I think every interior designer out there wonders if owning a boutique home furnishings shop is a good investment or a good move for their business.
I think many have wondered if they think they have what it takes to make it these days, especially with online shopping becoming more the norm.
It is so enticing, isn't it?
Pictured below are two of the home decor shops I visited in LA, back in the spring. Jeanne K. Chung's, Cozy, Stylish, Chic shop in Pasadena, CA and Home Crush in Beverly Hills, CA.
Striking vignette seen in Home Crush home decor shop in Beverly Hills, CA
Cozy, Stylish, Chic home decor shop in Pasadena, CA, owned by Jeanne K. Chung
Cozy, Stylish, Chic home decor shop in Pasadena, CA, owned by Jeanne K. Chung, pictured is Deborah von Donop, DVD Interior Design, whom I combed the shop with after visiting the Pasadena Showcase House of Design
Lovely statement pieces seen in Home Crush, a home decor store in Beverly Hills, CA
Love the collection of vintage art and objects at Cozy, Stylish, Chic home decor shop in Pasadena, CA, owned by Jeanne K. Chung
I wanted a shop at one point.
I wanted a warehouse type with my studio in the back. The shop, or showroom, would be there to support my design studio and projects. It would house upholstery pieces primarily, samples of different styles of seating and upholstered goods, to let clients sit in before they buy.
I wanted concrete floors, exposed beams, brick walls.....kind of an industrial space, painted all black on the outside, with a white gravel drive and parking lot that crackled when you drove up. :-)
Even a metal building would have been cool.
Among the sea of white upholstered pieces, there would be rustic, found, decorative objects, accents and accessories interspersed.
Accessories such as onyx bowls, where no two look the same. Drum tables made of metal and wood, stacked to the ceiling in a corner, handmade ceramics with a clean, bold but rustic design, antique vases and urns that would make for some great statement decorating.
Beautiful onyx bowls seen at Hollywood at Home in Beverly Hills during Design Bloggers Conference 2018
Love these copper drum tables seen at Dallas market a few years ago
Beautiful ceramics would be on every surface in my shop
Handmade ceramics and sculptural objects made from natural materials are a passion of mine. They would have to have some space in my shop.
Beautiful ceramics seen at Hollywood at Home in Beverly Hills during Design Bloggers Conference 2018
Carved marble fruit and bowl from a Belgian vendor seen at Round Top antique fair (some of these are in my styling closet)
Handmade ceramics and black marble carved fruit seen a Dallas market from Mexico
I shared more about the fabulous home decor store, Hollywood at Home, at this link. :-)
Large hand carved wood vessels seen at Dallas market
White painted large olive jars at Round Top antique fair
Selenite balls perfect for arranging in large bowls and troughs at Dallas market
Charred wood drum tables on the LA Design Trail at Northerners Collective
There would be pillows, no doubt
Of course, there would have to a wall of pillows somewhere, something like this, below, where we could grab some favorites on our way out the door to installations.
Decorative pillows seen at Dallas Market 2017 from a California vendor in the temps building
Mudcloth decorative pillows from Dallas Market 2017 from a vendor in the temps building. (Some of these are now my own.:-)
Local artists could find a home on the walls of my decor shop
I wanted local original or vintage art displayed as a gallery on the walls, like the work of artist Scott Kerr, shown here. (Want for myself!)
Large graphic paintings by Scott Kerr seen at Round Top antique fair last spring
My Shop Would Host Private Events and Parties
I hoped that I would have wine tastings and featured artist evenings, perhaps even the option to rent out the space for some social events.
Special dinner with Universal Furniture and Sunset Magazine at Home Crush home decor shop in Beverly Hills, CA during Design Bloggers Conference 2018
Fabulous party at Serena and Lily shop in Los Angeles during Design Bloggers Conference 2017
At Christmas, I would hire an artist to decorate a fantastical, atypical holiday tree that people would be flocking in to see.
Of course, I'd have a dog or two with me in the shop to greet clients and customers.
I wanted my own scented candle line filling the space with a distinctive home fragrance.
I had it all figured out.
I wrote all about my dream of owning my own shop on my blog, I had the exact location figured out and everything.
Well, things don't go as planned always, and I'm glad I never made that investment as our economy around here had a downturn when everyone else in the US was back on its feet and booming, a few years ago.
Things are going well here now, but I'm older and frankly, coming up with the energy I know I would have to bring to own and run a profitable business like that along with client work, just does not appeal to me anymore.
These days I want to work less and make more money. :-)
However, I know it does appeal to many of you. So......
I'm sharing some helpful links today to posts where I've featured home decor and furnishings shop owners on my blog. You see, I did some research of my own and I'm happy to share.
Even though I interviewed these three entrepreneurs several years ago, they are still all going strong and have some seasoned, well-founded information you might find useful.
Interestingly, a common piece of advice among the three entrepreneurs....
...start small.
