Knowing how to start a customizable furniture business is essential for any furniture designer who wants to sell his or her own designs. Whether you have a degree in Furniture Design and Production or are just self-taught to design unique furniture, you have the foundation to start your own customized furniture design business. However, once you are good at designing and producing, you also need to know how to manage your business to make a profit. Read the steps below to prevent beginner mistakes.
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Method 1 of 5: Defining Your Business
Step 1. Find your personality
Determine specifically what type of furniture you want to make, such as household furniture, office furniture, or various types of cabinets. Be specific about the materials you want to use, such as wood, metal, and upholstery. Know your target market. For example, decide whether you want to sell it to customers in residential areas, hotels, or commercial establishments. In addition, also determine whether you want to sell locally or want to reach a larger market.
Do a market analysis to find out the level of demand for your furniture. Get to know the target market, its characteristics, and needs. Also, look at all of your competitors for products they don't offer. This will let you know if your product can fill a gap in the market. Finally, a study of market analysis is useful for determining the right price for your product and your target market
Step 2. Choose between pursuing an offline business or an online business
You can rent a shop equipped with production space and sell furniture to customers who come in person. Alternatively, you can choose to develop your website and only accept orders online. Or, you can choose to do both. Whichever option you choose will influence your decision about the physical location of your business. In addition, it also affects the amount of money required to start a business.
Step 3. Choose a location
If you are planning to open a physical store, find a place that fits your customer's needs. For example, if you are building a custom wardrobe, find a space large enough to display the various options. Or, if your target market is general residents, choose an area that is easy to find and and easily accessible to parents with children and strollers. Also, consider your suppliers. Look for locations that are easy to get shipments from suppliers of goods.
- Look for information on zoning and regulations in your area to choose a legal place to do business.
- If you want to do business online, you still need a location to carry out the production process. Look for a location large enough to get your job done efficiently and within easy reach of your supplier.
- Depending on the type of material you store, you may need a warehouse. Choose a warehouse that is large enough for suppliers to pick up and deliver materials easily.
- Do not choose a location based on the cheapest rental price. However, choose based on the best location that can match your budget and can display furniture in an attractive manner while being able to accommodate customers efficiently.
Step 4. Define your business structure
Choose a suitable business structure, such as a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. The business structure you choose will affect how your income tax is paid. Consult this with a licensed public accountant (CPA), attorney, or other business consultant to help you make an informed decision.
- Register your business with the Kemenkumham office in the area where you do business.
- Get your taxpayer number from the office of the Director General of Taxes, then visit the Ministry of Law and Human Rights office to find out if you need to register the number.
Step 5. Get a license and business license
Each state requires you to have a business license or license to operate legally. Visit government websites to find out what it takes to open a business. The government may have regulations regarding the furniture manufacturing business. In addition, learn about applicable consumer protection laws.
In some countries, furniture manufacturers must comply with requirements for limiting emissions of formaldehyde from wood, greenhouse gases, toxic air pollutants from wood and metal coatings, and the disposal of hazardous wastes
Step 6. Create a business plan
All entrepreneurs should take the time to write a business plan. This document contains your ideas and serves as a guide to success. Often times, wood furniture makers think of themselves as artists who only focus on their work. Therefore, developing business practices may be a bit difficult for them. In addition, they may view business practices as reducing the quality of their work. However, if you want your furniture business to be successful, you must take the time to develop a market strategy, develop financial projections, manage and manage your business.
- Write a company description that explains the type of furniture made, how it is made, how you differ from your competitors, and who your target market is.
- Describe your market analysis. Explain that you have analyzed other manufacturers and know the gaps that will be filled in the market.
- Define your business structure, such as a private ownership, partnership, or corporation. This decision has an important impact on tax matters.
- Describe your product range, such as the type of furniture produced, the materials used, and the benefits to customers.
- Explain how to market your furniture products. This includes not only how to advertise, but also ways to grow the business through new products or expansion into new markets.
- Provide financial projections for the next 5 years. This is especially important if you plan to fund the costs of setting up a business. Creditors will definitely check your financial projections.
Method 2 of 5: Funding a Startup
Step 1. Estimate your business startup expenses
Setting a budget accurately is crucial to the success of your business. Creating a precise list of business expenses will make it easier for you to communicate with banks and investors. In addition, this will help you predict your future profits, thus affecting tax matters. Finally, business startup expenses and debts taken will be part of the financial projections for your financial plan. Startup expenses vary widely by business, but in general you should include the following categories.
- Expenditures for the business structuring process. If you must consult a CPA or attorney, include the expenses. Also include the cost of registering a business with the government and the cost of obtaining a taxpayer number with the Directorate General of Taxes.
- Include costs for obtaining licenses, operating permits, and other matters related to government regulations and environmental safety.
- The cost of purchasing or contracting your business location.
- Equipment purchase or installment costs.
- Cost of purchasing startup inventory. Before making a sale, you need to buy some materials, such as wood, glass, metal, and fabric to make the furniture in the first place.
- Advertising and marketing costs.
- Salaries and other expenses for employees.
Step 2. Plan to purchase high-quality equipment
If you have experience doing carpentry as a hobby at home or working in a commercial setting, you probably already have some equipment. However, if you plan to grow your business by offering new products or entering new markets, you may need to upgrade your equipment. Don't waste time and money replacing existing equipment to make new furniture.
For example, Tom Dolese of Terra Firma Design in Bellingham, WA stated that his investment in a horizontal mortise allowed him to perform wood joining more precisely and efficiently
Step 3. Find a source of funding
Choose from a variety of methods to fund your business. You may have enough personal savings to invest in the business. Or, you may have friends, family, or other business associates who are willing to invest in the furniture business. You need to make a plan to repay the loan they provide or offer stock from your company, depending on the company structure you use. Finally, you can finance your business with borrowed money.
- In Indonesia, there are various types of banks and financial institutions that offer loan funds to business owners.
- Other sources of funding include personal credit from your bank, peer-to-peer lending sites like Prosper, pension funds, credit cards, equity fund loans, or fundraisers like Kickstarter or GoFundMe.
Method 3 of 5: Setting Up Your Store
Step 1. Equip your shop with hand tools for modifying wood
Furniture making requires a lot of hand tools to complete the detailed work. The price is sometimes quite expensive so you may hesitate to buy a variety of different types of hand tools. Start by purchasing the following equipment for making furniture.
- A bevel-up, low-angle jack is a versatile tool for smoothing and shaping wood.
- A support block to hold along the ends of the wood grain.
- A small 200 or 250 gram Japanese hammer for completing common tasks such as inserting retaining nails.
- Angled chisel for cutting the mortise by hand.
- Water stone for sharpening tools.
- Angle ruler measuring 8 cm to straighten joints.
- Pocket meter to perform routine measurements, such as checking thickness.
- 30 cm combination ruler for measuring straight edges or finding 45 degree angles.
- Size marker wheel to mark areas on furniture.
- Sliding 15 cm long tilt gauge for working angular parts.
- A flat scraper for sanding difficult areas such as indented areas.
- A filing knife for shaping and sharpening.
Step 2. Buy or install a furniture making machine
Buy a machine that is a basic need. Once you have it, consider purchasing the following special equipment to make the production process more efficient.
- Band saw for cutting corners or curves in furniture.
- An emery disc to smooth the ends of the wood beams.
- A sit-down saw for cutting blocks of wood.
- Smoothing tool for sanding the edges and surfaces of wooden blocks.
- A mortise machine for drilling square joint holes.
- Base drill for accurate drilling of large materials.
- Roll saw for cutting small, thin sections of wood.
- Table saw for cutting large blocks or producing planks.
- Thicknesser for smoothing rough wood blocks and reducing their thickness.
Step 3. Purchase equipment and machines to make the bulsak if needed
Professional upholstery manufacturing requires a combination of manual tools and pneumatic tools. Purchase the best quality equipment to make high quality furniture upholstery. In addition to professional equipment, purchase useful tools at a materials store, such as: wire cutters for removing staples; a frame ruler for cutting fabric straight; ruler 112 to 150 cm long; as well as an all-purpose knife for tearing old fabric.
- Magnetic hammer to make it easier for you to pick up tacks and attach them to furniture.
- Net stretcher to pull the net closer to the frame.
- Regulator to adjust the content of the bearing in the fabric.
- Rubber hammer for attaching sheet nails without leaving marks on the surface.
- Scissors to cut fabric.
- Various types of grooved needles for sewing by hand.
- Button needle 25 cm long for attaching buttons to pillows, bases and furniture backs.
- Upholstery and “T” shaped pins to hold fabric in place when sewing by hand.
- Portable staple gun or pneumatic cloth stapler.
- Fabric buttoning machine for making buttons.
- Fabric foam cutter.
Method 4 of 5: Marketing Your Furniture
Step 1. Create a website
Even if you don't sell furniture online, you still need a high-quality website to showcase your products. Use the services of a reliable website designer to make your website look professional. Update the website regularly to include new products. Consider creating a blog page with posts about specific project updates, design processes, and tips for buyers. Use a professional photographer to take photos of your products and post them on your website. The better the photos, the more attractive your product will be in the eyes of potential buyers.
Step 2. Work with galleries
A gallery will display your furniture as a work of art. This can expand the reach of customers who are familiar with your product and allow them to see it firsthand. Buyers can buy furniture directly in the gallery. In this collaboration, the gallery will receive a portion of the sales proceeds.
Tom Dolese of Terra Firma Design credits his relationship with Northwest Woodworkers Gallery in Seattle as they helped expand his market from the small town of northern Washington to Seattle to gain more customers
Step 3. Expand your product line
Attend carpentry classes to learn the latest techniques. Use your new skills in product creation. Dedicate time to creating new designs. Collaborate with other colleagues and share your ideas and skills. This will help everyone grow and learn from each other.
Method 5 of 5: Combining Furniture Design Fundamentals
Step 1. Look for inspiration to create a design
Inspiration comes from various things. For example, the world is filled with shadows, shapes, and silhouettes that can be turned into a base of shapes, lines, and colors for your designs. In addition, common objects such as windows, food, or buildings can also inspire the design of cabinets, table legs, and other furniture elements. Of course, you have to look for inspiration from the needs of your customers. Consider how to use a piece of furniture when choosing a material and shape. Also, think about the design aesthetic of your brand. For example, your design style could be contemporary, traditional, classic, or Victorian.
Step 2. Use the contrast method
Contrast is the blending of two opposites, such as light and darkness or fine and rough texture, to create visual interest or depth. This principle can also be used to underline important elements in a piece of furniture. For example, if your wardrobe door has a special design element, make it a different type of wood or an eye-catching change in wood grooves. Contrast can be subtle differences or very obvious differences, but it should not be overused. Avoid using contrasting elements that are too flashy. However, try to play around with the aesthetics of a design.
Step 3. Consider the proportions
Proportion refers to the size and scale of the components in a piece of furniture. In addition to size, proportion is also related to the harmony of color, shape, and texture. The way each element relates to one another depends on your cultural experience. The human eye is easier to recognize the right proportion of natural elements, especially the human body. In fact, you probably don't think about proportions at all until you see something that doesn't fit.
The Golden Rectangle is a symmetrical relationship that has been used in design for thousands of years and was used by famous artists such as Salvador Dali, Leonardo da Vinci and the designers of the Parthenon. This is a mathematical concept that makes a visual design look more attractive. This concept comes from the Fibonacci sequence that can be found on all things in nature, from leaves to shells to human faces. The proportion of the Gold Rectangle is 1:1.618
Step 4. Define the shape
Form is also known as form. Shape is determined by the design of a piece of furniture. The three basic shapes in furniture are geometric, organic, and abstract.
- Geometric shapes are circle, square, rectangle, and triangle. All these shapes are made of straight lines and curves and are usually symmetrical.
- Organic shapes often appear asymmetrical and mimic the shape of objects in nature, such as leaves or water.
- Abstract forms are artistic representations of various forms that can or cannot be recognized.
Step 5. Notice the relationship between the lines
The lines in the furniture define the space and guide the eye to see the object. Depending on the design style, these lines can be straight or curved, thick or thin, vertical or diagonal. Examine the lines in your design to evaluate their alignment.
- Horizontal lines increase the length and width of an object.
- The combination of vertical and horizontal lines adds symmetry and balance.
- Squiggly lines convey movement and add aesthetic value.
Step 6. Add textures and patterns
Texture is the quality of the surface of a material. Texture can be visual, like the way furniture absorbs and reflects light. Texture can also be tactile, such as the sensation of the touch of a cloth on a chair. Patterns are created by incorporating repetition of elements in a piece of furniture. You can create patterns with shapes, colors, and textures.
Step 7. Enter the color
When using color, consider these three qualities: hue, value, and intensity. In addition, colors can also be divided into warm and cold colors. Color can be applied to furniture through paint, coatings, fabrics, or the use of different types of wood.
- Hue is the name of the color, such as red, yellow, or blue.
- Value is the brightness or thickness of the color. Light colors can sometimes make furniture look unstable, while dark colors can add visual weight to it.
- Intensity refers to the brightness or paleness of a color.
- In general, warm colors include red, yellow, and orange, while cool colors are blue, green, and mauve.
