Foxy Property Chat

This week our main topic is around pricing - something that can be controversial but is what everyone wants to know about. We consider and discuss things like:  - Are we priced too low?   - Why can home staging prices vary so much between companies?   - How does a business model determine pricing?  - Should there be set industry prices?  In the podcast we answer all these million dollar questions, plus more!    After that we move onto a Q&A segment where we answer all your questions that you’ve sent in before finishing off with a round of ‘Overrated or Underrated’. Thanks for tuning in!

This week our main topic is around getting ready for what will (hopefully) be a busy spring. Are we buying more stock? Hiring new staff? What systems are we preparing? We then answer some questions from our audience before finishing with a quick round of Over/Underrated. Thanks for listening.

On this brand new weekly podcast series we discuss: Customer service and the importance of trusting the people you recommend Our styling training guide Writing off stock Favourite suppliers How our stylists organise their selections And a whole lot more. Leave us a question for next week over on Instagram. Thanks for listening.

In this podcast we sit down with Phoebe for some Q&A. Here are the questions Phoebe answers: Where do we buy our quilt covers from? How did we grow the company to what it is today? What to do when a competitor is undercutting you? Can you explain Modern Luxe? How much did you invest when starting out? Where do we buy our feather cushion  inserts from? How to know what furniture to buy when starting out? Thanks for listening!

Today I have a very special guest, and one that I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. My guest is Jen Bishop, the founder, publisher and owner of Interiors Addict.  Many of you in the home staging industry will know who Jen is, especially those in Australia, and I actually first heard Jen speak in 2019 at a conference held by the International Association of Home Stagers in Sydney. And I’ve been hoping to interview her for the podcast since then. Interiors Addict started as a hobby back in 2011, and has now been Jen’s full-time job for over eight years. The way she describes it now is that it’s less of a blog and more of an interiors news site with a personal touch. It down has around 100k unique visitors per month, over 70k Facebook and 100k Instagram followers. But it wasn’t always that way, and it wasn’t a simple transition from a passion project into a full time business. In this chat Jen talks about that process and how Interiors Addict has changed and grown over time. We also talk about Imp

Today is a special episode, or at least a different episode, because today I’m interviewing Phoebe Shorter. You may have noticed that she has the same surname as me, and that’s because Phoebe is my wife, and also the co-owner and Chief Stylist (among other things) of Foxy Home Staging. A few days ago I put out a request for questions that I could ask Phoebe, and this episode is basically a Q&A where I get the chance to put all the questions to Phoebe. We speak about how Foxy deals with losing work to low priced competitors, or competitors using price-matching and undercutting tactics. We also talk about what Phoebe thinks of work/life balance, and how she manages running a growing business with being a Mum of three young kids. And of course I ask her about her journey with Foxy Home Staging, what she’s most proud of, as well as the biggest downside.

Today’s guest is Kerrie Reid, founder of Elite Design and Home Staging, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. And in this episode, we’re talking all about staging short-term vacation rentals like Airbnbs. I know this is something many home stagers have considered offering, and Kerrie will tell you that, although it takes a similar approach to staging for sale, this niche market takes a different level of attention to detail. Kerrie has staging vacation homes down to a science. She has checklists and processes for everything. And it’s this meticulous approach that sets her apart from others who operate in this space. For anyone who stages short term vacation rentals, or is thinking about offering it as a new service, you’ll get a lot from this interview. Website - https://www.eliteinteriorspgh.com/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/eliteinteriorspgh/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/elite_interiorspgh/

Today’s guest is Cindy Lin, founder of Staged4More, which began life in 2006 as a home staging and design company in the San Francisco bay area. Now, Staged4more is an online school that provides home staging and business courses for home stagers. Given that you’re listening to this podcast about the home staging industry, you may have also heard of Cindy Lin through her podcast which is called The Home Staging Show. A theme that came up a few times in this chat is how Cindy has made significant leaps and pivots in business and made seemingly risky decisions, but that she doesn’t necessarily see it that way. I think this episode can largely be summed up as a discussion about entrepreneurship, with some golden nuggets specific to the home staging industry thrown in. Website - https://www.staged4more.com/ Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-home-staging-show/id998380851 YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/staged4more Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/staged4more/

Today’s guest is Elaine Penhaul, founder of Lemon and Lime Interiors, which began life in 2012 under the guise of her property investment business. In this conversation Elaine tells the story of Lemon and Lime’s transition into a home staging business, and the growth over the past few years, the book Elaine has recently published, and how Lemon and Lime is now a leading business in the UK Home Staging Industry. Website - https://www.lemonandlimeinteriors.co.uk/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/lemonandlimeinteriors/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/lemonandlimeinteriors/

Today’s guest is Natalie Evans, the founder of Little Barn Door, which was launched in late 2018 in the UK. Along with running her business, which has grown significantly in the past 12 months, Natalie is also a founding member of the Home Staging Association UK & Ireland. In this chat Natalie spoke about how tough the first few months were, and what it took to win that first piece of work.  We also spoke a lot about building a team around you to scale your business. Website - https://www.littlebarndoor.uk/ Little Barn Door Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/littlebarndoor/ Natalie’s Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/iamnatalie_lbd

Today’s guest is Alex Willcocks, co-founder and Director of the Burbeck Group of companies, and I’m going to leave it to Alex to explain what companies are included in that group. But suffice to say that one of the companies focuses on home staging, which is what we spend most of the conversation on. Since Burbeck Interiors began operations in 2016 they have rapidly become one of the premier home staging brands in London. And being the co-owner of a young staging business myself, I was interested in the topic of rapid growth, what that has looked like for Alex, and how they’ve achieved it. Website - https://burbeckinteriors.com/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/burbeckinteriors Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/burbeckinteriors/

Today’s guest is Amy Powers, the founder and owner of Ask For Staging, a home staging business that’s been operating in Atlanta since 2007. I asked Amy a lot about the start of her business and the growth they had in the early years, some of the things that they faced. But what I wanted to focus most on was a more recent service that Amy added, and that was short-term rentals; in particular Airbnb’s. So if your staging business does short-term rental staging, or has thought about adding that service as we have, this is a great chat you’ll want to listen to.  You can follow Amy’s work here: Website - https://www.askforstaging.com/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/askforstaging/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/askforstagingmedia/

Today we have a special guest – Jennie Norris who is the owner of Sensational Home Staging, based in Denver Colorado.  She is also the Chairwoman of the International Association of Home Staging Professionals, which is the largest and longest running Home Staging Industry Trade Association with thousands of members worldwide. In this chat Jennie shares her experiences founding her first home staging company, then leaving it all behind and starting again in a new city.  Jake and Jennie talk about the Association she chairs, and one of the important reports they publish which is beneficial to everyone in the industry – The Home Staging Industry Statistics, based on a survey of thousands of home staging professionals. Keep up with Jennie here: Website: https://www.sensationalhome.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensationalHome Home Staging Professionals Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/HomeStagingProfessionals

Today’s guest is Rhonda Nelson, founder of Nelson Interior Stylists, based in Melbourne’s south-east. Melbourne is currently experiencing a 2nd wave of coronavirus cases which is significantly impacting Rhonda and her team, so we talk about that and what they’re doing to as a business to get through this difficult period. Despite the impact of COVID-19, Rhonda also touched on the growth Nelson Interiors has seen in the last 12 months and what she attributes that to. We also spend quite a bit of time talking about their online store, and how important that’s been as a second source of income. You can find Rhonda online here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/propertystylingthatworks/about/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nelson_interior_stylists/ Website: https://www.nelson-interior-stylists.com/

Today’s podcast is going to be a little bit different. Jake has been trying to share more of his thoughts on running and growing a home staging business in written from, and has been sharing some articles on LinkedIn. Today Jake will share one of those articles with you. This one is about mindset and about how any staging business can be successful by focussing on building relationships with a core set of agents. But it’s about more than just building relationships – it’s about approaching every interaction with a desire to deliver so much value, to the point where agents won’t do business without you. The article is called Five Golden Agents and if you’d like to read it you’ll find it on Jake’s LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-golden-agents-simple-idea-earn-living-home-stager-jake-shorter/

Today we have another returning guest to the show, Adam Luttrell from Shift Property Styling in Hobart.  Adam’s first time on the podcast was just over 12 months ago, and as of right now is still the most downloaded and listened to episode we’ve ever had. In this chat we talk a lot about COVID-19 and the impact it has had on their business, but also what initiatives and changes we’ll see coming out of that difficult period. Jake also wanted to know more about the 100% Styling Guarantee that Shift offers to their clients, and how the perceived risk is much higher than what happens in reality. You can keep up with Adam and Shift Property Styling here: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shiftpropertystyling/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shiftpropertystyling/ Website: https://www.shiftpropertystyling.com.au/

We’re covering a potentially controversial topic today, or at least one that will divide opinions – virtual staging.  As staging companies we’ve all been asked about virtual staging and we’ve all lost work when a seller decides to use virtual staging to save costs.  But is it a service you should be offering alongside your physical home staging service? To discuss this question Jake is joined today by Krisztina Bell, the founder of both a physical and a virtual home staging business. The physical home staging business is called No Vacancy Home Staging and was started in 2005 in Atlanta, Georgia. And the virtual staging business is called Virtually Staging Properties, and has a claim to being one of the pioneers of virtual staging, starting operations in 2007. Krisztina has been recognized as a Who’s Who in Atlanta Real Estate for the past 3 years in a row and she has recently been named in the Top 75 Most Influential People in Real Estate Staging. She’s been in all sorts of media publications and ha

Today’s guest is Geoff Lewis, the co-founder of one of Australia’s leading home staging companies, Bowerbird Interiors, based in Sydney. Geoff and his wife Lauren started the business like most of us do, working out of their house, and built it into the size it is today. We talk about a unique service that Bowerbird has brought to the market, which many in the industry considered controversial and even reckless, but which Geoff explains was an extremely considered approach. That service is something they call Bowerbird Black, and is essentially no sale, no fee home staging. So if the house doesn’t sell, the client doesn’t pay. We ask about the success of the service, some of the issues, and what COVID-19 has done to both Bowerbird Black, and Bowerbird as a business. You can follow Bowerbird here: Website - https://bowerbirdinteriors.com.au/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BowerbirdInt/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/bowerbirdinteriors/?hl=en

Today’s guest is Paloma Harrington-Griffin. Paloma runs her Home Staging businesses in the UK and in Brazil, although she calls London home. Founder of the Home Staging Association UK & Ireland, she is also the Vice President of the International Association of Home Staging Professionals in Europe. In this chat Paloma explains how she got started in the home staging industry and how she eventually founded the Home Staging Association, which she now runs. We talk about the important role industry associations play and why she’s so passionate about educating people involved in the industry, from home stagers to real estate agents. You can follow Paloma here: Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/paloma-harrington-griffin-60bba889/?originalSubdomain=uk Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/palomahgriffin/?hl=en Home Staging Association Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/homestagingassociation/ Home Staging Association Website - https://www.homestaging.org.uk/

Today’s guest is Tori Toth, a best selling author, award-winning home stager, founder of Stylish Stagers and creator of the youtube channel, Home Staging TV which has over 12k subscribers. In this chat with Tori we speak about her background as a news reporter, some of the transitions she’s gone through over her career, how writing and publishing a book has impacted her professionally, how she’s built the Home Staging TV youtube channel, and what she’ll be focussing on going forward. This was a really great conversation with someone who has been in the industry for quite a while, so there’s definitely a lot to learn from Tori. You can follow Tori here: YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/stylishstagers Website - https://toritoth.com/