Summer of 1981 was a transitional year in my life. With one year of University under my belt, I made the risky decision to pursue an Honors degree in Fine Arts, believing that if I enjoyed what I was doing I would find a way to make a living at it. Knowing full well no one would be lining up to hire a Fine Arts grad upon completion, I took matters into my own hands and registered a business.
The theory was that if I could apply my artistic education to my woodworking hobby, I might have a potential career doing what I enjoy doing.“House plants” were popular back then, so my first foray into the world of business was to develop a line of furniture for plants that would display the botanical wonders with a collection of unique hangers and stands. Lots of pine and cedar was transformed into sculptural compositions guaranteed to make the plants look good. Sawdust made its way to every corner of the wall-to-wall shag carpet of our basement. Mom was very patient.
Finally, the big day came. Flea markets offered a not too expensive venue where I could expose these creations to the general public, so I purchased a space, set up on a nice sunny day and waited for the sales to pour in. And waited. Lots of nice comments but nobody bought. Lesson: people go to flea markets to buy cheap used stuff, not the finely crafted new stuff I was offering.
It was a big disappointment to be sure, but also a learning experience that led to my pivotal “eureka” moment. Instead of investing all that time, money and effort into building up an inventory of product that nobody might buy, I would just solve specific furniture design problems for people and build pieces to order on a custom basis. They get exactly what they want for an agreed upon price, and I make the sale before I even purchase materials. All I have to do is deliver what I promise. Jackson Wood Designs, the name of my registered business at the time, would have a future after all!
Fast forward 25 years to 2006 and, though my “venue” changed to the Rolls Royce showroom in downtown Toronto, my business philosophy of combining art with furniture design remained the same, as it does to this day. The secret of it all, I have found, is to satisfy the customer’s needs and make it look good at the same time.