You may or may not know that I work in a furniture store. Yes, I’m a furniture sales person. Well, my official title is “Design Consultant”. I sell beautiful new furniture and I often get to help people decorate their homes. So, I blog about DIY decor and refinishing old pieces of furniture but I also sell new furniture. Maybe that seems like a weird conflict of interest but the truth is I just love furniture and decorating of all kinds and price ranges.
I grew up with a father that refinished furniture for a living. He is pretty amazing. BUT, it wasn’t until I started working in the furniture industry that I really began to learn about decorating and began to develop my own personal style. I had already been following DIY/decor blogs for a few years and thought about how much fun it would be to have a blog of my own. So when I began working in the furniture industry, and really started to develop an interest in the field, blogging just seemed like a good fit.
I know that many DIY/home decor bloggers have at one time or another worked in the furniture industry so they pretty much know what it’s like. But for those that haven’t I thought it might be fun to share a Day-in-the-Life of what it’s like to work in a furniture store.
Before I get into all this let me tell you about the place I work. It’s called EF Brannon Furniture. It’s family owned and operated. The people I work for are AWESOME, the furniture we sell is high quality, and I work with some very talented people. I have learned A LOT here. Ok, here goes.
9:30 AM First Things First
My work day starts at 9:30 am. Of course I have to start my day with coffee. Now I don’t usually get Starbucks but I happened to have a gift card and it was a Monday so I needed a little extra “Go Juice”.
Monday mornings are when I check the status of all my orders. This means making sure everything is on schedule and that all the fabric numbers and item numbers are correct. While I’m doing that a customer calls and requests that I fax a quote she needs. As I make my way to the office I spy a bolt of fabric that I had been waiting on for a customer. Then I do a little happy dance. The fabric had been back-ordered and I expected it to take a little longer. (Those of you that have done this type of work know the relief I’m feeling right now). Call said customer to give her the good news.
11:00 AM Help my First Customer of the Day
This customer was shopping for a white slip-covered sofa and dining furniture with a coastal look. We can do that. He wanted to accent the pieces with bright greens and blues so we picked out some pieces and pulled some fabrics. I love this kind of look by the way.
1:00 PM In Home Consultation
Earlier in the day I had received a call from a customer that needed a little help decorating. She recently moved into a new home and wants a look inspired by a particular issue of Traditional Home Magazine. Unfortunately, she had lost her copy and couldn’t find another one anywhere. Of course I had every issue of Traditional Home at work EXCEPT the one she needed. Of course. Luckily I found it in my stash at home and got it to her the next day.
In the meantime, we meet at her home. An “In Home Consultation” basically consists of measuring the space and discussing things like, what type of look they want, colors that inspire them, and how they want the room to function. We want it to look great AND be functional. So we choose some possible paint colors for the space and talk about fabric colors and patterns. After we finish up I get back to the store and get to work.
After sketching out a VERY rough draft for the floor plan I pull some fabrics. A lot of times we bounce ideas off each other in the design center. That’s Mary on the right, a co-worker and an awesome decorator.
So I pull together two possible options.
Next I choose some tables and other accent pieces.
So now that I have a plan I just need to put it all together to present to my customer, which I will do before we meet up again.
4:00 PM Coffee Break
So 4:00 rolls around and it is definitely time for a coffee break. You know I still have that gift card and luckily for me Starbucks is just across the street. So I have some coffee, check my e-mail and try to organize the mess that is my paperwork.
5:00 PM Greet a New Customer
I greet another customer who is looking for a sofa and a chair. She loves grey and is going for a dressy look. We look at a few things and she decides on this pretty combo. She will have to come back though, to let her husband pick out a recliner. I know what you’re thinking, “a recliner with that”? Don’t worry, it can be done. We carry a lot of different styles of recliners and I know we have one to work with this. You know what Tim Gunn would say. Make it work.
So there you have it. While there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes that is basically a Day-in-the-Life of a furniture salesperson. Or at least, a day in MY life. Some days are crazy, some days are a little more quiet, and really anything can happen. I guess that’s one of the things I love about my job. Everyday involves different people with different requests, so it never gets boring.
Hope you enjoyed this little summary of my day! Have you ever worked in a furniture store? What was it like for you?
Thanks for taking the time to read this!
Tags: a day in the life, coastal furniture, decorating, design, design consultant, eclectic, floor plans, furniture, furniture sales, furniture store, grey, home, in home consultation, living room redo, redecorate, shopping, style
The Styled Soul 