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NASE Member Profile: Outdoor Décor
Mark Nicholson has been an NASE Member since 2006. He and his wife own Wilderness Creations LLC in Dublin, N.H. Their website is rusticfurnituregallery.com.
Tell us about Wilderness Creations.
My wife, Tasha, and I own and operate Wilderness Creations. We’re in our eighth year at our current location. For several years before we opened our storefront, I built rustic furniture out of our garage. I started the business because I loved the Adirondack style. I enjoy nature and being in the outdoors, and this style of furniture very naturally bridges the gap between indoors and outdoors.
We sell rustic and Adirondack style furnishings and home accessories. At our gallery we carry indoor and outdoor furniture, as well as lighting, artwork, antiques, carvings and books. We believe in the products we sell
and we love what we do.
How does your website help your business?
Our website helps people find us and learn a little about our history and us personally. Potential customers can see a large sampling of what we sell and what we do, complete with pricing, dimensions and other details. This allows them to be educated before they even walk into the gallery. They can narrow down their interests and present any questions they may have. Of course, reaching more potential customers online is a key to our success. Tasha works on the website on a daily basis, adding products, updating information and boosting our visibility.
What’s the toughest challenge for your business right now?
The recession has been challenging for us, and we continue to be very careful about what we spend and where we spend it. On the bright side, it’s been a good exercise in fiscal management and prioritization. Like any small business we also face many ongoing challenges such as marketing, finding the right customers and keeping up with new technology.
What’s the best business advice you can offer fellow NASE Members?
Always be open to new ideas and work to improve your business. I have found running a business to be a process that requires constant change and adjustment.
What’s the greatest reward you get from your work?
Helping a customer find just what they are looking for and seeing clients happy and excited about a purchase for their home is very rewarding. And nothing beats having loyal customers that want to share our
story with their friends and family.
What do you see as the biggest advantage to being an NASE Member?
Although we all have different businesses, it is helpful and comforting to be connected with other hardworking, self-employed people that face the same challenges. We can all understand what it feels like to start and run a small business, and the ups and downs that come along with that.