You’ve already met Philip, the Director and if you’ve had shutters fitted by us before you’ve likely met Kev, the Carpenter. However there’s another member of the team who would like to say hi.

I’m Sarah, the Marketing Co-ordinator for Carrwood Shutters and I’m the person responsible for keeping you up to date with our latest news, organising our advertising and events and updating all of our online profiles as well as lots of other things.

I’m 27 years old and live locally in Crossgates with my fiance. When I’m not working I enjoy reading lots, writing blogs on a range of topics, travelling to far flung places or even just to the beautiful local countryside, spending time with my family and friends and meeting new people. I love to go out for a curry and love chocolate!

I really enjoy working at Carrwood Shutters. The team are like a family and have a real passion, not only for our products but also for our local community and our customers.

I’m going on Maternity leave from March as I have a little boy due on the 18th but I won’t be gone for long and you’ll be hearing from me on the website from time to time.

In the meantime if you have any marketing or advertising questions or you’d like to do a case study for us then email info@carrwoodshutters.com

This Valentines Carrwood Shutters have been spreading the love with a massive 20% off all shutters which is our biggest saving ever.

To get your 20% off all you need to do is place an order with us by the 14^th February. Call us now to book your design consultation and quote Love Shutters!

We had a great time in 2011 designing and installing beautiful Plantation Shutters across the region and beyond and we’ve met some wonderful customers along the way whom you’ll hear from and see when we publish our testimonials.

As well as our daily business we had loads of 2011 highlights:

We were commended for the category of Best Independent Retailer at the Northern Design Awards 2011 which we are really proud of.

We started the Carrwood Shutters blog which has been really popular allowing us to keep in touch with all of our lovely customers. We also set up our Social Media sites on Facebook and Twitter.

We got ourselves all over the region appearing at Ripon and Knaresborough markets and Carr Gate Garden Centre as well as in some prestigious magazines and newspapers including the Yorkshire Post and Living North.

For 2012 we plan to do even more, some of which we can tell you about right now and some of which you’ll have to wait for.  

We are spreading the love this month with our very special Valentine’s Day Offer ’Love Shutters’ where you can receive 20% off shutters if you order before the 14th February. 

We have achieved S: CRAFT Shutters Master Partner status. S:CRAFT shutters are manufactured by the world leader in shutter production utilising a combination of state of the art manufacturing with hand crafted finishing touches. To achieve Master Partner status we needed to achieve a number of audited criteria to ensure that our levels of expertise and service are outstanding.

We are going customer service crazy. Our main mission this year is to improve on our already high levels of customer service and satisfaction so that we are exceptional in every way. To do this we need your feedback. If you have purchased shutters with us in 2010 or 2011 please let us know how you rate our products and services by reviewing us on Yell.com. We are also inviting people to showcase their beautiful shutters in case studies to be used on our website, in our newsletter and in future advertising. If you would like to take part call us on 0113 2878457. 

We will be appearing at two prestigious Home Show exhibitions in June and November. We’ll tell you more about both of those shows and how you can get free tickets nearer the time. 

We wish you all the best in 2012 and hope you have a brilliant year!

The Carrwood Shutters Team

Emma Webster of York

Congratulations to Emma Webster of York who has won this year’s Carrwood Shutters Christmas Hamper full of gorgeous goodies form the Black Olive Deli in Horbury.

Thank you to all that entered this year’s hamper competition. We will be running other seasonal competitions throughout the year so please subscribe to our mailing list for your chance to be updated about our offers and competitions.

We are like a family here at Carrwood Shutters Ltd and we’d love for you to know us a little better. You’ll often see Philip the owner or Kevin the carpenter when you order our wooden shutters. I’m Sarah, the marketing Coordinator. I write the blog and Newsletter so over the next few weeks I’m going to take the time to chat with my colleagues and ask some questions starting this week with the Owner and Director Wakefield born Philip O’Brien.

Philip has a varied background in hotel and catering management, food factory management, bakery, confectionery, sandwiches and chilled foods. He decided to make a career change 12 years ago when he started working in the Window Dressing trade selling and fitting blinds in Scarborough. He ran the successful Window Dresser Company for 10 years before moving to Leeds and setting up Carrwood Shutters Ltd.

I had a chat with Philip this week and asked him a few questions.

How would you describe yourself? 

“Hardworking, impatient, considerate, sociable, chatty and friendly.”

What is your favourite place to visit in Yorkshire?

 Barnsley Fish and Meat Market.

 What are some of your likes?

 Rugby, walking, eating out (curries – the hotter the better – hotter than a vindaloo even!!!)

Your favourite people?

Admire, and enjoy reading about, successful people from ordinary backgrounds such as Duncan Bannatyne, Alan Sugar, Michael Parkinson

Any other info about you?

Not big into holidays but ideally like 2 separate weeks away each year, 1week visiting family in Ireland and the other sitting in the sun in The Med!!

Happy to work 6 days a week but like to chill on Sundays!

Carrwood Shutters proudly featured in the home style section of the Yorkshire post this week. The article brilliantly described the many benefits of shutters including individuality, quality, versatility and insulation and explained exactly what we do.

So what do we do?

Once you have considered wooden shutters one of our team will visit your home to measure up and get a feel for the place. We’ll chat to you about your needs, the use of the windows and your individual style. We will then provide you with a quote and once you decide to choose Carrwood Shutters we can get the ball rolling.

There are so many reasons why wooden shutters are a great choice for your home. Although our most popular colour is white there is a wide range of wonderful colours to choose from. We have everything from natural wood to deep red. This coupled with the fact that shutters are suitable for almost any shaped window means that they are a brilliant choice to achieve a quality bespoke look. They also offer great light control and offer brilliant insulation.

If you want to see for yourself how fantastic shutters are take a look around the website or call us now for a chat.

A very warm hello to you!

Today is the first in a brand new series of weekly blogs aimed at providing you with news, views, commentary, tips and promotions on Interior Design, Architecture, Yorkshire and of course Plantation Shutters.

Why?

Because we are friendly Yorkshire folk and as Plantation Shutter specialists we get to travel all over our beautiful county and get involved in all sorts of interesting things that we think you’d like to hear about. We know that as someone who takes pride in your home and garden you would love to hear about the latest interior design trends or about home and garden shows coming up in the region. We also want to communicate better with our valued customers by providing a space for conversation and questions and by offering tips and advice.

So how are we getting social?

Our Facebook Page. Here we will post photos, videos and special offers. This is also a great place for you to talk to us and ask us questions about your home.

Our Twitter account. The Twitter account is mainly used to keep you up to date with things going on in the region such as events or shows and to provide links to some great articles we find on home furnishings and interior design.

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The new larger and glossy Yorkshire Post Weekend Magazine continues to give us great enquiries into some super properties throughout the whole of Yorkshire and beyond – for arched windows in particular. Other than wooden shutters nothing can really be done satisfactorily with these shapes.

However, we are also getting lots of phone calls from homeowners living in much smaller properties. Terraced houses and cottages in main road positions can be made to look really unique with plantation shutters. Many houses like these have 1 front living room and 2 front bedrooms and with our Buy 2 Get 1 Free Offer, the property can be totally transformed very cost effectively. Call us for a chat…….