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An Unexpected Opportunity Niki and Shaokao Cheng were renovating their New York apartment in 2002. At that time in New York, when you began renovating and redesigning your home there were two sides of the spectrum for modern furniture: Ikea and the high end, expensive furniture. The two of them were looking through design magazines when a coffee table in an ad caught Shaokao’s eye, “The furniture in the ad was modern. I saw this coffee table that I had been dreaming of. What was better: the $299.00 price tag.” As Cheng continued to examine the page, he noticed in small print at the top of the ad, “For franchise opportunities…”. That was enough to peak Cheng’s curiosity. With both his wife and his own passion for modern furniture coupled with his wife’s background in interior and architectural design, they began to research the opportunity to franchise. The two of them signed the papers in 2003. Two months later they opened. By
“First and foremost, I don’t look at this as work. This is a new way of living, or a new lifestyle. This business in some ways is like a child of mine and so I treat it as such.” the time the paper’s were signed, Cheng had done much of the research, location scouting and other preparatory measures. Cheng didn’t put all of his eggs in the BoConept basket right away. “I was thinking my wife would run the floor and I’d keep my day job. At night I would deal with the paperwork,” Cheng shared. That idea didn’t last for long. From day one they were so busy, Cheng realized it was “do or die”. The couple had invested a lot into the business and he wasn’t prepared to lose the investment they had made. Prior to their Grand Opening, Cheng was working with McKenzie & Company as an IT executive. “On day one there was a line and we ended up working that first day until three in the morning. The store opened the next day at nine thirty so we went home for a couple hours of sleep, showered, and were back a few hours
later to open the doors,” said Cheng. That rigorous routine lasted for the first two years. The couple devoted their life to their business and they continued to watch their sales, customer base, and employee commitment grow.
The Support Behind BoConcept There is a head BoConcept office in New Jersey. The BoConcept training that really stood out in Cheng’s mind, was the support of a number of executives there to support them for their Grand Opening. At the time, there were only a handful of BoConcept stores in the US and having a franchise in the US was very exciting for the company at large. Cheng shared, “We didn’t have to go anywhere; they brought everything to us.” The hands on support lasted for about a month, helping
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