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'There’s no reason you can’t help everybody': Valkyrie Movers is doing things differently

April 8, 2022
<p>Thomas Horton, Jacquelynn Biggs, Dr. Brittany Giles-Horton, and Colin DeGarmo pose on their moving truck Gertrude on April 7, 2022. </p>

Thomas Horton, Jacquelynn Biggs, Dr. Brittany Giles-Horton, and Colin DeGarmo pose on their moving truck Gertrude on April 7, 2022.

Photo by Madison Norfleet | The State News

At first glance, Valkyrie Movers helps you move from point A to B. After all, it’s a moving company, that’s what they do.

Sift through some boxes though, and you’ll find out that Valkyrie Movers is redefining how one company can impact the community it calls home.

Owner and founder Jacquelynn Biggs started Valkyrie Movers in May 2021, with the goal of providing the Greater Lansing area with high-quality moving services while supporting her workers and the Lansing community. This community focus is central to how she operates her company.

“I am not a capitalist,” Biggs said, “I do not do this to make money. I do this to provide a service to my clients, to provide a service to the community and to support the people that work for me.”

Valkyrie Movers isn’t your average moving company though, with Biggs aiming to go above and beyond for both her customers and employees. Biggs provides her movers with double the minimum hourly wage, training, benefits and extensive workers compensation in the event of an accident.

“I want people to come work for us who want to do a hard day’s work, but who want to know that they’ll be respected, and they’ll be loved," Biggs said. "This is not like a show, that is not how we roll. It’s all about respect. Everybody’s opinion matters. Everybody gets loved and appreciated.”

At its founding, Valkyrie Movers numbered four employees, and Biggs had to learn on the fly while organizing the logistics and paperwork of starting a company that is certified to operate at both state and federal levels.

“We’re a trucking company is what we are, and the logistics of that – the federal, state, local level – like attributes and insurance and endorsements that I have to have," Biggs said. “I call my life the sea of bureaucracy."

Valkyrie Movers has since grown to 10 employees, spearheaded by Gertrude – “Gerdy,” for short – the company’s 16-foot box truck with over 350,000 miles on it. Despite Gerdy’s loyal service, Biggs hopes to expand her fleet of vehicles soon.

“I’ve been applying to grants like women in business grants and stuff like that," Biggs said. "That would be the thing we would buy, is a new truck with a bigger cab, longer, full decals.”

Biggs’ goals for the company don’t stop there. Eventually, she would like to use Valkyrie Movers to help victims of domestic violence.

She said her goal is to set aside a portion of the company’s revenue – alongside donations – to go toward a domestic violence relocation fund. These funds would allow her to provide moving services free of charge to those who need it to get out of an abusive household.

“There are an insane amount of barriers," Biggs said, regarding exiting an abusive relationship. "So, if we can provide one thing to avoid one of those barriers, f*** yeah. How cool is that?”

Biggs recently met with End Violent Encounters, or EVE, a Lansing based organization that provides support for those experiencing domestic and sexual violence. Biggs hopes to start partnering with organizations like EVE to provide moving assistance to those in need.

“My goal is in the next year, being able to start doing those moves," Biggs said. "We also want to do extra training with our movers, a little bit of de-escalation training, maybe even some self-defense stuff.”

Biggs said with the resources Valkyrie Movers has, there's no reason her goal cannot be reached.

“That’s my view on business," Biggs said. "You know, there’s no reason you can’t help everybody, or at least try.”

Valkyrie Movers can be reached via phone at 517-258-018, or through email at hq@valkyriemovers.com.

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