Furniture makers, how do you get your customers?

UKworkshop.co.uk

Help Support UKworkshop.co.uk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
18 Dec 2023
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
Location
Cornwall
Hi all. I’ve decided at the ripe old page of 47 to change careers and move into woodworking. Mainly dining tables and coffee tables.
Could be suicide lol, but I love it and hated my old job.
I’ve done a lot of setting up and learning the last year and I’m ready to go.
I’m just wondering how you furniture makers and woodworkers get your steady flow of customers?
Any help appreciated thanks
 
I’m sorry to be negative but my experience is that you will need deep pockets to keep living whilst you (hopefully) establish yourself.
There has just been a good long thread on just this type of topic so I won’t repeat myself.
I would say that it’s extremely difficult to make a living wage making furniture unless and even if, you have built up a name for yourself.
Are you in the right part of the UK? You need to have rich people around you, the route I tried was with getting in with the Equestrian crowd with saddle related equipment, and selling furniture on the back of it.
I gave that up when my son was offered a good job with prospects, with my blessing.
But I do think it would have been successful, we had an excellent range of equipment with some really innovative ideas.
To keep the money coming in I recommend you do handyman type work which will often bring in furniture type work as well. Do you have any photos of your tables?
Best of luck Ian
 
First off I absolutely love making stuff out of wood. Even after many many years. However I have a fraught relationship with customers. Mostly because I hate what there asking me to do. And the pricing of said job. I'm a nice guy but passion brings its own issues. I don't struggle to find work I struggle to find suitable customers. I've never made any money from a piece of standalone that i can remember. Bit from built ins. Not much though as I can't abide mdf. I love making plain and simple stuff properly from tree wood. If I could I would only make what I love. I do make money fitting kitchens/bathrooms/doors because I'm fastish and know what to do.
But that buys me time to design and make things that few customers want. I've said it about wicker workers but it's true for woodworkers. If you have no choice but to do it then the decision is simple. Regardless of outcome you simply must do this thing. But your first years are brutal.... I don't think I'm competent now but oddly I had more work when I started as I had no idea how to price things.
 
This is my opinion only , others may agree or disagree but that’s ok . I’ve done private work ( foreigners) before I was in full time work and I’ve never not done them even when my employer may well of not agreed . If I wanted extra money then I’d work my own jobs or with friends and colleagues. Some of these were 1 offs but many were repeat customers who trusted my work and my advice and would not hesitate to recommend me to friends and family. The emphasis here is Trust , quality of work, correct advise and in general doing the absolute best you can as if you are working in your own home , where the time it takes is less important than money you charge, or the mistake you have made is corrected at your expense not the customer, where the customer phones you back with a issue that they are not happy with and you go back and correct it if it’s your fault. I don’t think it matters whether you are making furniture or building an extension or landscaping the garden or installing a new bathroom the same integrity applies and imo customers will pay over the odds knowing their work will be carried out to the best of your ability and beyond. Eg I was once changing a large radiator in a freshly decorated room. The customer made us aware and left us to it , my colleague yanked the rad and dented the wall. He actually said don’t tell the customer. Job done off he went and left me to finish the job. The cust asked if everything was ok and I just couldn’t say nothing so I fessed up and took the blame . I expected him to explode but instead he said thanks for being honest and owning up , he then slapped £20 in my hand and said this is for you and not your colleague because I know it wasn’t you that damaged the wall - anyway I still do the occasional job for this chap and I’ve lost count of how many of his friends and family I’ve done work for .. so I agree with @Cabinetman its not easy and an additional income might be reqd until you get established-good luck ..
 
I partly disagree about giving ones best in every situation. I would say never ever point out any fault but speak as though only others make balls ups.
I'm interested in what style type of tables btw. Why tables? High or low end? Your story?
 
Mostly random recommendations, about half the time I do sash windows, doors, other general joinery and stuff to keep the work going.
In my experience you can`t be too fussy, if its woodwork I will probably do it but I do love making really nice stuff if given the chance.
 
I'll throw this out there.
As a guy who used to collect custom blades, it's never the basic technical competence that sells your product. That is taken for granted.

You have to have a design aesthetic that appeals to people and makes them think "I want that !"
You then have to be able to deliver that at a painful but affordable price.
People will push themselves for something they really want, but not for something that is just better made IKEA.

Like photography, the starting point is a good technical competence. If it's out of focus, too bright or dim, etc it gets deleted the first time it's looked at.

First build competence.
Then build speed - aka the chance of being profitable.
Finally, you need a design aesthetic, edge, something unique to make you stand out. Start exploring that from day 1, but aesthetic without speed and competence won't survive.

It's hard because you could spend years developing the skill to satisfy (i) and (ii) but if you don't find a (iii) that appeals to people, you'll never really succeed.

Along the way, shows, exhibitions, etc may help.
The only bespoke furniture I ever bought was inspired by seeing a young craftsman's work at a show. He had a piece that appealed to my wife and I and we visited and had him adapt the design of a slim hall table to work as a dressing table set with mirror and stool.
Simple, elegant, not IKEA.
Would I have bought that online ? Not a chance.
If you are buying bespoke, there needs to be a relationship, so at some point there needs to be hands on / face to face. That means selling through shows, exhibitions, or getting your name in front of people who live or visit near enough to your workshop.
You have to be where there is money to buy, or you have to go to where it is.

If you don't intend to be good and don't intend to be serious, you won't make it.
 
Mostly random recommendations, about half the time I do sash windows, doors, other general joinery and stuff to keep the work going.
In my experience you can`t be too fussy, if its woodwork I will probably do it but I do love making really nice stuff if given the chance.
That is my situation also. So far this year, furniture-wise, I've only made a large monastery table. The rest was subcontracting work for this and that...some joinery, some architectural woodwork. Recently, I made some doors and windows for an old winter garden. I'd prefer furniture, but you can't be too picky, sorry to say.
 
I'll throw this out there.
As a guy who used to collect custom blades, it's never the basic technical competence that sells your product. That is taken for granted.

You have to have a design aesthetic that appeals to people and makes them think "I want that !"
You then have to be able to deliver that at a painful but affordable price.
People will push themselves for something they really want, but not for something that is just better made IKEA.

Like photography, the starting point is a good technical competence. If it's out of focus, too bright or dim, etc it gets deleted the first time it's looked at.

First build competence.
Then build speed - aka the chance of being profitable.
Finally, you need a design aesthetic, edge, something unique to make you stand out. Start exploring that from day 1, but aesthetic without speed and competence won't survive.

It's hard because you could spend years developing the skill to satisfy (i) and (ii) but if you don't find a (iii) that appeals to people, you'll never really succeed.

Along the way, shows, exhibitions, etc may help.
The only bespoke furniture I ever bought was inspired by seeing a young craftsman's work at a show. He had a piece that appealed to my wife and I and we visited and had him adapt the design of a slim hall table to work as a dressing table set with mirror and stool.
Simple, elegant, not IKEA.
Would I have bought that online ? Not a chance.
If you are buying bespoke, there needs to be a relationship, so at some point there needs to be hands on / face to face. That means selling through shows, exhibitions, or getting your name in front of people who live or visit near enough to your workshop.
You have to be where there is money to buy, or you have to go to where it is.

If you don't intend to be good and don't intend to be serious, you won't make it.
Good points and well said. Having an eye for style and proportions and designing things that make people stop and want to come and look is key. I did a pop up at a craft fair in my large village as a last minute favour, I was amazed at the favourable response, and for a few years after people would say oh yes I saw your work at the ....
Ian
 
There's probably only one route and that's YouTube, but you have to be a genius like for example Pedulla Studio - if you're anything less than that then you may aswell forget it. Fitted furniture is pretty much the only profitable niche because you're not competing against the mass produced.

Your lack of replies and interaction with the thread you have started also doesn't bode well, good communication is a key
element of dealing with clients!
 
Your lack of replies and interaction with the thread you have started also doesn't bode well,
Good point, maybe not the answers the OP was hoping for.

Anyway, @Cornwall360 on the basis that your in Cornwall, I presume you have done some research as to the local market and the competition/local sellers, I did quick google and found this newish company with a good range of products and nice website: Burr&Knot

And if you look at the profile on the companies house register you will see how well they are doing...
 
Not an accountant , but they do not show a P&L as a small compaines act or something like that, they dont have to
They are also VAT registered so must have a revenue/turnover of £85K , Now £90K and paying the VAT to HMRC and probably claiming a lot back

BUT as i say not an accountant - or business owner , SO could ALL be wrong.....
 
Also not an accountant, but I believe that you can voluntarily register for vat below the threshold, I believe some firms will only deal with your business if you are registered.
 
Back
Top