When Bill & I started our handcrafted, furniture-making company in 2005, our "gut" philosophy was to support retail storefronts by only selling our furniture and wooden home decor to actual Brick & Mortar Storefronts. We had a few "local" retailers who carried our line of Primitiques' furniture and decor and we did not sell direct to the "public". As the years passed, our dedication to support Brick & Mortars was strongly tested and we held firm that if we sold to only retailers, that we were helping to make stronger the fabric of our country's local economies. A few years ago, the few local retailers who were our Primitiques' distributors closed and there was no longer a local dealer for our Primitiques...Our furniture is available throughout the United States and Canada, but locally, we were relatively unknown.
So, we decided to take over the area/region for distribution of our Primitiques. We had a showroom in Aston, PA, which, until recently, served as our way to showcase our handwork and creations. We were blessed with this opportunity to open a true "Brick & Mortar" retail storefront of our own, in the heart of Berwyn, on Lancaster Avenue! We are honored and thrilled to be the owners of our small business, called "HOME-ology" and we wanted to share a philosophy that we, the Merryfield's, ascribe to in our "daily lives"… The 3/50 Project.
Bill and I try to "shop small" as much as possible. We believe that by making a purchase from a small, local, family-owned business, that our purchase means a great deal to them. The "3/50" Project is a formula that we feel proud to apply to our daily lives… We choose 3 of our favorite small businesses and spend $50 with them, each month, instead of shopping at a big box store or chain.
We know that our $50 purchase has great meaning for the small, family owned business and our purchase will go towards dance lessons for their little girl, school tuition for their child(ren) or go towards helping the family pay for their heating and electric bill (and so forth). We know this to be true for our small, family business and hope that you can read about the "3/50 Project" and adopt this philosophy into your life, especially during this gift-giving holiday season.
http://www.the350project.net/home.html
http://www.home-ology1.com/
