At Stannah we’re in business to make life easier and more fulfilling for people. Whether that is getting goods from a basement to the shop floor, or helping people like Inge here, to get around her own home.
How would you say that the Stannah stairlift has changed your life?
Totally. Everybody is going to say that. I don’t know what else to say, Other than it looks as though it’s been there forever.
What made you think about having a stairlift in the first place?
Well really, with Inge going up the stairs on all fours it got to the stage where I was concerned that when she got to the top, she had to stand up and I was terrified she was going to fall backwards. I said we said “look, we’ve got to do this” and we both said “Look, we ought to go round to Stannah”.
Which we did and the reception there was just unbelievable.It really was, because we got as we say, it was a “cold call” in reverse, if you like. And they did us proud, they really did. They were excellent. A really excellent reception. Of course, coming from a sales background I was particularly impressed because I thought that’s the way I’d like to see it done, and it was. Absolutely.
Whyhy did you choose Stannah?
Well, in my case, it was purely the engineering side. It was so much better than anybody else. The quality as well, it comes across as being a very good product.
Pricing, interestingly enough, was a secondary consideration. The most important thing was safety for Inge and the fact that it was going to fit into the cottage here. A number of my friends have said, “But it fits in, Tony.” So neat. “So neat” is the word that they’ve used.
I think also that going to Stannah’s showroom and trying different ones and seeing them there. I think I needed to do that before I made a decision.
How was the experience with the Stannah engineers, I’m sure you would’ve loved that?
I did. It was stunning! I expected them to be here till at least the early hours of the evening. Instead of which, by lunch time, they’d finished!
And so efficient. Oh boy! The tidying up afterwards, those little things. I couldn’t believe it. It’s the attention to detail that makes all the difference, and it did they were super guys.
Of course, I ask the first question “How long have you been with Stannah?” It was a total of 46 years combined! So that tells a hell of a lot.
They also would’ve handed over the stairlift and explained how to use it?
Yes they did. It went smoothly. Lots of laughter and so forth, for the jokes. It was great.
When you used the stairlift that evening how did you feel?
Like I’d won the lottery pretty much. I don’t know how many times she went up and down. But it didn’t feel strange. I mean, it just felt so right. I mean after that, there was no stopping me. We’ve got our house back.
Yes, I’ve got a better husband as well now. I don’t have to ask him all the time for things. So I can do that all on my own, up and down.
And what would you say to anyone who is thinking about having a Stannah stairlift? Maybe putting the decision off. What would your advice be?
Don’t, but that’s easier said that done. I went through the process, and I’m sure everyone else does. I don’t need one, maybe next year, whatever.
It’ll come to a time, once you accept you can’t do what you always did, and you are going to need a stairlift, it’s easier after that. But you’ve got to get over that bridge, if you like. Because it’s not going to go away. And you really haven’t got a choice in the end.
So the trick is to, however hard, okay. I mean, the frustration I went through was unbelievable. I didn’t want to know, but I knew the time would come. Yes, absolutely.
I think also, that the people that are thinking about taking one, they should say right, upfront go for it. Because if anything should happen it’s not necessarily them that is going to suffer, it’s all the people around them who are going to suffer.
And that’s the key issue and they’ve got to think of that. It’s important to think of everybody around you, as well as yourself, to get it done.
At Stannah, we constantly assess our customers’ requirements and needs, as well as listening to their feedback so that we can continue to provide innovative solutions and engineer reliable products to make life easier for them in their own homes.
Any idea what you would’ve done if there no such thing as a stairlift?
I really do not know.