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The Staging Business From A Stager's Perspective
By: Kamil Z. Skawinski
Two years ago, Carla Seely and her partner started
Redesign Realty LLC in Toledo, Ohio, and its staging
subsidiary, Redesign to Sell, specifically to advise
sellers on how to profit from a staging makeover. As a
result, she has had many experiences that individuals
considering a career in staging should bear in mind.
"I've had a lot of inquiries, usually from women, who'd
ask me, 'How would I get into this sort of business'?
People see these cable programs on television that take
a home, stage it, and then sell it in a few short days
for a tidy profit and they're really interested and
intrigued by this job," says Seely. "But what they don't
really see, and what they don't appreciate, is all of
the behind-the-scenes work that goes into staging a
home, as well as the difficulty, at least here in the
Midwest, in actually convincing someone to want to have
their home staged, which can be an uphill climb even if
they initially agree to doing it."
As a result, Seely advises potential future stagers to
first realize that this is a career in which they must
be understanding, empathetic, and able to communicate
effectively and diplomatically with their clients, for
many will have undue emotional attachments to their
possessions, both psychologically healthy and unhealthy.
"You'll need to be able to do your work as effectively
as you can without offending anyone or hurting their
feelings. In the end, you've got to be able to
communicate truthfully and unemotionally to your client
that the buyer isn't coming to a home in order to look
at their stuff-which could often wind up being a
distraction or discouragement-but rather to look at the
square-footage, the architecture and the fundamentals of
the home they're trying to sell and what you, as a
stager, are trying to highlight. You want to present
buyers with a clean, clutter-free home that's not
over-filled with possessions-and, so, you need to be
able to persuade the home's owners to pack up their
unneeded stuff ahead of time and store it in preparation
for the forthcoming move, because that, after all, is
the point of having the home staged."
To be successful as a stager, you need to be able to
quickly de-clutter and de-personalize a home, and make
sure that it's as clean as it can be. In order to
accomplish all these things, you need to gain not only
the confidence of your client, but you'll also have to
have a good network of reliable partners (e.g.,
plumbers, painters, movers, storage facility operators,
furniture rental businesses, etc.) who will be able to
assist you with every staging job. You cannot expect to
do all of the necessary work yourself and this means
that you'll also need to have some working capital on
hand with which to do all of these things-consequently,
you cannot dive into this career without first having a
solid business plan, financial savvy, and networking and
salesmanship skills.
Business and liability insurance are also must-haves,
underscores Seely, and in states like Ohio, stagers not
only need to be registered properly, but they must also
comply with any existing rules and regulations that
control the activities of the business. And provision
for personal health insurance as well as Workers
Compensation Insurance will also have to be made, for
injuries can happen on the job.
"You're running a business, and so you have to do what a
business does before you embark on it. It sounds
easy-and staging is pretty easy to get into-but you have
to be prepared for all contingencies, and you first have
to have some money, some funds, that you'll be able to
work with when you first start out. As with everything
in life, preparation is key."
"You'll be starting out in this business as someone
who's self-employed, and that's always hard," Seely
continues. "This business works well for people who
might have had a sales-related business like real
estate, for example, because such people have probably
already compiled a database of clients that they can
then refer to and contact. But if you're just starting
out, you'll literally have to go out and pound the
pavement and get clients-and that's likely the hardest
thing, the greatest stumbling block. Having all the
necessary schooling, training and work-experience,
however, can be helpful and I advise anyone interested
in this profession to take advantage of all such
opportunities they might have available. But in this
business, you are continually selling your own value-and
that's tough, it's difficult sometimes to convince
people that you are providing them with a valuable
service that's worth such-and-such in terms of dollars.
There are pitfalls, sometimes it's tough to make money,
and you need to go into this with eyes open and no
illusions."
Seely also reminds that a stager should also be prepared
to act as both a consultant for the home seller, as well
as the hands-on stager.
"Some people will just want your professional opinion
and suggestions, and then they'll do the work on their
own," she explains. "So, what you will have to be able
to do is provide them with a comprehensive list of
suggestions, as well as specifics as to what work needs
to be done, especially for those rooms which are now
considered to be most important: the kitchen, the
bathroom, the master bedroom...any so-called 'money
rooms,' those spaces that most resonate and have
emotional appeal to the buyer."
Most importantly, she sees the role as a stager as one
that saves sellers time and money by warning them away
from certain improvements they might otherwise have
made.
For example, you as a homeowner might be inclined to
replace worn carpet with new. That decision, however,
could work against you because most buyers would rather
replace the carpet according to their own tastes rather
than live with your choice.
"You want to refrain from trying to be a designer in
this job," Seely cautions. "The service that you are
providing is specifically geared toward selling a home,
and you only want to make those changes to it that make
it more appealing to the buyer. What you want to do is
enhance the property and not take away from its value or
have your service wind up being a waste of your client's
money. Just because a space looks nicer, though that's
generally helpful, doesn't necessarily mean that you've
made a home more valuable or marketable."
And that's why the right training and experience is very
important, for staging isn't a job for the dilettante or
hobbyist.
"In the end, you end up being successful and make money
in this job because you love to do the job and you treat
it like the business that it is. If you truly enjoy what
you're doing, it shows, it's reflected in the quality of
the work that you do for your clients. And if you're
good with those skills and you earn a good reputation in
the community, the money will follow."
© 2006 by Kamil Skawinski (E-mail: skawinski@hotmail.com
)
All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without prior
written consent.
Writer Information
Written by
Kamil Z. Skawinski, Science and Technology
Editor
Kamil Z. Skawinski is a freelance writer
specializing in technology issues who lives
in Milwaukee.
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