Refinishing is the process of repairing or reapplying the wood finishing on an object. In practice, this may apply to the paint or wood finish top coat, lacquer or varnish. Refinishing is often undertaken to salvage an old piece of furniture. Start your own business refinishing furniture.
The business
The standard practice of this business is to provide a service to anyone who wants their furniture to be refinished. This can be people that want to put new life into their old furniture or people who has bought old furniture for the purpose of refinishing it. You have to remember that new furniture made from quality wood costs serious money and refinishing old furniture is a cheaper option.
What makes any service business great is that it often does not require a lot of capital and can be profitable in a very short period. However it often requires a certain skill and in this case there are some woodworking skills required operating this business but it’s not too complex to learn.
Expanding the core business
There is another side of this business and that is a retail side: buy old furniture, refinish it and resell it but this requires you to outlay some money for stock. If you do this you can either sell to furniture shops that sell that type or furniture or to leave your furniture in a shop on a consignment basis. Often time shops have existing clientele that will buy the item quicker (and pay more) than what you would sell via classifieds.
If you are working with an interior decorator you can also offer a service to paint panel heaters to match the décor of the room or just for novelty:
Painted panel heater – mommyinwaiting.wordpress.com
Marketing the business
The easiest way to get work is to link up with an interior decorator that can send you work. Refinishing is grunt work and many interior decorators don’t do it themselves.
The second way to get work is via local classifieds such as Gumtree. People often use a provider closer to them due to logistical reasons (in some instances furniture has to be collected, refinished and delivered).
Rustic and painted furniture is currently in style, with furniture paint available in a variety of exotic colours. This is a business that can produce dividends in a short period of time.
More Information
How to Start a Furniture Refinishing Business – How to start a home based furniture restoration business including pros and cons, and steps to getting your first customer.
Make Money With a Home Furniture Refinishing Business – Here’s the scoop on a money-making enterprise with a home furniture refinishing business that requires little start-up investment, includes getting started, course in furniture refinishing, pricing, repairs and restoration.
The above US focused but you can learn some basics to apply to your business in South Africa.
Another interesting read – How to Tell If Wood Furniture Is Worth Refinishing
Image credits: myfurnitureguy, angelwoodrefinishing, mommyinwaiting
