find other niche markets where staging and styling can be applied like rental properties, retail storefronts and vignette settings – that sort of thing. The Real Estate Staging Association (RESA®) was formed in 2007, as the industry’s first trade association to advance excellence and professionalism in the real estate staging industry. I joined RESA in 2016 as a way to add credibility to my business but, more importantly, to network and keep abreast of industry trends via ongoing education and their annual convention. They provide excellent training opportunities via routine webinars and online courses. There are approximately 50 local chapters across both Canada and the US; however, currently no chapter in my area. I anticipate that this will change over time as staging becomes standard practice in real estate and the number of local stagers increases. I’m confident that the staging industry will continue to grow as buyers demand aesthetically-pleasing, move-in ready properties.”
having a home staging professional as a part of the team are palpable in today’s media-driven marketplace. Julie explained that her real estate partners “all include my home staging consultation” as part of their service. “It’s similar to how they include professional photography and video tours as part of their marketing package,” she said. “This allows the seller to benefit from an initial visit from me where I determine the condition of items that need to addressed – sometimes it’s painting, cleaning, decluttering, that sort of thing. Then I work with them and put in place a plan for how to proceed. I also present the seller with a proposal for having me showcase – or “stage” – their home once the conditions have been met.” Sometimes meeting the conditions for Julie’s vision requires her to take an extra step. She explained how a stager in a city centre “like the GTA” has at their disposal “maybe several companies dedicated to servicing the furniture rental needs of stagers” for vacant – and oftentimes occupied – staging projects. “However, in our smaller region, there’s no such luck,” Julie said. “It isn’t practical for stagers to purchase large items for their inventory such as couches, dining sets, consoles, and all that – and why not? The furniture itself is costly to buy and store; it means additional costs to trans- port the furniture each time in terms of drivers and vehicles; and most importantly: design styles come and go quickly, so you would need to rotate the inventory routinely. And obviously you want each stage to be unique, so using the same items over and over simply doesn’t allow for that. That said, I had to find a solution.” “It’s similar to how they include professional photography and video tours as part of their marketing package.” Julie approached several rental companies outside of her staging area. Executive Furniture Rentals, a family-owned, pioneering force in furniture rentals across Canada, was more than willing to help and at “reasonable delivery rates,” Julie said with gratitude in her voice. “Since one of their areas of specialty is home staging, they offer on-trend furniture and accessories that fit the bill for both Julie’s mid- range and luxury home staging projects,” she said. More recently, Flair Style Co. has partnered with Monarkey Furni- ture Rentals which is, Julie explained, operated by a fellow CCSP. “Monarkey also provides cost-effective rental and delivery to my area. The rental items that become staging pieces for Flair Style Co. projects are selected by me online via their websites. They are delivered by the rental company and paid for by the seller. Flair wouldn’t be what it is today without the assistance of its business partners. My hope is to continue to build these relationships so that there are ongoing benefits for all of us.” Looking forward, Julie sees the Flair Style Co. mission expanding. “I want to continue with both occupied and vacant staging projects,” she said, “but I also want to
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OCTOBER 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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