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Elite Media Solutions 9 Forest Street Wellesley Hills , MA 02481 tel: 781-237-2929
Elite Media Solutions on the Cover of CE Pro Magazine (October 2005)
Marc from Elite was quoted in an article on furniture in the September, 2006 issue of
CE Pro Magazine
.
We've taken excerpts from the article and placed them below.
Scroll down to see the article. ** Please note that this page may take a while to load on slower connections **
Elite Media Solutions in the affluent Boston suburb of Wellesley offers a modular in-store furniture solution from manufacturer Salamander Designs and also has strategic partnerships with custom cabinetmakers. A recent location change and addition of the custom option has helped furniture-inclusive installations increase from 30 percent to 40 percent to roughly 70 percent to 80 percent over the last couple of years, estimates sales manager Marc Mable.
The Salamander Synergy line of cabinets with adjustable shelves comprises a larger percentage of Elite Media's furniture sales, Mable says, but simply having a nice showroom gives his company an advantage in what is still an undersold integration category.
"When you're selling audio/video systems, a lot of the time people ask if you have a cabinetmaker or know of one, so it comes up from the client," Mable says. "A lot of businesses have no brick and mortar, they're trunk-slammers. They're painting a picture with words, but there are no chairs for the client to sit in, no furniture for them to see. Guys that have show space do better with these types of categories."
If you're not planning on selling furniture directly, though, it still might be worthwhile to forge profitable relationships with those who can provide it, whether it be a dealer such as Diamond Case or a strategic partner such as those Elite Media Solutions has. One advantage Mable points out on the custom side is that working with a cabinetmaker means he doesn't need to give builders three-page design specs and doesn't need to train anyone on the A/V considerations. And modular pieces like Salamander's are often adjustable, expandable and provide proper ventilation--customers might be taking a risk by going through a furniture store. It might seem overwhelming for integrators to enter an unknown category, but it has paid off for Mable and others.
"I think a lot of other guys are afraid to offer these things--they don't need them and won't pay for them - but I've found almost no resistance to selling theater seating, custom cabinetry, things that are relatively expensive," says Mable. "A custom cabinet might average $10,000, but people look at it differently--it's not a TV you can price out, it's custom furniture, and furniture is something people are used to paying more money for."
Elite Media Solutions has doubled its furniture sales over the last two years by adding custom options to its modular pieces.