CORAL SPRINGS, FL--Melanie and Kody Townsend want to “transform the way people perceive moving.” The husband-and-wife team are the brains behind J&J Vanlines, a moving agency designed to streamline one of life’s most stressful experiences. Like a travel agency, moving agencies act as a third party between customers and local moving companies, coordinating cross-country moves with local movers while assisting the customer with everything from finding packing materials to transporting automobiles.
Located in Coral Springs, Florida, J&J Vanlines is a family-owned and operated business that can service anywhere in the US. Owner Kody Townsend worked as a mover for nineteen years, giving him invaluable insight into the moving industry, while his wife, Melanie, has a background in HR and talent acquisition. Together, they work with their team to coordinate commercial and long-distance moves with local movers. They offer concierge-style customer service, including white glove packing services, auto transport and storage.
The husband-and-wife dynamic duo sat down with nynewsyork.com in an exclusive interview.
“We play a pivotal role between the customer and the carrier,” Kody explained.
Partners are vetted with a seventeen-point checklist, and J&J Vanlines, has a claims process that includes insurance. “There’s a lot of benefits to using a moving agency. We have so many options, so you don’t get delayed,” Melanie said.
While moving can be an isolating and stressful experience, J&J Vanlines seeks to provide customers with additional support during an already stressful time. J&J Vanlines helps customers with the added reassurance of a trusted third party to support them through any snafus, working parallel with the moving company until your items are delivered safely.
“Before your move, you’ll be in contact with your moving consultant the entire time. We will also give you the contact information for the carrier. They’ll call you directly to schedule the pickup,” Melanie explained.
This process ensures that you have two points of contact. When you contact J&J Vanlines, they will put a claim together, take a reservation payment and contact a local carrier. The dates are flexible. J&J Vanlines will also ensure that all the prices are correct after everything has been loaded onto the trucks.
You can also choose to pay extra for an exclusive truck, meaning you won’t have to share the truck with anyone else. Exclusive trucks often do direct deliveries, meaning there will be no other stops along the way.
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Shared loads are coordinated along similar routes. Every shipment is color-coded. Each customer receives a fully itemized inventory list.
“Usually, everything is a shared load to keep costs down,” Kody explained.
Rates are based on how much room you take up in the truck by calculating the height and weight of the furniture.
The biggest difference between J&J Vanlines and a local moving company is that J&J specializes in long-distance moving. Local movers don’t go out of state and are paid hourly. Most jobs with a local moving company occur within a 300 mile radius.
Long-distance movers only move over state lines and are paid via a flat rate. Long-distance movers also operate within a pickup and delivery window, whereas local movers utilize a same-day delivery system.
For J&J Vanlines, there is a two-day pickup window where customers can pack as much or as little as needed.
“Pack like you’re going on a vacation for a couple weeks. Pack clothes, medication, and any important documents,” Melanie suggested.
After pickup, the items are returned to the terminal and loaded onto a trailer.
Ultimately, J&J Vanlines is passionate about empowering their customers to tackle one of life’s biggest challenges. “When we’re moving someone from an old place to a new place, we want to think it’s for the best,” Melanie said.
She continued, “We’re part of the journey.”
J&J Vanlines is located at 12427 NW 35 Street. Coral Springs, FL 33065
You can call their call center at 888-504-7642 any time between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. EST to speak with a representative
about getting a quote. You can also visit their website www.jjvanlines.com
or email them This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
By Rosie the Writer
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