Today we welcome James Peglar from Lux Edge Furniture to the show. James used to work in corporate America but always knew that he had the drive and mindset of an entrepreneur. Ultimately he decided to take everything he had learned about running a business and strike out independently. Lux Edge Furniture’s start was James making coffee tables out of his garage in October of 2014. It took off from there.
James did a ton of marketing, and his products ended up in La Z Boy within a few months. He’s gone from a team of just himself and his wife making a small coffee table a month to having four in-house employees, some support staff, and producing 15-20 large products every month. Lux Edge Furniture also now ships all over the world.
The Beginning
James wanted to make his life as successful as his abilities. He knew that working for someone else imposed a limit that didn’t align with his personal goals. On top of that, he was surrounded by people who hated their jobs, and he decided that life really wasn’t for him.
To grow the business in the early days, he would literally give away tables so people would have it in their showroom, and within the first six months, he was turning a profit. That’s about the time he knew he had a viable business.
His proper start was with an Etsy account. At that point in time, there were two or three other people selling furniture through the website. It blew up automatically. In the first 12 months, James made almost $400,000 in revenue selling locally and through Etsy. It was the perfect combination for a huge success. James picked the right market at the right time, and he used the business knowledge he had gained from his corporate job to market the right way out the gate.
Adding to his background in business, James also has a knack for sales and an eye for quality products. James notes that personally, he cares about quality and investing in things that are built to last. This mindset is one he shares with his customers giving them a great foundation and understanding.
Great Business Moves
One of James’s most significant choices, as he started honing his skills and producing better and better products, was the choice in his market. The focus is on clients who notice and appreciate the attention to detail James brings to his work. As someone who cares about high-quality products and knows that kind of excellence deserves to be compensated as such, James has focused on corporate clients and luxury home clients.
James has even secured a contract with TD Wealth Buildings, he’s the go-to whenever they need tables across the entire country. As he says, It’s about networking with the right people, marketing, and making sure you know the people who understand the process and the brand.
The next part is consistency. James puts his logo on the bottom of every table his team makes. This means that his team can’t ever let a table leave the shop if it’s even a shade less than perfect. After spending so much time and effort to build his brand, the high quality of work that got the company to where it is, needs to be maintained. With 40-60 hours of work going into each table, however, it’s hard to achieve anything less than excellence.
Great Business Mindset
The best equipment investment that the team has made is a CNC machine that is 16 feet by 6 feet wide. James hunted for a while to find a machine that was capable of making larger tables, but in his words, by having the capacity, you tell the universe that you’re ready for it.
Five years ago, when James talked about the farm he grew up on, he always said to his wife that they would buy it in the next 5-6 years. Sure enough, the shop is currently based on that very same farm. As an entrepreneur, you have to have a vision, and it is critical you make decisions based on where you want to be, not where you are right now. If you say you can’t do something you’re 100% correct, whether you’re actually right or wrong, if you focus on what you want and you visualize it and dream about it, you’re more likely to get there.
For James, the biggest struggle in growing the business has been not being scared. Fortunately, he knows that a business owner is built differently than most people. Most people need to know where their next paycheque is coming from or their next meal, but for James, he knows even if he lost everything and had to restart tomorrow, he would be fine because he knows how to build a business.
Pushing Limits
The running theme of this podcast episode with Lux Edge Furniture is pushing limits and boundaries. James has been fearless, marching into each new project and conquering each new hurdle thrown his way because he knows that fear won’t get him anywhere. Whether it’s a new table build he’s never done, or the largest epoxy pour in Canada, James just keeps climbing.
“It was 206-liter pour. People were shocked it didn’t explode. I learned the science behind it. I learned how to slow down the heat peaks. I never listen to the instructions on the box. I just push the product as far as it can be pushed.”
This year Luxe Edge Furniture is stepping it up even more. They are planning on introducing some really cool bases and intend to use this new avenue of customization to create even more flawless curated products.
Otherwise, James intends to just keep pushing the envelope and seeing what else he can do with the business. One big win for the team at the moment is their SEO success. The company is currently ranked higher than Wayfair on google. James attributes that to investing in good team members. In the beginning, he says there was no way he could pay for what he’s paying for now, but he’s practicing good business and reinvesting into his company. Lux Edge Furniture is always bumping up the marketing budget and hiring professionals when things are outside the scope of James or his team.
Advice Corner
Steve’s piece of business advice is to add start to finish videos to the website and allow customers the ability to see how Lux Edge’s work might fit into their lives. Specifically, if he’s doing a custom installation or something similar, having a start to finish video could really help connect with customers.
The best advice James has to offer for other woodpreneurs is to do what you love, and money will find a way. James works so hard, so long, and so passionately at what he does because he loves it. He doesn’t think there would be a way to put his all into something he doesn’t love, and that’s true for other entrepreneurs too.
He also says that business owners need to remember to take some time to recharge their batteries. James suggests focusing heavily on a work-life balance and making time for family while running the business.
To see more from Lux Edge and James and the team’s awesome work, check them out here:
Lux Edge Furniture Website
@ LuxEdge