Victoria has always been a thriving state when it comes to ongoing construction, home renovations and booming residential developments and the demand for hire tools and industrial equipment from tradies, builders, construction companies, homeowners and DIYers has been driving the expansion of Kennards Hire branches right across the Garden State.

This has been reflected by a steady increase of branches, which, with the latest openings of the First Branch of the Future prototype at a brand new site in Airport West and a hybrid branch in Port Melbourne, bring the state count to 29 Kennards Hire branches.

“Bringing the right equipment closer to our customers and being able to provide a wider range of tools, be it for our trades and DIYers or industry partners, is important to us. We really do stand behind our promise to make our customer’s job easy,” said Victorian General Manager, Lance Hawes.

“With nearly 30 branches right across Victoria and meeting demand where it is strongest, we feel we are achieving exactly what we set out to do,” he added.

The first Branch of the Future prototype, located at Airport West, has already grabbed the attention of customers.

The new site has plenty of room to implement and install innovative future technologies. Its unique features include a 12m high vertical storage machine with a storage capacity of 122sqm of equipment, new modular plant rooms and return area – just some of the points of the difference this 2500sqm, purpose-built site are using as they initiate future best-practice service delivery.

The more industry-focused Lift & Shift branch has moved from Abbotsford to Port Melbourne and now share a brand new site with the former South Melbourne Branch.
The new Port Melbourne site stretches over 3200sqm and has great access to major arterials, making it an easy option for customers to utilise when heading in or out of the CBD or surrounding areas.

With Lift & Shift moving to Port Melbourne, the Abbotsford site is now home to a brand new general hire branch, carrying an impressive range of tools such as demolition hammers, concrete saws, excavators and scissor lifts to name a few. Abbotsford is an area that is difficult to navigate during peak hour, so Kennards Hire has increased their presence in this area, adding a huge level of convenience for customers working nearby. The introduction of general hire products in Abbotsford increases Kennards Hire’s inner-city footprint to an impressive five branches.

Kennards Hire now also have a dedicated Site Solutions business located in Thomastown. This unit specialises in site equipment such as site sheds and offices, portable security cameras, dust monitoring, generators, fuel cells, toilets, ablution blocks, fencing, ground mats and trench shoring.

The team at Site Solutions don’t just hire the equipment, they also offer services such as site set up, along with automated waste removal and refuelling.
Having seen rapid growth over the past 12 months, this new subsidiary business unit is prime for further expansion.

Technology and efficiency naturally play a big part in remaining at the forefront of any industry, and equipment hire is no different.

“We’re always looking beyond our current branch network model for ways that we can be innovative while holding our customer’s experience at its core. Our expansion in Melbourne and the introduction of hybrid branches stand testament to this,” said Lance Hawes.

“We’re a business that takes pride in delivering new ways of making our customer’s job easy. Not only with providing extensive range of products, but by opening up new branches that make accessibility to our products and service offering easier.”