HISTORY

The story of Century Moving begins with the story of the company’s founder, Bob Fleming, who took a summer job as a mover while going to college. Bob graduated with a degree in teaching but after a short stint in the classroom, he returned to the moving industry.

When an opportunity arose to buy a small, underdeveloped moving company, Bob snatched it up. He chose the name “Century” for its connotation of strength and longevity, and opened the business with himself, one truck, and one employee on April 15, 1976.

At first, Century mainly serviced two military bases, Great Lakes and Ft. Sheridan, in addition to local and interstate moving. The company partnered with different national moving companies throughout the years, but became an agent for Bekins Van Lines, the oldest major moving company in the United States, in 2008.

Over the years, the business has evolved to include an increased focus on local and cross-country moving. In the early 1980’s, Century expanded into commercial moving, and relocated their headquarters to a large storage facility to provide distribution and additional storage services.

From 1990-2000, Century expanded their long-haul fleet operations and increased their office and operations staff. They also began to build a reputation for being careful, dependable movers of specialty items such as the Wright Brothers Replica plane to the Museum of Science and Industry. In 2019, Century was proud to be recognized by consumers in the Chicagoland area as a top-quality mover for price and value by Checkbook Magazine.

All four of Bob’s children have had experience working in the business, and his youngest daughter is now with Century full time. Like dad, she too joined after earning a degree in teaching.

Bob has represented Century Moving to the industry throughout his career. He served on the board of the Illinois Movers and Warehouseman’s Association for 20 years, with many years serving on the executive committee. Nationally, Bob served the American Moving and Storage Association on their board of directors and was a member of the organization’s first Professional Education Group program (PEG) from 1991 to 2012. This group gave movers a chance to share best practices with their peers in other parts of the country by visiting each other’s operations.