June 12, 2008 Issue
Business Spotlight
Maple’s Leather Furniture—The High Country’s Mom and Pop Leather Specialty Shop
Story by Sam Calhoun
You almost get a little jealous when you enter Maple’s Leather Furniture.
Co-Owner Zoe Schmidinger not only is surrounded by beautiful leather furniture that is reasonably priced and alluringly comfortable, but she is also surrounded at all times by her 3-year-old daughter Ava, her surprisingly well-behaved sales associate. The two are inseparable—a wonderful dynamic to watch and one of the reasons Maple’s Leather Furniture exists in the first place.
“Basically, I’m a stay-at-home mom that’s working,” said Schmidinger, who opened Maple’s Leather Furniture with her husband Erich three years ago. “When people call, I am very professional at all times, but at the same time I could be coloring with my three year old.”
Schmidinger knows what she is good at and knows what she wants.
After working in the leather furniture industry for more than 10 years—selling products, visiting tanneries, speaking with manufacturers and testing furniture—she can explain every facet of the style, design and construction of dozens of lines of leather furniture. What’s more, she paints the picture of the products in layman’s terms to her customers, forgoing any industry jargon.
In addition to her leather expertise, Schmidinger also knows what she wants and goes after it—her business as an example.
A native of Newell, W.Va., Schmidinger attended Marshall University until she came down to Boone one Saturday for an ASU football game. Bitten by the High Country bug, Schmidinger transferred to ASU and completed a degree in industrial psychology in 1998. Having worked as a bartender at Nick’s Restaurant and Pub in Banner Elk for many years, Schmidinger took an additional job locally selling leather furniture.
In 2002, Schmidinger married, quit her job at Nick’s and focused full-time on selling leather products. She quickly became knowledgeable of the product lines and helped her employer thrive.
In 2005, though, Schmidinger got pregnant and resolved to have a job where she could be around her child constantly. When that option seemed out of reach with her employer, she decided to strike out on her own and open her own leather furniture shop in Sugar Mountain.
“I didn’t want to do daycare,” said Schmidinger, who lives at Sugar Mountain. “Sugar Mountain is so pretty. I wanted to enjoy living here. I like being local and having my daughter with me. I can go home when I want to, change the laundry and have lunch with Erich every day.”
So, with the blessing and support of her husband—he sold his brand new truck to help pay for upfront costs—Schmidinger opened Maple’s Leather Furniture in August 2005.
“It’s your typical mom and pop leather specialty shop with good pricing and quality products,” said Schmidinger, who ran the shop by herself until this year when she hired a part-time employee. “North Carolina is the furniture capital of the world, so when you are in North Carolina, you have to have good pricing.”
Maple’s Leather Furniture carries five lines of fine leather furniture—Classic Leather, Legacy Leather, Wesley Hall, Omnia Leather and McNeilly Champion. All of the sofas, love seats and chairs are 100 percent leather, are made with hardwood frames and are eight-way hand tied—the standard of excellence in basic upholstery. All of the furniture also comes with a lifetime warranty.
Schmidinger handles all repairs to the furniture from her office in Sugar Mountain, but those are few and far between, mostly because Schmidinger is picky about what products she sells in the first place. Using her breadth of knowledge of leather furniture, Schmidinger meticulously examines all the new products before agreeing to sell them. Among other things, Schmidinger makes sure that all seams on the furniture match up and that 100 percent leather is used all around the product—no patching with lesser material.
Maple’s Leather Furniture offers free delivery, care of Erich, for residents in Avery and Watauga counties, and locals also receive a 10 percent discount on furniture prices. For people who don’t live in the area, Maple’s Leather Furniture features an online sales gallery and a toll-free number for questions.
The furniture comes in all price ranges, even for people on a budget who need to furnish their vacation home or rental unit.
“We’re selling quality; we’re not charging for the name brand,” said Schmidinger.
Maple’s Leather Furniture also sells patio furniture and coffee and end tables and can do fabric furniture, “but I try to stick with leather because that’s what I know,” she said.
Maple’s Leather Furniture is popular with residents of the High Country’s developments, as well as residents of Boone, Banner Elk and Beech Mountain. Schmidinger boasts many repeat customers who usually start by buying a sofa and then come back to furnish the entire house. She does a lot of her business online, but also is the destination for customers traveling from all parts of North Carolina and western Tennessee.
One of her business secrets is to embrace the second homeowner population.
“This area is seasonal. You have to make the buck while the vacationers are here,” explained Schmidinger. “It’s the second homeowners that want to feel a part of the community when they are here and if you befriend them it makes for repeat customers.”
Schmidinger will even hold and store furniture for seasonal residents until they return for the summer.
“We’re accommodating—if your house isn’t done or you’re not here, we’ll hold your order,” said Schmidinger.
When customers are waiting on their orders, Schmidinger makes a point to email them every week with progress reports. On countless occasions, this practice has enabled Maple’s Leather Furniture to avoid problems and better serve customers.
“It’s all about communication and being honest with the customer,” she added.
For the future, Schmidinger plans to stay in Sugar Mountain, raising her child, nurturing her business and spending time with family and friends. She has plans to create a new website, and is currently working on creating a private label with a North Carolina manufacturer.
“But I don’t want to grow too big,” Schmidinger said. “I like being here all the time; I like being hands-on.
“But after three years I amazed,” she continued, referring to how her store has prospered. Schmidinger’s business profits increased two-fold from her first year to her second year. “It makes for a really nice life. I like to work. I like coming to work; I don’t even need an alarm clock. When it’s your business, you know, if I want to sit and play a game of Candy Land with my daughter, I will. I love this job and I love people.”
Maple’s Leather Furniture is located at 177 Dick Trundy Lane in Sugar Mountain. The office and showroom are open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday, as well as by appointment. Free product delivery is available for residents of Avery and Watauga counties. For more information, call 828-898-6110, 1-866-561-5858, email info@maplesleather.com or click to www.maplesleather.com.
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