DESIGN TORONTO SUMMER 2017
movatohome.com
Fee is president of Stoney Creek Furniture, a home furnishings store in the Hamilton community of Stoney Creek that does business in a way that makes a big difference. The 85,000-square-foot showroom distinguishes itself on three fronts, Fee explains. The first is its size. “There’s a lot of choice.” With hundreds of room setups, or vignettes, on the showroom floor, Stoney Creek Furniture aims to help buyers see how the furniture will look in a home setting. The company has sales associates and design consultants who help a customer envision how the furnishings will appear in his or her home. This starts with that conversation that Fee stresses is key to getting to know exactly what each customer is seeking. The consultants want to know where a new piece will be positioned. Who will use it? What is the traffic flow in the home? And unlike big-box stores, Stoney Creek Furniture’s employees try “to find eye-catching things you can’t find elsewhere, fashion-forward looks. We can afford to buy really unique things, knowing we won’t sell a ton of it,” Fee says. The third difference is a non-commissioned sales environment. “This makes for a more customer-focused experience,” he says. The person walking through the door doesn’t get that “pounced on” feeling. If one store employee is busy, another one can help the customer. There’s no pressure. And with every employee paid on an hourly rate, the emphasis is on having that conversation with the customer and building a relationship. The delivery crew “finish the experience - the full sales cycle,” Fee says. “It doesn’t finish in the store.” The customer has to be pleased with the way the purchase is placed in their home. “It feels nice to be served well,” Fee says. “In a world where more and more is just point and click – shopping online is a very emotionless thing.” Stoney Creek Furniture is about the emotional relationships: “Great service; where customers get to touch, feel, experience and be counselled on the choice they are going to make,” Fee says. •
THE SUMMER ISSUE
169