if you do not already know how to upholster
or refinish wood, the
first priority is to learn how. If you
are experienced, you can
begin with small projects and work your
way up to the more
complex and better paying jobs.
In the case of a husband and wife, one
could specialize in each
to provide a complete service! Learning
these crafts starts with
reading, then practicing. If possible,
get a job working in the
field to learn direct from the professionals.
Otherwise, there
are schools, courses and hundreds of books
covering every
possible aspect of furniture upholstery
and refinishing.
During your preparation, you may decide
to specialize --modern,
antiques or just chairs and sofas for
example. When you are ready
for customers, have a sign made and place
an ad that announces
your services (be specific). Put signs
on your car or truck too,
so people can see them when you pick up
or deliver furniture.
When you bring in jobs that are badly in
need of repair, take
"before" pictures of them -- to compare
with "after" pictures
when they are finished.
Post the best of these in a photo album
to show prospective
customers and for possible future use
in ads or brochures (you
may need well contrasting black and white
photos for these.)
Arrange your album with good examples
of each major type of work
that you do and include a short (no more
than 3 line) title and
explanation for each. This way, if you
are busy, customers can
browse through them while waiting.
These pictures will not only show what
fine work you do-- they
will also suggest other jobs to the customer.
Use a good camera
for these pictures (hire a photographer
if necessary), so the
pictures will accomplish their mission.
Plan your shop according to the work you
are going to do in it.
You will need more room to refinish tables,
stands to do smaller
items and a dust free section for the
application of wood
finishes. Upholstering takes less room,
but the area must be safe
from mice and moths -- especially your
storage areas.
When operating a business like this, you
will be asked to
recommend finishes, fabrics and methods.
As a professional, you
are often in a better position to answer
these questions than
your customers, but be careful not to
routinely recommend those
things that bring you the most profit.
remember that they may
also ask someone else! It is OK, however,
to point out things
that are easier (therefore, cheaper) to
work with.
You will find that in the long run, honestly
really is the best
policy!
Pricing in a business like this is very
difficult, and you have
to give estimates on most of our work.
If you see the cost is
going well over your estimate, give the
customer a call before
proceeding.
The rule here is "never surprise a customer
with bad news." If
the cost is slightly more, and your "estimate"
was pretty firm
just absorb the cost as the price of a
"lesson" in how to
estimate. Your pricing of course, will
be based on the cost of
materials,labor and utilities plus your
profit.
Note that labor and profit are two entirely different categories.
Labor is the amount you would have to pay someone to do the job;
profit is your "override" on the labor
plus your profit on the
materials (usually 25-40%).
A fully qualified upholster or furniture
refinisher should not
earn less than $10 (gross) per hour --
and in some areas, $25 per
hour may not be out of line for top quality
work. When making
your estimates, add a little "padding"
(perhaps 5%) to cover
unforseen costs. Always figure your estimates
and prices with
good quality materials -- when you use
lower quality materials,
usually to save money, let it be your
customer's decision.
The fastest way to learn if you want to
get into the furniture
refinishing or upholstery business to
redo some of your own.
Take a chair or table, set up a practice
area and try your skill.
Use BIX finish remover (available at most
hardware stores) to
remove paint ( a second coat will also
remove the stain), clean
thoroughly, sand and apply the new finish.
The secret is not to get in a hurry! Let
the wood dry between
operations; take the extra few minutes
for a first class sanding
job; wait another day for the finish to
dry enough for the next
cost, and go over the surface with fine
steel wool (if
recommended) and wipe thoroughly between
coats.
In a business, you will have several pieces
in different stages
of completion, so the temptation to rush
will not be so great.
Another way to help expedite your "education"
is to hire an
experienced helper -- for both the assistance
and "lessons."
In addition to your signs, have a good
quality 3 or 4 line rubber
stamp made to custom print your own invoices
and even business
cards.
If funds are scare, get some duplicate
ticket books at the local
stationery store and stamp your name on
each original ticket to
get "custom printed" invoices.
As long as your business is not too professional,
you can place 3
x 5 cards with your name and services
on supermarket bulletin
boards. Keep an ad in the local paper,
but change it a little
every so often (like a new special every
month), to help
stimulate interest. When you are ready
for more business, put an
ad in the yellow pages.
Whenever business lags, you can always
contact rental agencies
(both real estate and furniture) to either
buy used (but good
quality only) furniture that needs repair,
or to do their repair
work. The profits will be lower, but low
profits are better than
NO profits.
Also, bear in mind that refinishing and
re-upholstering other
people's furniture is not your only option.
You can also buy things to restore -- from
auctions, garage
sales, foreclosures (business furniture
is a whole new market!)
and from individuals who answer your "will
buy" ads. The item you
buy to refinish must bring at least double
its cost PLUS a fair
return for your labor and materials to
restore it.
For this reason, buy only high quality
or antique furniture, so
you will "have something" when it is completed.
One possible pitfall in the refinishing
and upholstery business
is unpaid bills. People sometimes really
want to have a couch
recovered and visualize how nice it would
look with a nice,
quality (expensive)fabric.
Trouble is, while the couch is being covered
they spot a new item
at half what they owe on the old couch
-- and buy it!
This leaves the upholsterer with $100 worth
of material cut and
sewn onto a $50 couch. The message here
is to protect yourself;
get enough down to ensure the recovered
couch will be worth your
investment should the customer "disappear."
Making your own furniture can be a really interesting hobby as well as save you some money. Almost anything can be made from wood, even things such as great home theater furniture, wicker furniture or bedroom furniture. In particular outdoor patio furniture is a great thing to build yourself because wood furniture looks great outside provided you take good care of it. |
BUSINESS SOURCES
BEDFORD LUMBAR CO.,Box 65, Shelbyville,
TN 36710. sells
unassembled cedar hardwood furniture.
DATHO MANUFACTURING, INC.,Box 12110, Lubbock,
TX 79452.
Manufactures of upholstery sewing machines.
MODERN UPHOLSTERY INSTITUTE, Field Building,
Kansas City, MO
64111. Offers a course in upholstering;
free booklet.
UPHOLSTERY TODAY, Box 2754, High Point,
NC 27261. Trade journal
for furniture upholsterers. Note: this
is the journal of the
Upholsterers International Union of North
America, 25 N 4th
St.,Philadelphia, PA 19106.
JIM DANDY SALES, Box 30377, Cincinnati,
OH 42530. Upholstering
instructions and supplies.
FREESTYLE, 17835 E Skypark, Irvine, CA
92714. sells "Sundura"
furniture kits wholesale. Free info.
LEISURE PRODUCTS BY BB, Box 3171, Apollo
Beach, FL 33570,
813/677/8280. Instructions and fittings
for PVC furniture; kit
$15 with samples, catalog and manual.
HOME FURNISHING, Box 581207, Dallas, TX
75258, 214/741-7632.
Biannual magazine for home furnishings
dealers and manufacturers.
VISTA COMMUNICATIONS, INC., 180 Allen Rd.,NE,
Ste 300, Atlanta,
GA 30328.. Monthly magazine for furniture
retailers.
DOVER PUBLICATIONS, INC.,31 East 2nd St.,Mineola,
NY 11051.
Discount books, clip art, stencils, etc.
QUILL CORPORATION, 100 Schelter Rd.,Lincolnshire,
IL 60917-4700.
312/634-4800. Office supplies.
NEBS, 500 Main St.,Groton, MA 04171, 800/225-6380.
Office
supplies.
SWEDCO, Box 29, Mooresville, NC 28115.
3 line rubber stamps - $3;
Business cards - $13 per thousand.
ZPS, Box 581, Libertyville, IL 60048-2556.
Business cards (raised
print - $11.50 per K) and letterhead stationery.
Will print your
copy ready logo or design, even whole
card.