James+James Opening First Retail Store In Springdale

SPRINGDALE -- James Smith is opening his first retail store next week for his Springdale-based furniture business James+James.

It took more than a month to sell his first coffee table three years ago. Business grew steadily and sales topped $1 million last year. He hopes to break the $2 million mark this year.

"Luckily things are so busy I don't have time to think about how big the business has gotten," Smith said earlier this week as he prepared his retail outlet at 4217 S. Thompson St. for Friday's opening.

Smith started the business from his garage with James Elderidge in 2011. Elderidge sold his stake in the business last year and two silent partners jumped in.

James+James still makes coffee tables and has expanded to include a variety of custom, solid-wood pieces ranging from bookshelves to bedroom furniture. Smith said his most popular piece is a farmhouse table. Prices start at $760 for a 10-foot table.

The company also sells an assortment of chairs Smith buys from vendor partners and finishes to match the tables.

The retail store will allow Smith to expand into another area: lighting and decor.

"It's a bit scary, but I'm ready for whatever the outcome is," he said. "We only wanted products we felt good about."

Smith predicts decor will be his biggest seller in the coming year.

"Our furniture is timeless on purpose," he said. "But we want customers to come to us when they want new accessories such as new throw pillow or wall decor. We want to offer something different to the market."

Market research firm IBISWorld predicts in its "Household Furniture Manufacturing in the U.S." report that furniture sales will drop 2.1 percent to $20.3 billion this year.

The reports states one bright spot is growth in customer demand for high-quality furniture made in the U.S. That area is expected to grow 7.4 percent to $4.1 billion in the next five years.

IBISWorld also predicts that more shoppers will opt to by straight from the manufacturers in the future to get better prices. Only 2.3 percent of sales this year came from manufacturer sales directly to consumers.

Smith said the store will give Northwest Arkansas shoppers a chance to see a handful of his products.

The store has 2,000 square feet of display space and can't hold every item he makes, Smith said. Customers can personalize their selected pieces using an iPad at the store and arrange to pick it up at the company's 10,000-square-foot headquarters and manufacturing site at 460 W. Randall Wobbe Lane in Springdale or arrange for delivery.

He said it typically takes three to four weeks to complete each custom piece. He has 17 full-time workers.

James+James doesn't sell to any wholesalers or retailers, and Smith said he will continue selling direct to the customer. He displays a few pieces at company headquarters, but his only showroom in the past was online. The website was just a place to look. Customers had to place orders by phone.

"Opening the retail store pushed us to ecommerce," he said. A new James+James website is set to go live by Monday and will allow customers to place orders online.

The company has shipped furniture to 46 states and into Canada and Mexico. Smith said one piece went as far as Bahrain, a island off the coast of Saudi Arabia.

Smith uses logistics company CaseStack to broker his shipments. CaseStack's regional headquarters is in Fayetteville.

"We ship all over the place for them," said Dan Sanker, CaseStack president and chief executive officer. "They make the stuff, and we can take it out to where it needs to go, be it an office building or someone's home."

Most of CaseStack's customers are larger companies that sell to retailers, but Sanker said more and more businesses have products going straight to the customer.

"Frankly when I look at the list of our top 20 customers, we probably have three or four that started in a garage and become $100 million-plus companies that are now big clients," he said. "I always like these kinds of stories and watching companies grow."

Smith said one secret to his success is growing at a rate he can afford. The Small Business Administration reports about two-thirds of small business survive at least two years, and only half make it five years.

He said he has used his sales revenue to finance everything since buying first Skil saw for $40 of his own money.

"I use yesterday's sales to finance tomorrow's growth," he said. "I can't wait to see what the next three years hold."