Hello fellow upholsterers. I recently found this site and was hoping for a little assistance.
I have been a one man shop for almost 30 years, and for the past 15 years or so I have worked with only designers. I am now going into semi-retirement mode and switching back to reupholstering for retail customers. The reasons... less stress, and after being secluded for so many years I need to get out more, meet people etc.
So I am starting from scratch. I want to be able to offer fabrics to those that do not want to find their own. I used to have accounts with lots of companies. In the old days the big ring books were perfect for showing fabrics. They had a nice selection of a variety of fabrics, velvets, tapestries, textured patterns in different colors etc.
Does anyone do this anymore. I only want a few books preferably with assorted types of fabric. I just opened an account with Stout. Can someone suggest which company would be a good choice for reasonably priced fabrics. I used to have Barrow, Burch,Kravet, Duralee, Robert Allen,etc. I live in the northeast. Kravet, Duralee, Robert Allen are all higher end than I want to offer. Of these companies which would be the best choices? Charlotte fabrics, United fabrics, National Fabrics, Douglass Industries, Barrow Industries, any others?
Any suggestions or help is greatly appreciated
I like Chalotte and sell a good amount with United. I have a room full of samples so just having a few would not work for me. I have people spend alot of time looking. The ring books are all but gone. I actually have two smaller versions that rarely get picked up. Some helpfull books are the hard covers that show coordinating fabrics un the same page. United has some. Greenhouse is also a nice line along with fabricut. I carry several others but you dont want a lot of books, so keep it simple.
I would consider buying fabrics from somewhere close and there should be several in the northeast.
Some charge for their samples, so keep that in mind.
The logic is, suppliers want customers who buy. So, it works better for both sides if the shop (a smal shop) will focus on one possibly two suppliers.
Welcome to the group.
Doyle