ALL IN THE FAMILY: “We are proud to continue the family business started by Edwin Bohren in 1924. Not everyone gets to celebrate a 100th anniversary!” Ted Froehlich, Bohren’s Companies chairman of the board, is shown with his daughters Louise Froehlich, left, former human resources manager, and Denise Hewitt, president.

By Jean Stratton

Calvin Coolidge was president. Women were cutting their hair into short bobs, and hemlines were moving up and up and up! The Charleston had taken over the dance floor; jazz was the music of choice. It was 1924, and the Roaring Twenties were well on the way.

In the midst of all this excitement, Princeton resident Edwin L. Bohren decided to put his Ford Model T truck and small Chambers Street warehouse to further use and establish a moving company.

Automobiles were about to revolutionize American society. People were on the move, ready for new sights and sounds, and relocating became part of the 1920s scene.

Edwin Bohren had the foresight to see what was ahead, and launched a company that has been a mainstay, while adapting along the way to meet the challenges of changing times.

Navy Goat

“He had been in the delivery business,” explains Bohren’s grandson Ted Froehlich, current Bohren’s chairman of the board. “He used to deliver baggage from the train station to Princeton University students, and one time he picked up the Naval Academy’s mascot goat, who was coming to the Princeton-Navy football game!”

In the beginning, the business was focused locally, and gradually branched out into other areas of New Jersey. As the business grew, it became more and more of a family operation.

“My father, Warren Froehlich, joined the company in the early 1940s,” recalls Ted Froehlich, and the business began to expand. “In 1955, we became an agent and stockholder of United Van Lines, and in time, our trucks were traveling regularly to New York, Boston, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.”

At the age of 12, Ted began working for the company after school, and by the time he was 17, he was driving the trucks on various routes. He had an opportunity to learn the business hands-on from a young age, and especially benefited from his grandfather’s firsthand instruction. He also developed ideas of how to prepare for the future.

“In 1972, I became president, and I wanted to expand and diversify,” he reports. Of course, there was still a strong focus on residential moving, and Froehlich points out that the Bohren’s staff is always aware that stress is often a big factor when people undertake a move.

“We do all we can to help customers get through this as smoothly as possible. When you call us, customer service will set up an appointment, we will come to survey the contents of the house, and we will give you a price.”

Time frames can vary, he adds. “With a small house, packing can take one day, and we can move the next day. We also do a lot with storage. For example, people may be moving to a new house, still under construction, so they would need to store items. Everything we move, we can also store.”

Quality Work

The emphasis is always on quality work, Froehlich emphasizes. “Bohren’s will be sure that you experience the same courtesy, solution-oriented thinking, and personal attention that have been the hallmarks of our reputation since 1924.”

Loyal customers have been an important part of the company’s success, says Bohren’s president and Froehlich’s daughter Denise Hewitt. “We really get most of our customers from referrals. And also, previous clients will contact us again. For instance, in the past, we had moved customers to Florida, and then we recently moved them back to New Jersey so they could be near their grandchildren.”

Over the years, the company has continued to evolve with diversification, an important element of Bohren’s success.

“We became involved with trade shows, exhibits, and special products,” reports Froehlich. “We had actually been involved with international moving by container shipping since the 1950s and ’60s. This is a significant part of the business. Business clients also became more and more important. IBM was a client, and we began moving computers.”

As trade shows, the art world, and commercial moving grew in importance, the company evolved into Bohren’s Companies, encompassing three divisions: Bohren’s Moving & Storage; Bohren’s Fine Art Transportation; and Bohren’s Logistics. Services range from household and commercial moving and storage to trade shows to transport and storage of art as well as high-valued electronic and medical equipment.

3,000-Pound Stone Lions

The variety of items the company has moved or stored is impressive. Everything from Elvis Presley memorabilia, organs and harpsichords, and Andy Warhol art to Apache helicopters and RCA communication satellites to Rothko sculpture — and the list goes on!

“We even moved an actual subway car, which was being sent to an artist, ultimately to be exhibited as a piece of art,” says Froehlich. “We also moved massive stone lion sculptures to Saudi Arabia. Each weighed 3,000 pounds!”

A major part of Bohren’s continuing success has been the increasing focus on moving and storing fine art. This can include crating of small items of high value or transporting multiple truckloads of fine art to museums.

“We have a relationship with artists directly and also with museums and galleries,” points out Hewitt. “With daily runs to JFK airport to retrieve crated artwork, our trucks are regulars on the scene in the five boroughs with the art being stored and moved in climate-controlled settings.”

In 1999, because of the need for expanded space, the company moved to 3 Applegate Drive South in Robbinsville, where it consolidated into a 120,000 square foot facility on 12 acres.

Hewitt became president in 2002, and she has brought her experience and insight to the company’s operation. Having worked in almost every position in the company, she was especially qualified to look toward Bohren’s future.

Woman-Owned

In addition, as a woman-owned and operated business, Bohren’s became a member of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC). Accepted by more than 700 major corporations across the country and a number of federal and government agencies, the WBENC certification makes Bohren’s a top supplier among corporate decision-makers interested in giving the company access to hundreds of corporate clients and government agencies interested in supplier diversity.

Over the years, Bohren’s has received numerous awards, including Customer Choice from United Van Lines; Agent of the Month from United Van Lines; Van Operators of the Year (three times); Trade Show Sales Achievement Award; President’s Club Award Winner; and humanitarian awards, among others.

Both Froehlich and Hewitt are very proud of continuing this important family tradition. It truly is all in the family! From 1985 to 2021, Ted’s daughter Louise Froehlich, served as human resources manager, and it will soon become five generations of family members when Denise’s son Wesley joins the company.

With diversification and ingenuity, they have adapted to changing times, while keeping the integrity of the company and its dedication to quality customer service. They have also gained the loyalty of their 40-member staff. Many employees have been with the company for 25 to 30 years.
“I love what I do,” says Hewitt, reflecting on the business. “I like challenges, and I deal with them every day, overseeing everything. There is always something different. Now we look forward to taking it to the next level, perhaps adding heavier duty rigging and flatbeds. We will always keep diversifying.”

Celebrating 100 years in business is a remarkable accomplishment, especially in today’s world, when so many companies seem to come and go in a flash. As one of Bohren’s longtime clients pointed out, “All of the founder’s core values — hard work, dedication, and a true commitment to customer service — have been passed down over the years.”

For further information, call (800) 326-4736, and visit the website at bohrensmoving.com.