I’m sitting in my office with the door open listening to a conversation between a potential client and our office manager. My office is adjacent to the lobby/showroom, which is typically not where most business owners put their office, but in our facility it was the only way to make my design work. This is also the layout that I am used to because it’s the way our last office was set up, so I'm used to being this close to the lobby and actually prefer it. I hear the potential client ask some very detailed questions about designing and fabricating a specific piece of furniture. I’m very intrigued by his questions so I step into the lobby to hear more of what he is saying.
I introduce myself and the conversation immediately picks back up. He says that he has seen me on the show “Fixer Upper” and read once that when Jo asks for something crazy to be fabricated, that I just don’t tell her no. He continues to tell me that he “can’t find anyone to make this custom piece” and he was hoping that the guy he saw on TV would be the first guy to tell him "yes" instead of the usual "no" that he had been getting. I’m flattered by the fact this guy has done research and wants me to build this custom piece of furniture for him. Together, we lay out a design. I create his vision with a 3d modeling program and very quickly we turn his idea into a full model that he can see. This turns into another meeting and before we know it, he has commissioned our company to make his dream a reality.
How did this happen? How did I go from a glass and glazing installer to a custom furniture designer and builder? The answer was actually given to me during the client meeting and I had completely overlooked it. So many times when asked “how did you end up doing steel work?” or “how did you develop this technique?” the answer has always been the same… if a client asks me to fabricate something that I believe I can create, I just say “yes.” I love to see my client’s face when I tell them that we can absolutely make their dream a reality. It doesn’t have to be a door or a window, I’ll take on making just about anything.
There is certainly motivation in seeing happy clients and this keeps me pushing the boundaries of where me and my team are comfortable. It doesn’t matter what the client wants, whether it’s steel or wood or glass. If we can’t make it happen in house, I’ll find another artisan that I believe can and I’ll collaborate with them. This has created some amazing relationships with other artisans all over the country. This formula has also created the opportunity for failure as well. How we choose to grow from that opportunity is what sets us apart and determines how the next difficult job will go. I hate to fail but the reality is that it's happened before and it will surely happen again, but I absolutely will not let this prevent us from taking on the next challenge.
So what’s your dream piece look like and are you ready to make it a reality?