what is the census on showrooms in 2019? I have outgrown being a home based business and am planning to rent an office space to operate out of. those of you who have a showroom do you find its worth it?

IMO, it's not worth it unless you are trying to sell very high end specialty things. Over the top theaters, golf sims, TV lifts, and shades are all good reasons to have a showroom.

The one thing I will say is that it does legitimize you in the clients eyes. I know a dealer who made it a policy to sign a contract in person. Having a place to do it and answer questions makes a "Showroom" helpful. Once you tell a customer you have a showroom, that sometimes is enough for them.

So unless your doing big ticket stuff, make the space functional and a few things you can show but it doesn't have to be over the top. Another point to having a showroom is hosting lunch and learns, happy hours, etc. As I'm typing we are having a great contractor showing up to our place. We like to annually review how we did and see what we can do better going forward.

Being recommended for this residential job by a friend and even by the husband of the couple who owned the home; after I installed just what they wanted, and made it easy to control using URC remotes; after I improved on wiring the wife (who handled GC duties for the construction of the house) had had installed before I got there; after I built a couple of custom enclosures for outdoor keypads; and after I created an invoice detailing hours I had worked, tasks accomplished, and products furnished;

After all that, when she looked over the invoice for a couple of minutes, she looked me in the eye and said, "I guess when it comes right down to you, I just have to trust you, don't I?"

Of course, the answer was yes, and she wrote a check right then. But I bet that would not have happened if I had had a showroom.

I've seen showrooms put companies out of business also. Be very careful not to go over your head,

"Showroom" to me means having a variety of current product on display that allows comparison. In the current retail environment this is fairly expensive because the models turn over rapidly. One needs to ask "how many of model XYZ must I sell in order to pay for the demo?" Certainly, one does not need to trash the demo, but you'll need to sell it at a discount if you want to dispose of it rapidly. This must be factored into the cost. And, it is possible that with models ABC and XYZ side by side, you'll never sell ABC, but this comparison generates a nice number of quick XYZ sales.

For a large, high traffic operation, the cost of demos is a cell on a spreadsheet that one must track, but it is not a major cost center. For a small mom and pop operation the demo inventory can be a significant capital outlay and selling the demo at the end of the run might not be so easy.

With a conference room style of facility, possibly with a display and a few remotes, one can be quite productive. Lately, we have simply been going into homes to make a presentation that closes the sale. I may take a remote or two along.

Not worth it like buzz says.

Save the rent, the utilities, the insurance, the employees to babysit while you are out in the field, ongoing expenses keeping fresh equipment there, having to sell off lightly used demos. This is 2019.

What I’m hearing is you need more space than what you have working out of your home. So rent an office space that works. With this step, it makes sense to have a space where you can meet clients. Put in a TV, a surround receiver, a thermostat, a few lights, and whatever control system you sell. Keep it simple and small. It’s not a retail space, but you have some working examples to show people how a system works and how easy it is to use. Consider it this way, you need a security system, a thermostat is $150, Lutron casetta is $50 a switch, and you probably want a TV in the office any way.

I did both for many years.  The cons of having an office are obvious. Additional costs, etc.

My office was exactly that, an office, and a warehouse in the back where my installers could grab gear, clean the vans, etc.

From a personal perspective, I think it's important to separate family/business.  We all know this industry can take over even the biggest home garages. Do you want employees stopping by your house, etc.

On the flip side, you're going to save a min. $10k per year by staying at home...

Do you need a showroom to sell? No.  I used to take work from guys who had showrooms all the time.  If you don't have those extra expenses, is it going to give you the ability to be a little more flexible on pricing if you need/want to be?

Lastly, if you took that $10k per year that you'd spend on an office and maybe invested it in a new/bigger garage with a 2nd floor loft space that could work as your office/man-cave would that work for you?  You're not paying rent, you're increasing the value of your home, and you're still getting tax benefits. 

I thought Crestron required all dealers to buy 15k in demo gear anyway?

You can get a storage unit for $250 per month that will take care of your space needs. Put another way, how much business do you need to generate to turn 15 or $25,000 per year in profit (that’s profit not sales). Is it worth that extra effort just to break even?

I did retail for 29 years with all the associated expenses. Gimme mah storage unit.

But they can't tell us where it has to be located.

We went the storage unit route years ago - a 10'x10'x20' climate controlled(always at 72º). Not only is it secure, the old couple who are live-on-site managers accept all deliveries from UPS and FedEx and make sure they get into unit.

thanks for the thoughts, everyone seems to have valid points. Here's what I'm currently considering:

building is a new development which will be setup as a co-work space with aprox. 20 private offices of varying sizes and common area with open desks, reception, kitchen and a conference room.

The owner has expressed interest with having my company setup the conference room with some basic solutions (we are C4 shop, so that is what we would be showcasing), as well a 70v system for common area music.

I would have a small private office (300sqft) for my day-to-day office work, and would have access to the conference room at my convenience (assuming it not being used).

work would be done at cost with the difference being applied as a credit towards rent.

I also have a storage unit where we keep stock and unload garage between dump runs.

Does this sound like a terrible idea?

If you are selling conference room systems, this is a great deal because you have an actual system to show and a ready source of testimonials. You and the landlord should work out a cost sharing deal to keep the system at the leading edge. You both win.

If you are primarily residential, the conference room clutter might be off putting, but you could probably talk your way through this. When I go into a home, I’ll take a pad with a control system simulator. We go through the control system features and we will both know in about five minutes if a control system is right for them. If we do go ahead, that five minute discussion is usually all the instruction that they’ll need.

Build something with 4-8 additional smaller office areas (you occupy one) that you could rent out to other professionals (lawyer, accountants, chiropractor, ect) the rent they pay could more than pay the mortgage for the building you own.