A specialist floor covering company whose customers include the Royal Household is laying firm foundations for its future, with a little help from Mercedes-Benz.
Llandudno-based Linney Cooper has taken delivery of an Extra Long-bodied Mercedes Sprinter 311CDI that has been adapted to take exceptionally long rolls of carpet – the passenger seats have been moved behind the driver to increase the length of the already generous load compartment.
The vehicle was supplied by North Wales Mercedes-Benz truck and van dealer Road Range Commercials.
Linney Cooper runs a fleet of 20 commercial vehicles, most of which are Long-bodied Sprinter 311CDIs. The company took delivery of two new Sprinters at the end of last year but its latest van is a two-year-old used model.
“We needed it very quickly to transport some expensive rugs so we had to take a pre-owned vehicle,” explains Managing Director Gareth Hughes. “It’s not something we normally do but we know the vehicle’s history and are satisfied it has been well looked after by Mercedes technicians.”
Linney Cooper supplies and installs carpets and other floor covering throughout the UK and has recently branched out into furniture and soft furnishings. It has retail outlets in Llandudno and Colwyn Bay, and an office and showroom in London.
The company holds two Royal Warrants and works closely with the National Trust, English Heritage and its Welsh counterpart Cadw. It has laid carpets at Windsor Castle, Newbury racecourse and the Queen's stand at Epsom, and has a long-running association with the Royal Albert Hall.
“The Royal Household is a major client of ours,” says Mr Hughes. “We’ve just completed the Ballroom, The State Dining Room and two other State Apartments at Buckingham Palace.”
Linney Cooper also sends its specialist fitters all over the world to installs carpets on ocean-going luxury yachts for a company based in Paris.
“Some of our old Sprinters have done 300,000 miles yet we’ve never had any serious problems with them,” continues Mr Hughes. “We tend not to keep them longer than five years, depending on the mileage. Then we semi-retire them and use them as back-up vehicles when others are being serviced."
Linney Cooper adds a number of optional extras to its already well-equipped Sprinters, including uprated security, tracking devices and satellite-navigation systems.
Although all new Sprinters come with a market-leading, three-year, unlimited mileage warranty, this is not a major consideration for Linney Cooper.
“We know from experience how incredibly reliable they are so we don’t expect to have to invoke the warranty,” adds Mr Hughes. “But it’s good to know that a manufacturer has that much faith in its products.” |
