The GoVacuum Blog

This past November, during one of our highest seasons, the GoVacuum staff packed up its stuff, and the company’s entire inventory and moved warehouses. We simply reached our capacity at our warehouse in Sterling, Virginia and had to move into a bigger space to make sure we could continue to accommodate all of our customers’ orders. Thanks to the perseverance and hard work of our staff, we didn’t even have to disrupt our shipping services for even one day!

Over the past few months, we have been excited to move into this new state-of-the-art facility in Chantilly, Virginia. With 5,000 square feet, we can now handle customer orders more quickly and efficiently. I’m posting some pictures of the new warehouse for your enjoyment.

Warehouse Staff
Warehouse Entrance

We also published a press release, inviting everyone to our Grand Opening on February 7th, 2009. All are welcome! Check out the press release below:

Unprecedented Growth Necessitates GoVacuum Relocation to Chantilly Warehouse

Public Invited to Attend Grand Opening Festivities on February 7

CHANTILLY, VA–(Marketwire – February 4, 2009) – GoVacuum, a leading retailer of vacuum cleaners and accessories, will celebrate the grand opening of a brand new state-of-the-art warehouse on Saturday, February 7. The new facility in Chantilly, at 14500-G Lee Road, is a significant upgrade over the company’s previous location in Sterling; with 5,000 square feet, it is approximately three times the size of its predecessor.

GoVacuum posted a dramatic sales increase despite adverse economic conditions last year and the Sterling location could no longer handle the increased amount of business. With two shipping stations, the new warehouse can process twice as many orders as the old facility. The site also has a dedicated sales and marketing office, which allows the company to house its sales personnel under one roof.

“Since we moved last November,” commented Bill Anand, CEO of GoVacuum, “the new facility has exceeded all of our expectations. Above all, customers are going to benefit the most.”

The move is a milestone for the locally owned company, which started in 1976 with just one brick-and-mortar store. In 1999, the company launched a Web site that allowed it to reach a national consumer base. Since then, the company has been growing in sales volume and product selection, necessitating the move to a larger, more efficient space.

To celebrate the move to the new facility, GoVacuum is extending an invitation to the general public and media to a grand opening celebration at noon on February 7th to thank its customers. The company will be providing complimentary food and beverages and tours of the warehouse. All guests will also receive a complimentary gift.

For additional information about GoVacuum or Saturday’s grand opening celebration, contact Chris Jones at 1-866-468-2288. You can also visit GoVacuum’s retail stores, Vacuums Unlimited.

About GoVacuum and Vacuums Unlimited — Family-owned and operated for more than 30 years, Vacuums Unlimited currently has four retail locations in the suburban Washington, D.C. area, and ships popular vacuums and hard-to-find replacement parts to customers across the United States (and to military bases around the world) through its Internet subsidiary, GoVacuum.com. Retail locations are located in Fairfax, Vienna, Herndon, and Chantilly.

Vacuums Unlimited and GoVacuum sell a full range of vacuum cleaners, air cleaners, bags, belts, filters, parts and accessories for brand names such as Miele, Riccar, SEBO, Kirby, Electrolux, Hoover, Haan, Eureka, Powr-Flite, IQAir, Blueair, Roomba, AirFree, Bissell, Bosch, Dirt Devil, Earlex, Karcher, Koblenz, Ladybug, Love-Less Ash Fireplace Vacs, Lindhaus, Oreck, Royal, Rainbow, Sanitaire, and more.

Unlike “Big Box” or department stores, Vacuums Unlimited and GoVacuum have truly knowledgeable sales associates who specialize in vacuums and air cleaners. They are able to offer real advice, frank comparisons, and expert recommendations for both commercial and household needs. Bilingual operators (English/Spanish) are available seven days a week at 1-866-GoVacuum (468-2288).

Link: http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Govacuum-945755.html

Nothing is more frustrating than not finding the specific thing you are searching for when shopping for anything online. It is even more frustrating when the product you are searching for is only described with a specific model or part number, as is the case with many of the accessories we sell on GoVacuum.com. As a result, we’ve improved the search function on our site, users now are able to find those detailed parts, accessories and vacuum cleaners and even sort their results by price and relevancy.

We are actively monitoring our search results so that we can continue to improve our site’s usability on a daily basis. If you have any questions or comments about the search feature or the site in general, feel free to e-mail us at info@govacuum.com or leave a comment below.

GoVacuum Offers 30 Day Risk Free Trial on SEBO Vacuums

GoVacuum’s confidence in Sebo vacuum cleaners inspires company to offer the excitement of Sebo ownership with no risk, allowing customers to return Sebo vacuums at no cost.

Sterling, VA (PRWEB) September 16, 2008 — GoVacuum, an online leader of vacuum and air purifier sales, announces a new 30 day risk free trial offer for customers who purchase SEBO vacuums. GoVacuum guarantees the purchase of new SEBO machines by covering all costs for the product’s return within 30 days of purchase if customers aren’t completely satisfied.

SEBO X Series upright vacuums placed first in GoVacuum’s best vacuum profile series during August of 2008, taking honors for being the best upright vacuums available in the floor care industry.Results can be seen on their YouTube channel

Customers interested in SEBO vacuum cleaners can take advantage of the risk free 30 day trial offer either in person at GoVacuum’s retail store locations (Vacuums Unlimited) in the DC area, online at GoVacuum.com or by calling a sales representative any day of the week at 1-866-468-2288.

For additional information about GoVacuum and its many special offers, contact Chris Jones at 1-866-468-2288 or visit http://www.govacuum.com. Free, no-pressure demonstrations and advice are also available at any of Vacuums Unlimited’s four retail locations in Northern Virginia. No appointment is necessary.

About GoVacuum and Vacuums Unlimited – Family owned and operated for more than 30 years, Vacuums Unlimited operates four retail locations in Northern Virginia and ships popular vacuums and hard-to-find replacement parts to customers throughout the United States (and to military bases around the world) through its internet subsidiary, GoVacuum.com. They have retail locations in Fairfax, Vienna, Herndon and Sterling; all four locations are Authorized Sebo Dealers. GoVacuum.com, in existence since 1996, has an impressive record of friendly customer service and great frequent-buyer-discounts. Customers love the site’s ease of use, huge inventory, and unbeatable prices.

Vacuums Unlimited and GoVacuum sell a full range of vacuum cleaners, air cleaners, bags, belts, filters, parts and accessories for Dyson, Riccar, SEBO, Kirby, Electrolux, Hoover, Eureka, Powr-Flite, IQAir, Blueair, Roomba, AirFree, Bissell, Bosch, Dirt Devil, Earlex, Karcher, Koblenz, Ladybug, Love-Less Ash Fireplace Vacs, Lindhaus, Oreck, Royal, Rainbow, Sanitaire and more.

Unlike “Big Box” or department stores, Vacuums Unlimited and GoVacuum have genuinely knowledgeable salespeople that specialize in nothing but vacuums and air cleaners. They are able to offer real advice, frank comparisons and expert recommendations for commercial and household needs alike. Call 7 days a week at 1-866-468-2288.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/09/prweb1316684.htm

It’s that time of year again. Summer makes a welcome return into our lives. Here in Northern Virginia we are lucky to have a beautiful 85 degree, cloudless day. Over the weekend we enjoyed the sounds of the Harley Davidson’s roaring into DC for the Rolling Thunder’s annual Memorial Day parade.

Here at GoVacuum we have scrambled all weekend to put together a Summer sale for our customers. Recently, we decided to reorganize our warehouse in order to accommodate the growth in product selection and decided to do something with the number of returned items we had. Sometimes customers return machines because they were sent the wrong machine, or because they simply didn’t think the machine fit their cleaning needs. As a result, we are left with a significant number of machines that are brand new but have damaged or opened packaging. Instead of throwing away these machines, we decided to sell these online to customers.

There is a wide variety of machines available on this list ranging from higher end machines to budget value machines priced under $100. As summer begins, many customers are looking for a low price machine that can be used for quick cleanups around the house or a new machine for a summer house that won’t break the bank.

In addition to the “Scratch and Dent” offerings, we are offering sales on majority of the brands we carry with discounts of up to 30%. The sale, however, is only available over the phone or in person in our vacuum retail stores (Vacuums Unlimited) in Northern Virginia. This is for two reasons: the discounts are only available on the current inventory we have because almost all brands have announced price increases for the next quarter and many of the products we carry limit the discounts we can offer online (Minimum advertised pricing – MAP pricing).

The sale will only last through Sunday June 15, 2008 so pick up the phone today and call 1-866-468-2288 or visit one of our vacuum retail stores (Vacuums Unlimited) in Northern Virginia. (We’d love to meet you in person!).

Check out all our sale offerings here.

A couple of years ago we published a Spring Cleaning list, outlining some cleaning tips for your Springtime needs. We are publishing the list again for your benefit. If you have any tips yourself, feel free to leave them in the comments section below.

Spring is here, and with it all the freshness of a new season and bright starts. What a great time to get rid of a whole winter’s worth of built-up dust and grime. Of course, you’d rather be outside enjoying the fresh air and bright green… But with a thorough cleaning, you can bring all the fragrant crispness of springtime indoors. Realistically, where do you spend most of your time anyway? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to enjoy spring inside and out?

There’s a lot to do, but with a solid checklist and some creative use of your vacuum, you can make the process easier and end up with a far cleaner home. You may even be able to diminish some of your family’s seasonal allergies by making your indoor living environment a cleaner and dust-free one.

Use our tips below to get the most out of your vacuum. Don’t forget to put on some music to make the process slightly more enjoyable, wear comfortable clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty, and have all your supplies ready before you begin, so you don’t waste time mid-cleaning, running out to the store. Also, open the windows to let some spring air in and toxic cleaning fumes out. Consider investing in an air cleaner to really tackle impurities and keep the air in your home spring-fresh year-round.

* The Obvious: Vacuum your carpets, vacuum your floors — vacuum everything.
* If cleaning wood floors, vacuum and then dust mop.
* Steam clean floors and carpets with a vapor steam cleaner like the Ladybug to completely rid your home of mold, dust, mites and allergens without the use of harsh chemicals.
* Dust and vacuum all corners and crevices. Dust falls downward, so remember to go from top to bottom.
* Vacuum or wash your curtains.
* Vacuum your baseboards, windowsills, heating vents, and tops of bookcases.
* Vacuum under all beds and furniture — don’t forget to vacuum in the corners and along walls — that’s what all those cool attachments are for! Use the crevice tool to clean around wheels and legs, etc.
* Vacuum and flip your mattress; using the upholstery tool, vacuum the top and sides of your mattress to remove dust, lint, mites, and allergens. Then, flip and rotate the mattress to even out wear. Vacuum your boxspring to top it all off.
* Vacuum your lampshades.
* Clean computer and electronic equipment. Using your handy attachments, clean the crevices and between keyboard keys; use a dusting brush attachment on speaker covers.
* Vacuum out your stove vents and counter tops. Don’t forget to clean your attachments after cleaning your vents, to avoid spreading the accumulated dirt to stainable surfaces.
* Vacuum your bathrooms before cleaning them — this will make it easier to remove dust and hair that sticks when wet.
* When cleaning your refrigerator out, after removing all the drawers and removable trays, vacuum the refrigerator coils using the crevice tool attachment. Don’t forget to wash the drawers and trays in soap and water before putting them back in.
* Spot clean your upholstery using a protective chemical cleaner or a portable deep cleaner like the Bissell SpotBot.

We know that cleaning up your house inevitably leads to you throwing out a bunch of stuff that has been cluttering your house for years. Below is a list of places that may help you get rid of your clutter in a more environmentally friendly and altruistic way.

Donate Your Clutter!
While cleaning, you will inevitably find clothes, toys, books, knick-knacks furniture, and tons of other stuff that you no longer have a use for. Well, someone else could probably put them to good use! We’ve listed some worthwhile charities below for your donating convenience. Please contact us if you know of any other charities that you’d like to see added to the list. The Salvation Army – Adult Rehabilitation Centers

Goodwill – your donations will be sold; the profits will be used to fund job training and other career services that help people become successful at work.

Big Brothers Big Sisters – donate clothing, furniture, office supplies or exercise equipment to help create successful mentoring relationships.

HopeLine® – donate used cell phones to victims of domestic violence for use in emergencies.

Dress for Success – Suits to Self-sufficiency – donate old suits to low-income women to encourage self-sufficiency through career development and employment.

We issued a press release about our new Miele Diamond Dealer status (yes, we’re very excited). A copy of it is below for posterity.

Family-owned small business in DC Metro area awarded Miele Diamond Dealer status. New expanded and exclusive vacuum and cleaning product inventory available to area residents and online shoppers.

Fairfax, VA, March 13, 2007 — The innovative German appliance manufacturer, Miele, maintains high standards for all of its authorized dealers; Diamond Dealer status is the highest level of achievement possible and provides unrivaled opportunities. Vacuums Unlimited is now a Miele Diamond Dealer, the leading Diamond Dealer in Northern Virginia, and is excited to pass the new benefits on to its customers. Diamond dealers are chosen based on a proven track record of knowledgeable salespeople and outstanding customer service over many years. Diamond dealers are rewarded with specialized trainings, incentives and an exclusive expanded inventory that only they can offer their customers. Customers interested in vacuums, air cleaners, and floor care products will find the full selection and most helpful salespeople at a Miele Diamond Dealer, like Vacuums Unlimited.

For additional information about Vacuums Unlimited and its new Miele Diamond Dealer status, visit http://www.govacuum.com. Free, no-pressure demonstrations and advice are available at any of Vacuums Unlimited’s four retail locations. No appointment is necessary.

About Vacuums Unlimited – Vacuums Unlimited is a family-owned small business that has been serving Northern Virginia’s cleaning needs for more than 30 years. They have retail locations in Fairfax, Vienna, Herndon and Sterling; all four locations are Authorized Miele Diamond Dealers. Vacuums Unlimited also operates a thriving store online at http://www.govacuum.com. GoVacuum.com has been in existence since 1996, and ships everything from hard-to-find replacement parts to popular vacuums all over the United States (and to military bases around the world). Customers love the site’s ease of use, huge inventory, and unbeatable prices. GoVacuum, like Vacuums Unlimited, has an impressive record of friendly customer service and great frequent-buyer-discounts.

In addition to the full range of Miele cleaning products, Vacuums Unlimited and GoVacuum also sell vacuum cleaners, air cleaners, bags, belts, filters, parts and accessories for Dyson, Riccar, SEBO, Kirby, Electrolux, Hoover, Eureka, Powr-Flite, IQAir, Blueair, Roomba, AirFree, Bissell, Bosch, Dirt Devil, Earlex, Karcher, Koblenz, Ladybug, Love-Less Ash Fireplace Vacs, Lindhaus, Oreck, Royal, Rainbow, Sanitaire and more.

Unlike “Big Box” or department stores, Vacuums Unlimited has genuinely knowledgeable salespeople that specialize in nothing but vacuums and air cleaners. They are able to offer real advice, frank comparisons and tailored recommendations for even the most obscure needs.

###

This past week, a couple of us GoVacuum-ers were in Sin City for the VDTA (Vacuum Dealers Trade Association) Convention. We got to talk to a whole slew of manufacturers, see new products, and swap ideas with other vacuum dealers around the country.

Dyson unveiled their newest offering with much hype and good marketing buzz. In the end, it looks like it’s the discontinued DC04PL Canister re-worked to have an electric powerhead (so it will be effective on carpet) and a new name (the Dyson Stowaway). I’m sure it will appeal to those who have always wanted a Dyson, but don’t have a large home with lots of space to waste. It also looks shinier. The people who demonstrated it for me were very helpful and knowledgeable, and the new powerhead seemed very easy to maneuver — it mimicked the turns of my wrist, like the Miele powerheads. It’s not available for sale yet, obviously, but I’ll update here when it is.

Below is a photo of my favorite poster from the convention (yes, I’m obsessed) :

You can see all our photos from the convention at Flickr, including some action shots of the Dyson Stowaway. I have some videos linked below. All in all, I have to say, vacuum salesmen/women are more interesting than people give them credit for. Of course, I’m probably biased.

All VDTA photos

Miele takes its brand name and the quality associated with it very seriously. So naturally, they’re very selective about who they let sell their products. They’re even more selective about who they grant Diamond Dealer status. Only those authorized dealers who have years of experience with the Miele product and a proven track record of outstanding customer service can be Miele Diamond Dealers.

Diamond Dealers are given special goals, challenges and trainings to ensure continued success and high standards. Diamond Dealers are also offered an exclusive selection of vacuums, that are unavailable to any other Miele Dealers.

We here at GoVacuum are honored to announce that we are now Miele Diamond Dealers. We are even more excited to be able to offer the exclusive Diamond Dealer-only vacuums to our customers. Check out our latest offerings!

Yes, it’s true. We’re now accepting orders from Canada. The shipping rates are different (for obvious reasons), but we think they’re still reasonable and it’s a great way to get those hard-to-find cleaning products out to the Great White North. Check out all the details on our site, eh?

Well, that was just nasty. We really didn’t expect to read so many horrifying tales of mess-making and cleaning gone awry. Judging all the stories entered into our “Talk Dirty To Me” Story Contest was very difficult, so we had to devise an elaborate scoring system in order to be fair. We judged based on sheer disgustingness, difficulty in cleaning, and uniqueness of situation. And we finally came up with one winner. The winning story had it all: feces, blood, garbage, rotting food, vermin and more. Congratulations Tabitha, for not only writing the winning story (and winning the $100 GoVacuum Gift Certificate) but for surviving that disaster. Tabitha’s story is below, for your reading horror. We appreciate everyone else’s stories, which were all really quite horrid. Thanks to everyone for sending them in!

The most disgusting cleaning ever was when I helped my current landlord clean up another house he owned. He had just evicted the family of four that was living there.

That is without a doubt the grossest thing I’ve ever done.

Check out all the stories posted here!