Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Bonkers in Boston~It's a success! And our latest in vintage furnishings

 Maison Decor Boston opened Labor Day weekend~
a pretty tricky time for retail~
I was told to expect it to be slow,
and that was OK because I didn't want Justin to be overwhelmed
with the sales as I would not be able to join him on our opener, Saturday.
So I sat in my Malden store, and he opened Boston~
he had a pretty decent day, with good sales
of furniture and paint while I had zilch, zippo,  nada!! 
No phone calls or walk-ins.
I was chomping at the bit to join him on my day off Sunday 
as I expected some good action since that is the 
day of the Vintage SOWA market 
located right next to our shop.  I 
arrived early at the Boston shop and took some pics in the 
quiet closed shop so you could see more of the store.
 This is our work area that has the sink and cabs along with our check out area.
An exposed brick wall is really cool, and the large store window area is to the left.
 This is the store window space~
 This is the back of the store~its a very small space 
and we don't want it to be too cluttered 
so that shoppers can't navigate around the place, 
and I think Justin did a good job with that.
 Of course all the paint is housed in Betsy's cabinet 
that sits along the wall to the right as you enter the shop.
 Little setups of Gilding pastes and waxes and brushes are on one long console table.
 Getting ready to open my doors~I was nervous and hopeful, 
but not too hopeful that I would be 
disappointed.....I had to keep my feelings under
 wraps and just let the day unfold...
 Some more pics of the store~
 Vintage iron planters, one like a bird cage are new for this shop...
a lot of the other items have been sitting in my Malden shop for 3 months!
 Mirrors and chandeliers~my favorites can be found here.
And then it was time to open the doors.
For the first two hours we had a lot of tire kickers~
and no sales....I started to really get nervous...
it was unbearable to think about what if...what if no one wanted to buy anything?
I had so much riding on this store....Justin and I would look at each other and
as groups of shoppers would come in, ask about a price, or the paint and then leave
without a purchase...well it was tough. Most of them were heading to the Vintage market
next doors.  So they came in, and they left...but then it started happening~
They started coming back...
 The shoppers started coming in droves....
 Lots of them...I counted several times we had 14 people in the store at once!
Of course I was so busy I couldn't snap pics then! We had two iPads ringing sales,
and both of us fielding questions about Chalk Paint™ and our furniture! 
 We had all kinds of people~
couples, and families, and yuppies and buppies and dogs!
 See their brown paper bag? 
They bought something! It was contagious~
more and more sales as the day wore on....

 This little girl was so darling~she played with the colored samples of the Chalk Paint™.
 I asked her mom if I could photograph her hair,
 and her mom said it was her "Fairy Hair"!
How cute is that? Its just a pony tail and then
 you feed it back through the top of the pony!
I am going to try making Fairy Hair myself as my hair is getting long~
 Justin ringing up a big sale~she bought our pretty French Shell mirror!
It sat in my Malden store~no one seemed to appreciate it...later in the day 
a woman came back to buy it and cried when she saw it was SOLD! 
People were so complimentary about the shop~
they loved our selection and our reasonable prices they said.
 This area has a ton of dogs, and most shops welcome them.
 Say hi to Gerald!

 Gerald's mom is a professional furniture painter~
she was so captivated by Annie's paint.
She spent hours in the store~buying paint, wax, a wax brush and a color chart~
she is thrilled she won't have to prime a set of chairs for her customer!
 This young couple from Montreal perused the color samples~
 The guys were just as into it as the girls~
 I was glad to snap this pic of Justin in the thick of it!
This lady has an art studio in the neighborhood
and she works with Polymer clay~
I told her about the gilding paste and how she can use that with her
clay work, and she was intrigued and went home with a tin to try.
At the end of the day we had sold three pieces of furniture,
a large mirror, lots of home accessories and of course Chalk Paint™!
It was indeed time to reflect and enjoy the moment.
I couldn't let myself go...I was still kind of stunned by the success~!
the feedback, the awesome clientele, the wonderful neighborhood spirit~
Its more than I had hoped for~and that was something indeed.
We know its gonna fly~its gonna work!!
It just was an amazing opener~
Justin and I are totally pumped about it!
Nearing the end of the day, he looked over
at me a few times and said quietly,
"Can you believe this???"
And I had a hard time believing what was happening...
I really did. I think I was afraid to dream that big...
to think those thoughts, even though deep down inside 
I thought  our store would be great there.
 I headed out of Boston with the Provence settee 
in the back my car for a delivery~
two streets over in a quaint Boston neighborhood
 was where this little bench can be found.
A cute young couple saw it in the window and went home to measure~
it turned out it would fit perfectly in their entryway. 
 He works for the Boston Red Sox~How fun is that?
 Its this kind of stuff that puts the cherry on top~
the nice people that are going to be our customers.
 They loved our store and said they'd be back!
Its time to restock~!!
Here are a few of the new OLD items I have coming to the shop!
 A bombe style French Provincial chest~
 A petite armoire~perfect for smaller apartments or baby's room!
 Great vintage condition with classic details.
A small bombe chest
 A mind blower of a piece~this huge Map/Document Chest! 
All original condition with stellar hardware and in fabulous shape!
And a pretty faded rug for my store~Justin told me he wanted a faded out oriental rug...
and after seeing Laurie's Prayer rug at Heaven's walk, I had to have one too~
but it had to be bigger! This one is 9 feet long! I can get another one if anyone is interested.
So that is the way our opener in Boston went~so glad you stayed with me along my journey.
I haven't been able to blog hop like I used to~I get to check in on Mondays (my day off).
Thanks for all the great comments, its so fun hearing what you have to say.
PS~yesterday Napoleon sold right out of the front window~!
I think he will be found in a neighboring shop for double the price!!
So if you are looking for great pieces without the high Boston prices,
check our store or look online at the furniture there~
 www.shopmaisondecor.com

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40 comments:

  1. Congratulations!!! I knew it would be a hit, but that's easy for me to say, when I'm sitting here watching you and your family work hard to set this up, and I'm not the one with all the blood, sweat, tears and $ involved. But you are providing a product that practically sells itself, and merchandise that is hot and well priced. So happy for you!!! donna :)

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  2. So thrilled and happy for you Amy
    You are talented and so hard working{your family is too} this says a lot in our economy for such success
    Proud of you sweet friend
    xo
    Pam

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  3. AMY . . . Dreams DO Come True !! Congrats to You & Justin . . . All Your hard work will Reward Both of You ! Congratulations Again !! TAKE CARE, JOE & GLENN

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  4. Huge Congrats AMY!! So excited for you!! Are tole trays selling?? We need to bring them back in style!! :)

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  5. Amy, I am so thrilled for you. That is so cool that the shoppers can bring their dogs, too. You don't see that much around here.

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  6. Congrats Amy!! It looked like a wonderful day!

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  7. Congrats! It looks spectacular! Yes, love the pooch!
    Sherry

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  8. It's all gorgeous and I knew it would be a success, hey, you have a handsome guy at the ahead of it, how could it not be a success?
    Just thrilled for you!
    I must say I'm liking the burlap used in the store, just love it!

    Rondell

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  9. I am so thrilled to hear about how well your Boston store is doing. (I just knew it would - ha!) Your store is full of charm (first and foremost) and it sounds like the prices are competitive which is what will keep you in business! Whenever I see an item over priced, I think, they must not really want to sell this piece! I love that you're getting crowds in your shop (not just a few walk-ins) and best of all you allow dogs in your shop! You are just too hip. I wish I could shop there in person.

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  10. OMG! That's so completely awesome! WOW, that was a TON of people! How fun... no wonder you guys were pumped. I'm so glad you were there in the thick of it to experience the whole thing. I love the girl with the fairy hair, and Gerald... and it's hard for me to believe that oval mirror in one of the first photos sat anywhere for any length of time. It's all just so freakin cool...

    Cindy

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  11. Amazing! I hope to be stopping by tomorrow - am having lunch in the So. End. Looking forward to seeing it in person!

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  12. Congratulations, Amy. I'm so glad your opening weekend was a great success. That is awesome. It all looks fantastic!

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  13. So thrilled for you, Amy and for Justin. You're off to a roaring start and all your hard work is going to pay off. How nice that it's a family affair. God bless.

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  14. Good for you Amy..and your son too! I love that you keep us so informed. I love it when I see you have a new post:)

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  15. i'm just so damn excited for you i have tears in my eyes. to think all that hardwork paid off on the first day!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wahooli!!!!!

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  16. Hi Amy,
    Congratulations! I'm so happy for you and your family. Your stores are beautiful. Well done!
    XO
    ~Wendy

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  17. Amy I could not be happier for you! How exciting for you to have such a successful first weekend! You deserve it, you have worked hard and done things most people couldn't have done in a year much less a few months!!
    The store looks AMAZING. I cannot wait to make a personal visit....just fabulous!

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  18. How long a lease did you sign? You're gonna need a bigger shop -- and more people to paint, etc....Congratulations!

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  19. Congratulations, Amy & Justin! : ) Love all those new pieces you are bringing in, too.

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  20. Congratulations! So beautiful! I would have snatched up the Napoleon bust in a heartbeat.

    Ann-Marie

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  21. I'm not surprised at all that it's such a hit! Congrats!

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  22. Oh...I'm sad to see Napolean go. But so happy to hear that the weekend was a huge success! Yes, looks like you are in the right neighborhood for sure. I love it that dogs shop there! What a wonderful area. So glad you will have lots of nice customers. I so wish I was there to join in.

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  23. wonderful news, amy! so thrilled for you and sending wishes for continued success at both shops!

    michele

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  24. Deepest congrats Amy- its easy to see you love what you are doing! So happy for you
    Stacy

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  25. Amy I am so happy for you!! Looks like your shop is in the perfect neighborhood! Your so lucky to have your son right there with you!

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  26. Yay, yay, yay! So happy for you, Amy- that's wonderful news, and so deserved- you guys have worked hard!

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  27. Good job! You've really come so far since I've been following you.

    Just don't let me see that map chest get painted! :)

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  28. Oh congratulations, how fun, it has been so fun following your journey!

    Carol

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  29. I am soooo excited you brought Annie Sloan to Boston! Your shop looks beautiful and I can't WAIT to come check it out!!

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  30. Amy....congratulations on a great day...so, so happy for you!...Can't imagine how your future days will be when you had such a wonderful grand opening experience...Loved seeing the dogs out and about...when we were vacationing and visiting friends in Colorado, I was pleasantly surprised to see water bowls outside each shop for the dogs!...
    Have a wonderful and successful week Amy!!

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  31. How exciting for you all, Amy!!!! I'm just doin' the happy dance over here for you, girlie!!!! :) But your success doesn't surprise me at all. I KNEW you'd do well!

    I'm in love with the little chandy on the tray in the window. Is it still for sale???

    Oh, and thank you SO much for the sweet shout-out, too! You're a doll! ♥ Your rug is beautiful!

    xoxo laurie

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  32. Amy, I am a relatively new follower and have read your posts about the new store with great anticipation of seeing the final results. I must admit, while reading today and sensing your excitement, I actually got goose bumps for you! Congratulations and best wishes for continued success. PS I absolutely love the small armoire!

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  33. Congratulations! It sounds so exciting, I am so happy for you! Best of luck and continued success. HOW MUCH IS THAT MAP CHEST?? I love it.
    Nancy
    Powellbrowerhome.com

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  34. Just in from So Cal and eager to start furnishing our new OLD apartment, I couldn't wait to visit the store. I want to compliment Amy for the time she spent with me, chatting about ideas and painting classes. She even showed me pics of the petite armoire shown above. I went home empty-handed, but that darn armoire kept calling my name. Amy emailed me pics and measurements and the deal was done! Stop by the store...you'll love it!

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  35. I'm stopping over from Nita's blog!
    Congrats on the new store!
    Everything looks so fantastic.
    Just lovely.
    I love that people are allowed to come in with their dogs!
    :D
    I wish I lived in the area, I would bring my friends for a nice day of shopping.

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  36. I just came from Nita's. wow, Amy, that's great for you guys. It's amazing to read about you taking a risk and following your dreams. it's inspiring! Good luck. I hope you have fabulous success.

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  37. Amy ~ I knew that your Boston shop would be a great success! What a fantastic day for you guys! I do "fairy hair" too...it's easy and a little more cute than just a regular ponytail. Oh and one more thing...I want Gerald!!! (*_*)

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