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Protecting your OUTdoor inventory

I blogged this almost 1 year ago, but felt it was a great time to re-post it as reminder. As we are fast approaching the Summer Season (for some of us it's already here!) more and more requests are going to be asked for Staging of outdoor areas. Front porches, tea gardens, pool areas or cabanas (lanai's=), BBQ areas or outdoor dining to name just a few.

Outdoor Home Staging by Platinum Home Staging, Inc. Being in SoCal, there is NO downtime for this request, as our lifestyle revolves around the sun and our never ending "worship" of it and the beautiful outdoor areas and vistas the landscape provides. HOWEVER, as a Stager this can (or SHOULD) add an additional clause to your Staging contract. For those of you in areas where it is just beginning to warm up, this applies to you as well.

PROTECT YOUR INVENTORY if you are going to be Staging outdoor areas!

I don't mean by putting slip covers on your furniture, but by including a clause in your contract to TAKE CARE of your merchandise. For example:

I had a request if we Staged outdoor seating areas, when I said "Yes, of course" the immediate reply was, "Great! Because my cushions are all being reupholstered since my dogs chewed them up". EXCUSE ME?!?! You bet the next thing I said was, "Well, we do have a clause in our contract that states...." about pet damage and the cost of replacement.

Outdoor Home Staging by Platinum Home Staging, Inc. We also recently Staged a home which had a roof top deck. We brought some furniture for this area, however it was Santa Anna, gail force winds that day and I basically told the home owner that I would NOT be placing my furniture in this area due to the high winds. (If ANY piece were to blow off the rooftop deck and God forbid hit anyone or anything WE would be LIABLE) When they insisted that we place the furniture anyway I had a quick 1 page "Hold Harmless" addition to the contract where they had to initial and sign each paragraph that they read it and understood what they were reading. A copy of this was also faxed to the listing Realtor.

Best example of coulda-shoulda-woulda and a good lesson learned: was when we Staged a home last summer with a beautiful table setting just outside the kitchen. Telling him (the home owner) that he should bring it in periodically between showings wasn't enough. When we came to de-Stage 3 months later after the home sold - he had left everything exactly where we had placed it 3 months before, not moving an inch! The place mats were bleached and frayed, napkins were faded, etc..... We now have a "care" clause in our contract for outdoor dining areas if home owners wish to them have Staged.

When purchasing accessories for outdoors - make sure that they ARE MADE FOR DIRECT SUNLIGHT! This includes area rugs, pillows, cushions, throws, etc. Even when you think that they might be in a shaded area, indirect UV sunlight can still wreak havoc on the coloring.

Just thought I'd share my thoughts, so at the end of the summer we aren't all weeping over lost inventory.

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Posted by Connie Tebyani, Platinum Home Staging Los Angeles to Santa Barbara on 03/06/2009 10:19 PM

Comments (15)

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15 Comments on Protecting your OUTdoor inventory

MAR

Great points Connie! It's such a good idea to have this in your contract. I usually tell the homeowner or Realtor to bring in the outdoor accessories between showings, but it's a rare occasion when they actually do. Most of my outdoor items are used once or twice and then "retired."

Connie ~ Your post has some excellent points that everyone needs to be aware of. Here in the Northwest, we have rain almost any month of the year, but if the client has a patio area that's undercover, that's OK. I've had some light damage but nothing severe. Having these clauses in our contracts is so important -- we need to protect our inventory from all possible mishaps, thanks for the reminders.

Great information! This would be a good post for the newbie stagers-maybe a "featured post" hint, hint....

MAR

Thanks for the reminder, Connie. Like Annie, I plan on a very short shelf life for these items. But I hadn't considered wind. Even a plate could sail through someone's window, I suppose.

Great post Connie! It is a good idea to go back and make sure our contracts protects us. As always, you gave me something to think about :)

Great reminder Connie. I assume the homeowner is not going to bring stuff inside, so I purchase certain items (napkins, placemats, towels for the pool area) for each staging and just incorporate the cost into my bid.

Annie ~ most of mine gets used maybe twice, and that's about it. The sun is SO harsh

Maureen ~ For the same point, that if you are Staging out door areas in your part of the country, due to the high humidity; MOLD might be something to be aware of, even if it's protected from the rain.

Cathy Lee ~ This is especially for Newbie Stagers who would otherwsie not think of these things the first time around.

Beth ~ The roof top deck didn'r have plates, but the furniture wasn't heavy either and Santa Ana winds can gust upwards of 80 miles per hour.

Wendy ~ Your welcome =) I'm always willing to share my "life Lessons" for others to learn from

Michelle ~ That's a great idea as well, just "assume" that it's going to need to be replaced each time.

Not to mention that outdoor furniture is much more vulnerable to being stolen. Been there.

Connie - We have the same dilemma. I can't imagine the Realtor or homeowner being proactive enough to move them indoors. We usually do what Michelle does & incorporate it into our bid. The sun just destroys things and it seems every time we place something outdoors it either rains the next day, or as you said we get the hurricane force Santa Anas. Didn't it seem like we had an awful amount of wind this year? I guess I shouldn't complain...80 & windy vs. 20 below and 10 feet of snow! We're soooo spoiled. :)

MAR

Leslie ~ Knock on wood I haven't been in your shoes, I am so sorry to hear that!

Patti ~ I don't know, I know you guys have some pretty durable outdoor pieces in your inventory ;-) And yes, we ARE spoiled!

Hi Connie, I recently rented my outdoor furniture w/ cushions so I wouldn't have to worry about the damage. I also purchased clear covers from moving supply for the rainy days. I know that owning vs renting this would be more profitable but at the time I did not want to worry about the damage.

Sound advice. As it snows here, I leave storage bags for the furniture and accessories to be placed in once the fall weather turns nasty., Has worked so far. No nasty dogs chewing my stuff to date.

MAR

Great Post Connie, and for Michelle's comment, i have done the same at times just for this reason. This is a good reminder that can be forgotten until you come back to check on things then your shaking your head

MAR

Hi Connie -- Wow, practical and solid advice here. It's amazing how one needs to immerse themselves in the details to ensure everyone is clear and protected <no pun intended>.

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