Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura and Lisa Berland.
Owners Laura and Lisa are motivated by a passion for transforming pieces to give them new life. They credit their mother with instilling the “do-it-yourself gene” and teaching them some of the varied skills they draw upon in their work. An old time curb alert aficionado in NYC, mom rescued and revived many of the furnishings they grew up with — she modernized an antique oak table by replacing the pedestal with hairpin legs and repurposing a rattan chair into a hanging lamp shade.
Both Lisa and Laura have fine art training and Laura was a decorative painter for many years. They also have studied upholstery and wood working at the Elliot School in Jamaica Plain. The sisters started out in 2011 experimenting with some painted pieces out of a small studio in West Concord. The business seemed to have traction and with growing interest in midcentury pieces, they launched Retrocraft Design studio and moved into a much larger space also in West Concord.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Any small business owner will tell you that one of the major challenges is that you have to do everything. You have to do source the product, in our case, we have to do the refurbishing of the product, we have to market the product, you have to do your own bookkeeping and accounting, etc. As there are two of us, we have, over time divided up the responsibilities in a way that works – one of us focuses on the marketing while the other focuses on the accounting. We both do the refurbishing but for all these jobs there is a significant learning curve. Initially sourcing vintage products was very time consuming from craigslist to estate sales to vintage shops to auctions, we put in a lot of time and miles. As we have become more established, many down-sizers seek us to out as potential purchasers of their midcentury collections. Wed have also developed good working relationships with a number of pickers who do the leg work. These developments have really streamlined the business and made it possible for us to focus on the product and the marketing.
Another challenge was marketing as we didn’t have a marketing budget, per se. We started out only showcasing our pieces on Craigslist. We eventually developed a hybrid marketing plan – we developed a website that offers details and numerous photographs of all of our current inventory. In addition, we have a showroom open to the public with regular hours. For customers who are not local, our products are listed on other platforms including Chairish, Etsy and eBay, and Instagram.
Another challenge has been pricing our pieces. As the demand has risen for midcentury items, the prices have skyrocketed in a chaotic and inconsistent manner. It has been difficult to position our prices that as fair and reasonable based on what we pay for the items and the work we put into them.
Retrocraft Design – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
In the growing market for mid-century modern design, we see Retrocraft as occupying a unique niche. There are some very high end mid-century modern retailers who are doing restoration, we’re not competing with those guys.
At the other end of the scale, Retrocraft offers much more than the average consignment store. With a creative eye, we envision a treatment that best highlights the beauty of the piece. This may involve refinishing, re-oiling, light upholstery and Danish cording as well ensuring that our pieces are structurally sound.
Our offerings include midcentury designers such as Paul McCobb, George Nelson, Russell Wright, Jens Risom, Kai Kristiansen, Paul Cherner, Ray and Charles Eames, Milo Baughman, Adrian Pearsall as well as recognizable American manufacturers such as Lane, American of Martinsville, Bassett, Kent Coffey, Heywood Wakefield, Conant Ball, Broyhill and Dixie. We also offer vintage Danish modern pieces.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Our proudest moment is not a single moment but we are gratified by the fact that we have become recognized sellers of desirable midcentury pieces across the country. We constantly receive positive feedback about the quality of our pieces, our pricing and our customer service.
Contact Info:
- Address: Retrocraft Design
152 Commonwealth Ave
Concord, MA 01742 - Website: retrocraftdesign.com
- Phone: 978-254-2509
- Email: contact@retrocraftdesign.com
- Instagram: retrocraftdesign
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