me along to assist with both occupied and vacant staging projects. I was so grateful as I learned a lot during that time! All in all, it’s been quite an intense year but it’s been quite a rewarding one, too. Now I am doing exactly what I love to do.” That’s not to say that the hard work is over, Cat empha- sized. “There’s still a lot of homework to do in the begin- ning and as you go along. I take advantage of webinars offering courses on color consultation, etc., and stay on top of updates in home staging and décor and color trends.” “Now I’ve turned my passion into a business!” Professional Home Stagers also rely on dependable and equitable business relationships and partnerships with fur- niture vendors and realtors, to name a couple, particularly in the beginning. “At the start I took the time to tap into my extensive network to source out reliable furniture sup- pliers, painters, handymen, photographers, etcetera,” she said. “Easyhome, a lease-to-own furniture business with locations in Dartmouth, Halifax and Lower Sackville, also caters to Stagers, so they’ve been great to connect with. As soon as I told them that I was in the biz staging a couple of homes in Halifax and Sackville they were on board with me offering suggestions and answering all of my questions. Pier 21, along with other retailers, is another furniture store
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and run a business. So it was then that I decided to take another course at the same time so that I’d become a little more familiar with the business side of Home Staging and, also, hone my skills. I graduated from ‘The Staging Diva’ Home Staging Business Training Program last year. I also acted on an opportunity to take a professional sales course through the CPSA [Canadian Professional Sales Associa- tion] in conjunction with ACOA [Atlantic Canada Opportu- nities Association] where I gained a certificate in Profession- al Selling. And, finally, I had the opportunity and pleasure of acquiring a mentor, a seasoned home stager who invited
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • OCTOBER 2018
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