Stoke on Trent Stairlifts Runner is Potteries bound again

It is almost a year since Stephen Auker was persuaded by his principal sponsors, a stairlift specialist, to take part in his first Stoke on Trent Potteries half marathon. He he completed it with usual style and effort resulting in an amazing finishing time of 1 hour 51 minutes.

This large poster seen here was placed outside the Staffordshire stairlift specialist's head office at Wolstanton, Staffordshire for a few weeks before the race - and scores of people came in to leave a donation which boosted Castle Comfort's pledge of £1,000. The cash came with a condition - and until the start of the race Mr Auker assumed that the requirement to run the race with a Castle Comfort Stairlift model strapped to his back was wind up. But no... here is Keith checking the stairlift weighs in! Steve and ever supportive wife Julie were guests that weekend at the Borough Arms Hotel at Newcastle under Lyme. situated close to the centre of Stoke on Trent. The sponsoring company were pleased to arrange that all present were kept with plenty of liquid refreshment Vimto after the race! 'Stairlift Stephen' as he is affectionately known in Staffordshire had so far (as of June 2009) raised single handed £22,000 in aid of Cancer Research UK. See details of people's generosity here. (see below too for updated figures) Why does he do it? Stephen's own words - "Because cancer will touch ALL OF US in some way at some time. Plus one in three of us will actually PERSONALLY SUFFER from a cancer in our lifetime. This is my small way to help all of us and our children in the future." There is a lot more to this guy, and anyone with a heart and will to enjoy life, will enjoy learning about him -See Steve's Google profile here . And anyone reading this with a spare pound (or a million of them) just get your credit card out and go here or if you really have some bottle, speak to your doctor, and then click on the final 'here' below. See you in June! Do you want to enter the 'arf Marathon in Stoke on Trent one year ? do it here Failing that (and you can claim your doctor wouldn't allow you to have a coronary attack) - we'll catch you in Weatherspoons, Hanley on the big day! Mr Auker pictured in days gone by. As he is now tee-total the finishing time in the Stoke on Trent 'arf marathon in future will be even more amazing! UPDATE 2010 JUNE THE BAD NEWS - STAIRLIFT STEPHEN TOOK ALMOST 20 MINUTES LONGER (2 HOURS 12 MINUTES) TO COMPLETE THE STOKE 'ARF THIS YEAR... THE GOOD NEWS ... He trained a new Castle Comfort Stairlifts runner- Bec from Stafford, AND DID THE WHOLE 13 MILES, THIS TIME - WITH THE STAIRLIFT ON HIS BACK - and earned another £1500 in total for the effort, which takes the total rasied so far to over £28,000 - well over half way to the target of £50k.

SEE THE STAIRLIFT OSCAR-WINNING (GUINNESS-WINNING ACTUALLY) FILM HERE AND WOLSTANTON'S OWN WEBSITE IS ALSO PROUD OF THIS!

Newcastle-under-Lyme Stairlifts firm in the news again

People often ask how it all began. This chairlift company I started was a simple family affair and a pure accident that occurred when my own mother was searching for products to make her life easier. Here she is - now absent but always present. Doreen was faced with two extremes - shops who had no real interest or idea - to the heavy pressure boys, who wanted to camp out in her home for hours and try to extract thousands of pounds for something that should really cost hundreds. I could see there was a huge gap for a business to compete with the 'hard-sell' mobility product companies. And with such a lack of high street homecare products specialists, I had the perfect idea.

As a result we started locally at Newcastle under Lyme on the edge of Stoke on Trent - and then went national throughout Great Britain and Spain - and by golly it worked. I was more than happy with modest profits and this soon caused the stair lift industry to offer low prices to compete. Straight and curved stairlifts have been installed all over the UK, recently in London and the home counties too in Kent, Suffolk and Surrey, and as far north as Scotland.

Castle Comfort Stairlifts have always had simple policies - make life and business fun ... smile and as a result have developed a special website to make folk do just that. Take a look.
Secondly and more importantly - all Castle Comfort's staff by instinct treat any client as they would treat their own parent or grandparent.

As a result, we have not only achieved the majority of the business in Staffordshire (and beyond) for the sales of stairlifts, mobility chairs and adjustable beds -but we have made many friends. Following simple common sense policies - and our ongoing 'Good Deeds Fund' we have been followed on many occasions, see this one, by the local press - for example
I never forgot my failed aim to be a journalist as a child and being the type rarely to give up, there was an opportunity to belatedly achieve this by the back road. If no one would give me a job writing - then I was to have my own newspaper. And I made myself editor! This personal whim produced a remarkable marketing phenomenon. Read Castle Comfort' very own newspaper.

At Castle Comfort, we religiously log the 'SOL' (the source of lead) of every single order or enquiry. We know exactly how and why a new or potential client approached us. The Clarion is, by far, the biggest single SOL.

Simple and honest marketing policies and ensuring that none of the staff at Castle Comfort Stairlifts treat a client any different than they would their own parents, means the company is proud to be covering the whole of the United Kingdom and Spain with its stair lifts.




QUESTIONS? CALL FREE
0800 007 6959 - 8AM - 11PM

Or depending on where you live - these regional office numbers can also be called 8am - 11pm -


Wolverhampton (01902) 489422

York (01904) 820776

Newcastle upon Tyne 0191 644 0366

Bournemouth (01202) 355466

Belfast (02890) 538653

Birmingham 0121 371 0123

Bristol (01179) 059177

Glasgow 0141 278 3929

Liverpool 0151 676 2727

London 0207 717 9797

Macclesfield (01625) 886599

Manchester 0161 452 3636

Stafford 01785 318701

Swansea (01792) 359212

West Country (01395) 349198

HEAVY DUTY OR HEAVY WEIGHT STAIRLIFTS ARE ALSO AVAILIBLE FROM Castle Comfort WITH 28.5 OR 30 STONE WEIGHT LIMITS. A bariatric stair lift has a high weight capacity, including a curved stairlift with a higher weight of 30 stone. Henry V111 may have been impressed. David Starkey says here in the Daily Mail that the overweight king invented the stairlift. For even more information on that go here

And, see Castle Comfort's model on this super stairlift that
would also carry at the same time a few friends! Film on NOW.



CASTLE COMFORT DELIVERY AND DEMONSTRATION ROUTES

Daily.
North Staffordshire Run.
Stoke on Trent Newcastle under Lyme
……………………………………….........

Every Tues, Wed & Friday
South Staffordshire Run.
Stone, Stafford, & Wolverhampton
& Walsall.
(Castle comfort ended up on the BBC when
they were recently in Walsall. Watch the News here)
………………………………………………

Every Monday, Thursday & Friday
South Cheshire Run.
Congleton, Macclesfield, Prestbury and Stockport
……………………………………………

Every Wednesday
The Manchester Run.
Includes northern Cheshire and most parts of Greater Manchester & Lancashire.
Covering Wigan, Blackburn, Burnley, Colne, Accrington & Oldham.


…………………………………………
Every Tuesday
The Shropshire Run.
To the Welsh Borders as far south as Gizmoville.
Welsh spoken - Cymraeg ar lafar
………………………………………………….
Every Friday.
The Easten Run through Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and
Lincolnshire and Bluebelltown.

...........................................................
Every other week (on an unspecified day)
Birmingham Run. As far as northern Home Counties.
…………………………………………………

South Wales
There is a daily and ongoing presence in the whole of South Wales offering full representative service to offer quoted for stairlifts and installation and technical back up by our SWANSEA facility. Telephone Swansea (01792) 359212 anytime for information, or use the coupon here.

As every, Castle Comfort directors Ann Keith or Dr Stirling are waiting to assist.


LINKS


Laugh about it - it's the only way. See Castle Comfort's most visited website

Stairlifts in Spain? Si, por favor - but we don't want any British blood!

As a regular donor in Stoke on Trent in the Midlands, stairlifts expert Keith wasted no time when the Spanish blood donor bus pulled up outside Castle Comfort’s offices in Madrid. This is the way they do things in Spain in the major cities - one can still go to the hospital to donate but the Spanish system grabs the well-intending at appropriate and convenient moments e.g. - when leaving work and maybe on the way to a siesta, lunch, or even the bullring!

The Spanish nurses were flattered that an Englishman had taken the trouble to volunteer and wasted no time in producing the standard questionnaire. After all, although he had his UK donor

card they needed to register a 'first-timer'.

The rules and questions are much the same as our country - 'What illnesses have you had?' - where have you travelled?' etc. The final line on the form however asked 'Have you resided in the UK between 1996 & 1997?" and the obvious answer to that from a Brit is 'yes' "errr..... . 'I'll have to speak to the doctor' was the nurse's reply. Then came the shock.

A lady doctor appeared to thank him for the gesture, but she explained why he had to be rejected. The reason was clear - 'Mad cow disease. ' 'Moo', Keith thought. They all agreed it was a bit silly and bureaucratic but those are the rules - although they did promise to try and get them changed and that I should apply again another time.

Finally. after getting off the Spanish bus and shortly finding himself back in Stoke on Trent, he was more than welcome at the Staffordshire blood transfusion unit. There without hiccups or red tape some pure potteries blood was accepted with thanks.

Pictured here, Castle Comfort Stairlifts Chief Keith with grateful NHS staff.

Robbie's Mum Meets Stoke Stairlifts Chiefs - not all the famous pop stars come from Liverpool!

Pictured - Ann Bruce, Castle Comfort Stairlifts Director, Jan Williams, Dr Neil Stirling of CCS (AKA Santa) and Salvation Army officials

THE MOTHER OF STOKE ON TRENT'S MOST FAMOUS EVER CELEBRITY ... joined the Castle Comfort Stairlifts team to present Christmas toys to a local Stoke and Newcastle under Lyme good cause. Castle Comfort stairlifts Merseyside customers an hour away in LIVERPOOL, are reminded that not all the stars are theirs!

Thousands of toys were bought with this fantastic effort for not so fortunate children in North Staffordshire. Jan Williams, mum of Potteries mega-star ROBBIE WILLIAMS loves her home town, and when anyone gets involved in local charities she is there like a shot. The Stoke Sentinel gave this event, held at Wolstanton Working Mens Club much appreciated coverage.

See Stoke Sentinel article .......
Also see on Robbie's official site - http://www.robbiewilliams.com/photos/members/thanks-to-jan-williams

And see here on Robbie's blog site, the BBC News footage of another good deed of the Castle Comfort Stairlifts GOOD DEEDS FUND, when a Staffordshire couple got a FREE STAIRLIFT !


LINKS

Hotfrog to us

Stairlifts News - from Stoke on Trent Staffordshire - to Santiago Chile

The workaholic Castle Comfort Stairlifts Managing Director believes in mixing business and pleasure. Habla espanol?
He has for years been trying to track down footballing legend Diego Maradona on numerous trips to South America - and this time had a degree of success. Pictured here, is Keith finally having his company's new year calendar launched by the most famous face in the history of soccer - a face more famous than those cheating 'Hands of God.'

But wait - look at that healthy and fit physique of 'Diego' - is this not the famous Latin TV lookalike - aka ESCOLASTICO MENDEZ? Now a new friend of Keith, 'Esco' parades around the touristy bits of Buenos Aires earning a nice living charging for a photo! Good luck to him.


But in Uruguay, where the disability Discrimination Act is now in full force - Keith found a challenge in trying to persuade the keepers of this building to provide access for the disabled.
After assessing the 118 steps and 15 bends and pricing it out at .2 million Uruguayan pesos (£40,000) for this proposed giant CURVED STAIRLIFT, the lighthouse keepers weren't too keen. For an economical alternative to a curved stairlift in your loved ones home why not enquire about platform stairlifts? Call for free 0800 007 6959









BREAKING NEWS - 'Diegito' has finally been relieved of his duties as coach of the Argentine national soccer side - see this