Home Decorating Articles

Let’s face it – we are all worried about spending more than we need to now more than ever. Show homes are a great way to get exposure, but since they are open a limited amount of time we have to be sure that the investment pays off long term.

Partnership merchandising is always something that the Home Idea Factory has been very active in, and one of my favorite homes that I was able to work on was the Ronald McDonald Show House in Rochester, NY. The home was a partnership between @home Builders, The Ronald McDonald House and The Rochester HomeBuilders Association. All of the furniture, decor, and accessories used in the home were donated by the community to the Ronald McDonald House for their annual ABC Sale that is the major fundraiser for them. With myself in Dallas and the home and merchandise in Rochester, was it a challenge to be able to find the right items for the home? Absolutely, but that’s what made the home unique, and showed the over 25,000 visitors how they too could decorate their home with gently used items and have something they can be proud of.

It was a win for all parties involved – the builder saved money on his merchandising costs and didn’t have to worry about what to do with the model furnishings after the show (all was sold or auctioned off raising over $25,000 for Ronald McDonald House), Ronald McDonald House raised great awareness and funds, and consumers got excited about using what they had and attending the ABC sale.

To see what the home was all about we did a video of the home.