This spring, someone in San Antonio is going to go out onto their patio and sit down for a few minutes. They will likely set down a cold drink on a table and look up as the sun sets.
It’s been just about that way for the past 56 springs — thanks to a former home builder who saw the value of relaxing outside — and the opportunity to sell a comfortable way for them to sit down.
Adam Kelley, vice president of Home & Patio, which has two locations in San Antonio, says that W.R. Kelley started the store in 1967, after being a home builder for more than 25 years.
“There was no such thing as a specialty outdoor store, so he and his wife, Maxine, started Home & Patio,” says Kelley. “For more than 35 years, my father, Roger Kelley, operated the business and helped create what it is today with my mother, Judy, and myself. The business is generational.
Kelley is matter of fact when he says that the most important issues for retailers in 2023 are product knowledge and availability of inventory.
“We are not planning on slowing down,” he says. “If it slows down, we will deal with it just like we did in 2020 and 2008, etc. Challenges lead to solutions.”
Recently, those challenges have been filling positions in warehouse and delivery. Within the supply chain, Kelley said challenges have included manufacturers not fulfilling lead time commitments, overlapping shipping dates even with requests to ship later, which lead to overflowing warehouses — and a requirement to rent additional space in which to store inventory. And there are the retroactive price increases, regardless of the order date.
“This is incredibly wrong for our custom-order customers that ordered items at an agreed-upon price and have had to wait six months to a year or longer,” says Kelley. “We cannot retroactively raise their price. We have to eat it.”
To meet the challenges, Kelley focuses on providing good customer service.
“We listen to our customers and what their needs are — and good relationships with manufacturers and their sales reps are key,” he says.
To make the sale, Home & Patio uses social media to get the word out, is flexible with adapting with trends and styles, and concentrates on product availability, product knowledge and customer service.
That said, Kelley isn’t too worried about full-line furniture stores competing.
“They typically don’t know how to sell outdoor, unless it’s been part of their program for decades,” says Kelley. “I never like more competition, but it usually puts more eyes on outdoor in general. So sometimes, I think it is a good thing. At our price and quality level most customers will not run to the first store they see an ad for. Nowadays, we see customers come in on average of two to three times before purchasing.”
Kelley also has a strategy for dealing with online sellers.
“We compete with them by telling the story of ‘see it, touch it, feel it,’” says Kelley. “Get it in days, not weeks. You simply cannot convey the quality and comfort off of a screen. Our website gears consumers to come to our store, see the furniture, sit, feel and touch. Buy it today and get it immediately. Have it delivered white glove by our own team. I love selling someone furniture that they’re replacing after a drop-ship fiasco.”
Any advice for struggling casual retailers?
“Listen to your customers and be willing to take a gamble on something new,” he says.
