***CONSUMER WARNING*** Fair Trade Moving is an ILLEGAL moving company that is NOT licensed or insured to do intrastate household goods moving in Chicago or the State of Illinois. This is a WARNING to all consumers. The moving industry is strictly regulated by the Illinois Commerce Commission in order to protect consumers. All movers must be licensed with the Illinois Commerce Commission, and properly insured. A licensed moving company will have an ICC Motor Carrier number that must be displayed at all times. They will also have a Certificate of Insurance as proof of insurance that can be requested at any time. Moving is a major industry in Chicago and it has become a haven for illegal movers. Illegal movers simply take advantage of the free advertising online and social media to lure in unsuspecting customers. They then rent trucks and equipment to complete your move. BEWARE: They do not carry the proper license or insurance that is issued by the ICC to protect consumers. If they are found in the process of moving by the ICC Police, they will be forced to cease services, their truck and equipment will be confiscated, and they will be fined and prosecuted by the ICC. Fair Trade Moving is run by Brian, who is currently under investigation by the ICC Police. This business profile is illegal advertising; there is no business address or website; there is no business or owner profile; there are no real business pictures; and the telephone number is to Brian's cell phone. Don't be fooled by this business page and the reviews and make the mistake of hiring this illegal company. Before you choose a mover, do your research to determine if they are properly licensed and insured. You can also check out the Household Goods Mover directory at the Illinois Commerce Commission's website to find a Legal Licensed and Insured Moving Company. FINAL WARNING: The ICC provides no consumer protection for theft or damage to property by illegal movers, and you will be sorry if something bad happens because there is no recourse. read more

Honestly these guys were awesome! After you read my story you will realize why I am going to use them again in the very near future! Mike and his crew were super nice and got the job done in a really efficient manner. They took great care with my stuff too. Here's the story - First, I had called them on Tuesday before needing to move Saturday and they got me on the schedule. They were also really well priced in comparison to some. Second, I called them the day of the move and they confirmed my move time and told me that if I wanted to move up my time that I could, which we decided to. Then I realized my new landlord was nuts...Long story short I had a major fiasco with the new landlord the day I was moving in to my new apartment. I had scheduled Fair Trade Movers for the 2nd half of the day to get my stuff that was in storage and over to my new place. My family had moved the other half of my stuff that morning over to the new place. Then I realized my landlord was crazy and I was not going to live there. So third, I called the movers back and told them what was happening. I asked if we could completely move the locations of the origination and destination points - which were further than the originally schedule journey. They responded "absolutely Ms" which was awesome! Then they came to the "new" apt, loaded up the stuff my family had moved and brought it back up to a friend's apartment. And they did it as fast as I think it honestly could have been done. $. They stuck to pricing that I was given - which they tell you up front at booking that if you go over the 2 hour minimum that the time is prorated. You don't just get charged another hour -Again awesome! Overall planning to use them again as soon as I find a new apartment!! Thanks guys!!! read more

Fair price, professional and fast work, overall super friendly and helpful. I needed movers kind of last minute, and on a Saturday morning was able to get an appointment for the next Monday afternoon. Especially impressive given Monday was the last day of the month so many people were moving, I had tried three other companies that were booked solid. We were taking furniture we didn't want anymore to Brown Elephant (yes, they will do pick ups, but they were also super busy and couldn't come until after we were supposed to be moved out!), and then it turned out that they didn't even want half of the stuff we had brought! Their new location on Lincoln is much fancier than their old one on Halstead. But Brian and his guys were happy to follow us around town looking for places to donate the rest of our stuff to, and the great thing was they had been so efficient getting the furniture out of our apartment that even after a goose chase around town we were still within the quoted time allotment by the time we found a place to drop off all of our stuff. We tipped big and would definitely work with Fair Trade again. read more

I've never hired movers before. I don't have that much stuff, but my furniture is heavy as shit and I'm an extremely weak dude. I can't force my aging blue-collar father to help me again. So, I decided to hire movers. I called several places, but Fair Trade was super flexible with scheduling, told me a few options, and got me in on the last day of the month with basically no notice. That rocked. They quoted me at 150 to move all my stuff in 2 hours. In addition to moving all my stuff, I ran out of boxes while packing, and so they ended up packing my computer and boxing up some odds and ends for me. Not a single attempt to upsell. They moved incredibly fast, it ended up being slightly over two hours, and they still just charged me 150. There's no fucking way you'll find cheaper. The guys were nice, friendly, extremely competent, and I'd recommend them to anybody. ALSO: I had a guinea pig we were moving and they were super nice about it and wrapped her cage up in several blankets to make sure she would be warm in the back of the truck. Really top notch place. read more

Highly recommend Brian. I had a rush job coupled with pick up/drop off of items from multiple locations. I jumped on yelp on a Saturday morning and read through 10+ reviews. I ended up calling 7 or 8 places, the last of which was Fair Trade. I wish I'd called them first. They were the only ones to answer - in fact, of the 7 or so called, only 1 has returned my call. Brian was available for the next day. On Sunday, he called me an hour before pick up and arrived 10 minutes early - perfect. Brian and his colleague dismantled the furniture with precision, wrapped it with care then met us at the delivery location to unload. He was even ok with taking two other smaller items. From there, we headed to the third location to pick up some additional furniture - which, again, turned out to have additional items we wanted. He handled it without a concern. Brian and team were polite, communicative and knowledgeable. And of utmost importance, they were very careful with all of our belongings. I would absolutely use Brian again! read more

6friends 3reviews Andrei C. Chicago, IL 10/28/2010 This week, I used Brian and Trade Movers for the second time. And, like last time, I was not disappointed. I needed a chair picked up in Bollingbrook and brought back to Chicago: only thing, I couldn't be at the pick-up in person. So, I gave Brian the $250 for the chair a day ahead of time and entrusted him to pay the chair-seller, pick up the chair, and meet me downtown... And then, things went wrong: the chair-seller never picked up her phone on the day of the move. Turned out her phone "ran out of batteries". No matter, we rescheduled 3 days later... Not only did Brian answer the phone each and every single time I called, he held on to my money for 3 days, scheduled a pick-up with the chair owner himself, then promptly delivered and helped move the chair into my downtown office. His rate for time/labor/gas was more than fair and he always sticks to his flat fee. I tipped him 'cause he deserved it. Thanks, dude. read more

I've never felt compelled to leave a Yelp review before, but for Brian and his team at Fair Trade Moving, it's imperative I do so!! There are no words to express how happy we are with their services!!! They are consummate professionals, prompt, courteous, very well-priced with great, great, attitudes. We used them in a move from an elevator building into a 3rd floor walk up (but with 4 flights of stairs), in only four hours, and they made it look easy! They were meticulous in protecting all of our furniture, our walls and our floors. They also insisted on placing boxes into their proper rooms to eliminate work for us. As if this wasn't good enough, after the 'clock' was off, they offered to empty out my car with the last load of Target bags, odds/ends we had leftover from the old apartment, at no extra cost. I cannot stress enough how wonderful this company is...whenever we move next, they be the first number we call. Thanks Brian!!! read more

I have moved a lot in past 20 years - both local and cross country moves - and worked with more moving companies than I care to count. Brian and the team from Fair Trade Moving are among the best I've ever encountered. The team was friendly and efficient - and they were careful with all my belongings. It was a complicated move (a city-based moved with large furniture from an upper floor with narrow stairs paired with second stop at a large, packed storage unit) and they did it in 1/2 the time of the guys who moved the stuff into my storage unit! They price fairly and there are no hidden costs. I hope not to move again for a few years - but when I do, I'll give them a call. In the meantime, will tell all my friends--including some realtors I know--that these guys are the best and should use them for any move. Tell your friends - Fair Trade Moving--they will be thrilled too! read more

These are the best movers in the city! I will NEVER use a different moving company for as long as I live in Illinois (or as far as they will travel to). I was blown away by their speed as well as polite demeanor and genuine respect for our time and belongings. As I said to them when they left, I will recommend them to anyone that I hear is looking for movers. I was literally in awe with how fast they could wrap up my large belongings as well as transfer them to and from the truck (second floor to second floor). They went above and beyond with the service and truly left my new apartment with all of the heavy furniture positioned exactly where I wanted (even after multiple changes -- sorry guys!) Seriously, stop here when looking for movers, this is as good as it gets and they finished in the 2 hour window. I am so so happy with this company!! read more

Brian and his assistant are great. I called them on a Monday morning for a Tuesday move after finding out my prior arrangements would not work out. They gave me a competitive bid, and said they would be there the next day. When they got there (about 30 minutes late, but I had changed the time last minute so more my fault than theirs), our moving plans had changed (yet again) and there was a large sectional that needed to be moved to another apartment in the building. They moved the sectional quickly and for only $20, which was completely fair considering they were charging me to move only a few pieces, and not at their normal hourly rate. Both men were really helpful and great to work with. I definitely will be using them for my next move. read more

0friends 3reviews Maria M. Chicago, IL 12/23/2010 I just used Brian at Trade Movers and was very pleased with the service. I got married a couple days ago and had to move my stuff from my place to our place- with all the craziness of the wedding, I forgot to deal with this part! I called Brian @ 11AM and he was able to meet me@ 2:30 PM the same day. He very fast and courteous, doing the job in an hour and fifteen minutes at a great price. It wasn't a crazy big moving job but so worth not having to call friends the day before XMAS eve and having someone come in and do the job quickly. I will recommend him to my friends. Was this review ...? Useful Funny Cool read more

This was the second time I have used these movers. They showed up a few minutes late but since I used them before I knew they'd show and really just took care of the entire move process with ease. The whole process took a little over two hours and moved my studio apt into a storage unit, and when everything wouldn't fit they rearranged the rest into our car. Really nice guys, efficient and a really low price ($210!) for the services they provide. I will and have recommended these guys to all my friends, just make sure to call early if you want to move at the end of the month they only have a few guys and get booked fast. read more

These guys are amazing. I don't even know where to begin, and I will never hire anyone else for moving again. I called Brian less than 24 hours before I needed stuff moved, and he was still able to fit my move in. Despite the fact that my apartment is on the 3rd floor with no elevator, they were able to move everything at an insane speed (and were extremely careful as well. We have lots of antiques and they didn't hurt them one bit). They're way better than all the big moving companies, and they charge way less. If you hire anyone else for a Chicago move, you're a fool. Thank you guys so much! read more

Brian and his crew helped us with our move this morning. We had two pods loaded completely full of stuff, and they had them both loaded into their truck and delivered to our apartment (a 3rd floor walk-up with very narrow stairways) in just over an hour! They took the time to carefully wrap all of our furniture and took great care of all of our things. They also helped us organize our furniture when they were finished. We could not have been happier with their service and they are super nice people. Would definitely recommend to anyone moving in the Chicago area! read more

This review is long overdue. I rarely write reviews, but I have used these guys twice and have had great experiences both times. Their rates were in line or below other firms and they hustled to try to get the move done as quick as possible. We even had a problem fitting our couch into our apartment and they didn't charge me for going slightly over. I've recommended them to several friends and will definitely use them again in the future. read more

These guys are Number 1 in Chicago! They were very flexible (had to make a last minute change to the timing, and they were more than happy and willing to accommodate). They are super dedicated to providing a top notch moving service at a reasonable price. They take the greatest care I've ever seen with movers. Look no further than these guys if you have a moving need in Chicago / Lincoln Park area - you won't be sorry you chose them! read more

These guys are fantastic! The team was efficient, knowledgeable and did a fantastic job with our studio to one bedroom move. They were even able to take apart the bed frame and reassemble in the new place without any problem, all while staying within the 2 hour time frame. I can't say enough good things about Fair Trade Moving - I will definitely be using them for any future moves, as well as recommending them to friends! read more

Review from Yadira C. 0friends 2reviews Yadira C. Chicago, IL 1/24/2011 Excellent serice, punctual, very reasonable prices, and easy to work with. I've dealt with movers in the past and none of them compare with the service provides with these guys!!! Even dealt with my armoir without a complaint. Highly recommend AAA! Was this review ...? Useful Funny Cool Add owner comment Bookmark Send to a Friend read more

Stop here when looking for movers. They were easy to schedule, on time (a little early actually), and moved our stuff with lightening speed. And the price - CANNOT be beat. Worth every penny. Randy and Mike moved us - both were professional, fun, and exemplified customer service. We will definitely use these guys for our next move. I had a friend recommend the company - she's used them three times. read more