Man With A Van

What Man With A Van does

Man With A Van is a Melbourne-based furniture removalist company operating as MWAV Pty Ltd since 2001. The company provides residential, student, apartment, and commercial relocation services delivered by employed (not contracted) staff using a fleet of more than 30 GPS-tracked vehicles in three size tiers (Medium, Large, XL). Operations run from two depots: the Abbotsford headquarters at 13-29 Nelson St and a Cranbourne site at 86 Camms Rd opened in 2022 to serve Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs.

The core commercial offering is hourly-billed moving labour and transport, with pricing combining fixed depot travel time and working time, a half-hour minimum charge, overtime thresholds at eight hours, and tiered truck sizing matched to property and move type. Adjacent revenue streams include furniture dismantling and reassembly, packing and unpacking assistance, and The Man's Box Shop, an online packing-materials store launched in 2020. All work is backed by a comprehensive Damage Guarantee covering handling, transit, and public liability, with specific exclusions for items such as televisions not in original boxes, unpacked glass, and flat-pack furniture.

The go-to-market is direct-to-consumer: customers book via the website quote form, an online booking page, or phone through staff who are themselves experienced removalists. Demand generation leans on word-of-mouth driven by public review profiles (4.8/5 Google across 1,571 reviews, 5/5 True Local, 4.9/5 Word of Mouth), supplemented by a blog with moving tips, crew-profile content, and recurring support for community events such as the Gertrude Street Projection Festival. The company is privately held with no disclosed external investment; Director Tim Bishop is the named leader.

Name

Man With A Van

Legal name

MWAV Pty Ltd

Website

https://manwithavan.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Man With A Van is a Melbourne-based furniture removalist serving residential, student, apartment, and commercial customers since 2001, using a fleet of 30+ vehicles and 150+ employed staff across its Abbotsford headquarters and Cranbourne depot.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Moving & Relocation Services

NAICS

Used Household and Office Goods Moving (484210)

akta.pro primary industry

Full-Service Local Household Moving (Truck + Crew) (HSAKAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Local Moving with Packing/Unpacking Add-On (HSAKAAAH), Residential Junk Removal & Hauling (HSAKALAA), Appliance & Furniture Removal (HSAKALAG)

Keywords

• Furniture removal services
• Residential moving services
• Commercial relocation
• Apartment removals
• Moving truck rental

Headquarters

HQ city

Abbotsford

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Furniture Removal Services: Hourly-based pricing model where customers pay for time taken to complete the move. Pricing varies by vehicle size (Medium, Large, XL) and number of movers assigned. Travel time and working time combined. Overtime rates apply for jobs exceeding 8 hours or booked outside normal hours.
2. Box Shop - Packing Materials: Sale of packing materials including boxes, tape, bubble wrap, wrapping paper, and markers. Products can be ordered online and delivered to customers.
3. Additional Services: Services such as furniture dismantling/reassembly, packing/unpacking assistance. Minimum half-hour charge with rounding to nearest half-hour after that.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Man With A Van provides furniture removal and relocation services across the Melbourne metropolitan area using a fleet of 30+ vehicles in three size tiers and employed, trained crews. The company serves residential homeowners, students, commercial businesses, and apartment dwellers with hourly-priced moves that include loading, transportation, and unloading, all backed by a comprehensive damage guarantee. The offering is supplemented by The Man's Box Shop, which sells packing materials and moving supplies online.

Product overview

Man With A Van is a Melbourne-based furniture removal service offering tiered moving solutions for residential, student, commercial, and apartment relocations. The core offering consists of removal services supported by a fleet of 30+ vehicles across three truck sizes (Medium, Large, and Extra Large), complemented by The Man's Box Shop for packing materials. The company operates from two depots in Abbotsford (HQ) and Cranbourne, and backs all work with a comprehensive Damage Guarantee that covers repair, replacement, or compensation for items damaged during handling or transit. The service is priced based on truck size with all movers included, and includes handling, transit, and public liability insurance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Man's Box Shop: Packing materials and moving supplies shop launched in 2020, offering boxes, tape, wrapping paper, and other moving accessories for home delivery

Products and services

• House Removals Full-service residential furniture removal for Melbourne homeowners of houses of all sizes, from studios to large family homes. Includes loading, transportation, and unloading with a damage guarantee.
• Student Removals Budget-friendly moving service using smaller trucks, designed for university students relocating between rental accommodations with limited budgets and tight scheduling around tutorials.
• Commercial Relocations Office and business relocation services for Melbourne companies of various sizes. Includes furniture disassembly and reassembly, electronics transport, and rubbish removal, with crew scaling available for larger commercial moves.
• Apartment Removals Specialized apartment moving services for Melbourne residents including loading, unloading, and transportation with customizable options for packing, unloading, and storage. Serves downsizers, upgraders, and penthouse moves.
• The Man's Box Shop Online packing supplies store offering boxes (small, large, port-a-robe), tape, wrapping paper, bubble wrap, and markers delivered to customers preparing for a move.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4.8/5 Google rating from 1571 reviews, 5/5 True Local from 32 reviews, 4.9/5 Word of Mouth from 285 reviews

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• The Global Women's ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2019MWAV partnered with The Global Women's Project (not-for-profit) for Vanapalooza 2019 event. The $1,620 raised was donated to the organization working to provide aid to women in need overseas. MWAV has also partnered with them for multiple events.
• St Kilda MumsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2019MWAV has supported St Kilda Mums (not-for-profit providing preloved nursery goods to Victorian families in need) for many years. In March 2019, MWAV donated two moving crews with two Large Trucks to help relocate the charity's donated items to their new Clayton headquarters. This was their biggest job yet for the charity.
• Gertrude Street Projection FestivalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019MWAV provided support to Australia's longest-running projection festival for the fifth consecutive year. Support included trucks as performance venues, loaning lighting and sound equipment, and people power for mobilizing events.
• Pianos Victoria (Lachlan Brown)minorOthersSpecialist piano moving referral. Lachlan Brown at Pianos Victoria has a stair-climbing machine for moving pianos safely. MWAV recommends them for piano relocations which require specialist gear.
• Harry Evans and SonsminorOthersSpecialist billiard table moving service based in Fitzroy. MWAV recommends them for billiard table relocations which require disassembly and specialist handling.
• TaxiboxminorOthersMobile storage partner. Taxibox delivers storage boxes to customer doors to fill at their leisure. MWAV movers can fill boxes for customers.
• Mattress Cleaning Melbourne (Steve)minorOthersRecommended mattress cleaning service for customers moving. Steve at Mattress Cleaning Melbourne is recommended as the best local service.
• Kroft RestorationsminorOthersRecommended onsite furniture repair/restoration service in Melbourne for antiques or furniture needing refreshing after moving.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Hire A Hubby: Australian franchise network providing handyman, maintenance, and small-scale moving-related services. Adjacent rather than direct competitor, but competes for light-duty moves and odd-job labor in the same Melbourne customer base.

Direct peers

• You Move Me: Franchised full-service moving company operating in Australia and North America with a similar positioning around punctuality, professionally trained crews, and damage guarantees. Closest direct competitor on customer value proposition.
• Two Men and a Truck: International franchise-based moving company operating in Australia, offering full-service residential and commercial moves with company-owned trucks and employed crews. Highly comparable model: tiered truck sizes, trained movers, and damage coverage promises.
• Muval: Australian on-demand marketplace that connects customers with local removalists and trucks via instant online quoting. Directly competes with MWAV on Melbourne residential and small commercial moves, but operates asset-light without owning fleet or employing crews.

Broad incumbents

• Allied Pickfords: Global moving and relocation brand with Australian operations handling residential, commercial, and international relocations. Competes on the commercial/office segment MWAV serves, but with broader corporate relocation capabilities.
• WridgWays: Australian national removalist with a wider service set including interstate, international, and corporate relocations. Overlaps with MWAV on local residential and commercial moves but operates at significantly greater scale and geographic breadth.
• Kent Removals & Storage: Long-established Australian removalist and storage operator with national reach. Comparable on residential and commercial relocations but with a broader portfolio including interstate moves and storage facilities MWAV does not offer.
• Grace Removals: Australian removalist group offering local, interstate, and international moving services with multiple branches. Comparable on commercial relocations and larger residential moves but with broader geographic and service coverage than MWAV.

Others

• TaskRabbit: Online labor marketplace that includes moving help among its service categories. Not a full-service mover but enables customers to source labor for loading/unloading and small moves, providing an alternative channel that competes for budget-conscious customers.
• Airtasker: Australian-founded gig marketplace where individuals post moving tasks and workers bid. Indirect competitor at the low end of the market (single-item pickups, loading help) that may divert price-sensitive customers from MWAV's hourly minimum.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Man With A Van