Do you love playing around with furniture arrangements at your house? Are you good with colors and textures? Able to see a vibrant full picture of a home in what appears dull and plain in the eyes of a normal person?
If you answered ‘yes!’ to all these questions, it means that you are a creative, and a transformative one for that matter!
It’s clear that you are passionate about home décor, so why not start your own business?
Read this guide to learn how to start a home furnishing business.
Have a Plan for Your Home Furnishing Business
Every good business starts with a plan. Pick a pen and a paper and write down a business plan regarding what you want to do, what kinds of services you want to offer and who your target clients are.
Visit other businesses and get to learn how they started, how much they charge in exchange for their services and get hints on what the market demands are.
From the information you get, do the math and figure out how much capital you need to start.
There are two major types of home furnishing experts. One type develops an idea, scripts down the design from their head, and then goes on to propose this idea to target clients. The second type is the home décor expert who executes the first décor expert’s ideas.
If you notice that you have quite an interest in doing home décor, you can first get your feet wet by opening your home décor business and working on other people’s ideas.
As time goes by, you build your clientele and your experience to become a full-fledged home décor expert able to work on huge projects from start to finish and deliver exemplary results.
Get the Required Licenses
You may need to head over to your towns city hall or talk to an authorized person from the regulatory agency in your state. You will be advised on the laws surrounding business licensing and get to know what specific licenses you need to acquire.
Once you are clear about what is needed, go ahead and fill in your license application.
It is important to note that you cannot begin carrying out business transactions or attending to clients before your license has been approved.
Get Down to Business
They say that the toughest task when starting a business is actually starting. You already have your business idea written down in detail and it’s now time to bring everything to life.
Purchase all the supplies and equipment needed to make designs. It includes anything from sewing machines, computers, wallpapers, office supplies, software, fabric, and so on. When you have the right equipment, you can make vivid illustrations of how the finished will look like for a client’s home.
Remember that yours is a business that’s just starting up. So be careful not to waste money purchasing items that you may end up not using at all or on services that need you to pay monthly fees to gain access.
Check out these experts to get ideas on unique items you can use for your home improvement projects.
Create a Home Furnishing Business Portfolio
You have no experience, you haven’t dealt with any clients before so you most certainly don’t have a portfolio. So, why not furnish your own home or office and use it as a real-life portfolio?
You could also find out the market rates for home improvement services. Offer the same services at significantly low prices just to build your client list and try your hand on actual projects.
Try out different ideas and designs. Once you’re done, take as many photos of your work as possible.
Make sure you cover all angles. The goal is to come up with different looks to suit different tastes. This way, you have a portfolio that can cater to every client that comes your way.
Spread Your Wings
It’s time to let people know that you exist. Visit manufacturing companies, furniture shops, housing items, and equipment suppliers, anyone who sells carpets, flooring, and other interior furnishings, whether they are retailers, wholesalers or intermediaries.
Talk to everyone. Give them your contacts and let them get yours too. You want to maintain contacts with such people because they are the ones who will be supplying you with most of the products you need to complete home furnishing projects.
Be sure to review the contacts you get by conducting background checks.
If you choose the right contacts, you set yourself on a pedestal to get access to discounts and promotions. This can significantly lower your expenses leaving you and your client with more money in your pockets.
Network, Network, Network
There’s a huge emphasis on networking because this is how you get clients and referrals.
Keep your ear on the ground. Are there any real estate meetings taking place or community projects underway? Read the newspapers, talk to architects, and your fellow home furnishing professionals.
You may be skeptical about talking to other people who work in the same line of business as you in fear of getting prejudiced. But this is a very mature sector where the demand is much more than the supply.
If you are good at your job, your past clients won’t hesitate to do business with you again and to direct new clients your way.
Come up with a social media page, a business website, and a company logo that represents your home furnishing company. This allows you to appear professional and also increases your visibility to potential clientele.
Take the Plunge to Realize Your Potential in the Home Furnishing Business
There’s nothing more rewarding than waking up each day to do what you love and get paid for it. Granted, there are difficulties that you will face as you try to learn the ropes while starting your home furnishing business.
Give yourself time. Don’t be in too hasty to get positive results. Instead, focus on knowing what potential clients out there want. Take time to trust the process and in no time you will be a force to reckon with in the industry.
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