Lighting rooms

[76nemo]

Just curious, how do some of you present lighting in res or commercial show rooms. Any of you have your own side shops to present different types of lighting?

 

[kwired]

I have two supply houses that also have lighting showroom. I tell customer to go there. They will help the customer, order the fixtures and deliver them to me or even to project when I ask for them, they even include the lamps. I don't make as much profit as if I did all the leg work (I sell for amount supply house quoted them) but I still profit and did nothing but tell customer where to go and the actual install. When fixtures arrive they are even marked where they are to be installed.

 

[Dennis Alwon]

I always enjoy telling my customers where to go. :grin:

Mostly I suggest or I send them to the showrooms.

 

[iwire]

I don't make as much profit as if I did all the leg work (I sell for amount supply house quoted them) but I still profit

The supply house should be quoting retail prices to your customers and selling them to you at wholesale prices.

In my opinion they are walking on you.

 

[satcom]

Just curious, how do some of you present lighting in res or commercial show rooms. Any of you have your own side shops to present different types of lighting?

Some of the supply houses in my area will give us 30% of the total sale for a customer we send them, provided the customer presents the showroom business card with our stamp on the back of the card. "A little of a lot, is better then a lot of nothing". ?JW Wright

 

[kwired]

The supply house should be quoting retail prices to your customers and selling them to you at wholesale prices.

In my opinion they are walking on you.

They may or may not be. Either way in every situation it was customers option where to get the lights, I merely suggested they check out both of my suppliers, and next thing I know I receive lights I did not know I was going to receive. Their price Vs the profit margin I would have added if I ordered them myself is less profit for me, but it is profit I was not even anticipating in the first place and required no work from me except billing the customer and paying my supplier bill at the end of the month. I was going to get paid to install them no matter where they purchased them.

I have been suprised by many customers that opted for this route figuring they would have bought their fixtures at the Home Center because they generally are less price there. Either the sales people at the lighting showroom are good salesmen or customers have better sense of "you get what you pay for" than I sometimes give them credit for. Of course fixtures are like furniture or appliances, they are things they see and use everyday and are worth spending more money on, decora devices also fit in this category. Whatever gets enclosed in the walls, buried in the dirt or placed in the mechanical room needs to be as low cost as possible.

I do not bid or estimate fixtures for residential outside of recessed lights and linear fluorescents unless there is a specified fixture. I may include an allowance depending on bid or estimate conditions but that still leaves the possibilities wide open of what will be installed there.

 

[76nemo]

Let's turn this around. Call me cave man 'cuz I have been based on machinery and maintenance. I've been checking out all the different lighting scenarios possible along with controls, and I'm thinking,.........hmmmmm. This could really be a sell point for some higher end side work. I was thinking of renting a space I can freehand anyway I want, and really make it appealing.

Anyone else gone this route or do most of you stick with consultants?

I'm just throwing this out there. I want to hear from the rest of you.