Are There Really Web Buyers Of Furniture And Accessories On The Web?
I have a question, are people selling furniture and accessories on the web?
Design*Sponge is a blog “dedicated to home and product design run by Brooklyn-based writer, Grace Bonney. Launched in August of 2004, Design*Sponge features store and product reviews, sale and contest announcements, new designer profiles, trend forecasting and store/studio tours.” August 21st Bonney posted the bloggers’ guide to online shopping: part two with suggestions from:
Bloesem - Favorite Online Shop for Furniture: Modernity
Designer’s Library - Furniture: Viva Terra
NotCot - Furniture: Design Public
Absolutely Beautiful Things - Furniture: HFOC, Salvage, Pieces, Inc., and the Junk Company
Lena Corwin - Furniture: Modern Seed
Style Court - Papergoods: Broadway Paper and Elum
Another Shade of Grey -Furniture: ebay seller tsandcompany
Anh-Minh - Furniture: eBay (where one of my favorite sellers is “mod-popism”), for new stuff, I shop at Retromodern
Since my wife and I have a furniture store, I took a look at each recommendation for furniture. If no furniture category then I chose an accessory store. With one exception, Elum, the recommended stores sell online. Are customers really buying online or doing research. I will be returning to that question from time to time on this blog.
I noticed, too, that one store, Design Public, offers free shipping for orders over $50, no hassle 30-day return, no restock fee, and no charges until the item ships! We have experienced very high shipping rates this past year, how can they ship for free?
I did stumble across Selling ‘Artful Home’ Online!, an interview with Toni Sikes, CEO and Founder of THE GUILD and GUILD.com. GUILD.com, has emerged as the leader in an industry that markets artists work on the internet, artists who have traditionally sold their art objects through retail boutiques and craft fairs.
Sikes was asked:
What categories of art do you sell and will you share with us some of the fastest growing categories?
Our best selling category is art glass; it is 27% of our retail sales. It has a higher average order value - the average order size is $500-$600 and we often sell multiple pieces. Sometimes the order is in $1,000 range. It is colorful and beautiful. The art glass profession developed in the Czech Republic but America has taken the lead in the art field in the last several decades. There are many talented artists in this country. The Pacific Northwest, especially the Seattle area has heavy concentration of the artists, but they are all over the country. Jewelry and studio furniture are other two fast growing categories at GUILD.com.
Sikes was not asked nor did she volunteer annual revenues, but the company did donate $12,436 to “Craft Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) at The American Craft Show in Baltimore on February 21. The donation was the result of The Guild’s pledge to contribute a portion of every sale from its Holiday 2006 The Artful Home® catalog.”
Email me about your experiences and I may use your story on this blog: landfair3554@comcast.net
