The evolution from humble beginnings to a global relocation organisation:

• 1892 – Ernest Wridgway purchased a furniture horse and van in Camberwell which became involved in local and country removals. And so began Wridgways.
• 1914 –Ernest’s son Bert began driving two horses. In this time first interstate removal completed by road. Melbourne to Brisbane. This took 6 weeks to return.
• 1918 - First to pioneer overland Melbourne to Perth by truck.
• 1926 – Continuing its pioneering spirit, Wridgways started the first known instance of sub-contracting in the transport industry when Bert Wridgway sub-contracted to his father.
• 1927 - The first international shipment took place, utilising a lift van and shipped on a door-to-door basis. This first occurred from Melbourne to San Francisco, USA.
• 1928 – Bert registered his own company known as Wridgways Bros and purchased a property in Auburn, Melbourne.
• 1934 - The first multi-storey furniture storage facility was built in Auburn, Melbourne.
• 1950 - Pioneered overland transport by truck to Darwin.
• 1961 – While the world was embracing free love, Wridgways was the first public company formed in Australia engaged solely in furniture removals.
• 1962 - The first palletised containers used for storage were introduced. These innovative storage packs invented by Wridgways were called ‘homepacks’ and that practice was adopted on a global scale.
• 1966 - The first removalists in the world to move furniture using containers.
• 1972 – Wridgways Received a takeover bid from Ansett Transport Industries Limited which was accepted, Wridgways The Removalists then became known as Ansett Wridgways.
• 1984 - First to use Rail / 20’ container system across Australia.
• 1994 - Sold in 1994 to TNT Australia Limited and so the growth continued.
• 1997 - TNT Australia Limited agreed to a Management Buy Out (by key management and Venture Capital Firm Catalyst) led by Des Stickland.
• 1999 - First and only moving company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.
• 2001 – Due to customers complaining about their creased clothing Wridgways responded and invented the now globally acclaimed and used Port-A-Robe carton.
• 2005 – First removalist to innovate the plasma carton for the protective packaging and safe transportation of large screen TVs.
• 2010 – Wridgways becomes part of London-based The Santa Fe Group.
• 2015 – Santa Fe Wridgways appointed new CEO Andrew Simpson.