If Thiensville Patio Place & Hardware in Thiensville, Wisconsin, has a theme, it’s about finding a way to take life a little easier.
Decades ago, the Gabor family started out in farming and wanted to find something that was (A) needed and (B) a little less labor intensive. Going into the hardware business seemed like a good fit
Then, because so many customers were interested in the few pieces of outdoor furniture that they sold through their hardware distributor, the Gabors ordered a few pieces from Meadowcraft to add some inventory.
It went further — and lasted longer — than they thought it would at the time.
“Obviously, this turned out to be a great decision, because we are still in the patio business 27 years later,” says E.B. Gabor, who works at Patio Place with her mother, Barb.
Since then, the Gabors have added other brands, such as Seaside Casual, Telescope Casual, Woodard, Lloyd Flanders, O.W. Lee, Homecrest, Frankford and the Outdoor Greatroom.
E.B. Gabor and her mother, Barb
Gabor says the biggest challenge going into 2024 will be resilience to meet slowing sales.
“We have all been in high gear for years, so we will need to scale back and sort of go back to basics as demand for patio furniture decreases,” says Gabor. “The slowdown is here! We reduced our stock order sizes and we reviewed the lines we carry to see if there were any that weren’t working for us anymore. Removing a few of our lines that weren’t selling as well for us allowed us to place larger orders with our best companies.”
A bright spot is Patio Place’s recent work with Emu, an Italian manufacturer.
“We are so excited to work with them, because their pieces have a modern style, they are high quality and they are long-lasting,” says Gabor. “Emu is going to be a hit with our commercial customers, as well as people who live in condos or otherwise have smaller spaces to work with.”
In the recent past, a major challenge has been online sales.
“Almost every manufacturer these days sells online, so we are competing all the time,” says Gabor. “We also have a lot more overhead costs than an online retailer, which means that simply matching online pricing across the board would be difficult to maintain and still have a thriving business. The best practice for overcoming online competition is to remember that we offer a lot more than just a patio set for a given price.”
To do that, Patio Place competes by offering services that online sellers can’t.
“We help select the most beautiful, comfortable, utilitarian or long-lasting pieces, depending on the customer’s needs,” says Gabor. “We also help them choose frame colors and fabrics. We keep in touch with them while their furniture is being manufactured, and we assemble and deliver the pieces. As one of our customers recently said, she chooses to buy from us because she knows ‘it will get done right.’’’
Another way that Patio Place meets the challenge of online selling is by lobbying manufacturers.
“We try to work with companies that protect our sales as much as possible,” says Gabor.
Other priorities for manufacturers that will make the cut include high quality, U.S. manufacturing and substantial warranties.
“Container loads would not work for us as a small, family-owned business, so we have to work with the manufacturers that will fit with us the best,” says Gabor. “We do consider whether companies will protect our sales or not. We definitely ask a lot of questions about online sales and MAP policies before we place an opening order with a new company. “
To sell the goods, Patio Place made the decision several years ago to carry gift merchandise. It moved away from “staging” the furniture and began using it to display merchandise the store could sell.
“This has been a great choice for us in so many ways,” says Gabor. “Our customers like to look at the soaps, candles, decorations and other gift items. It really changes a lot of people’s moods when they are shopping if they see a sign or card that makes them laugh. This new merchandise also attracts different customers who may not be seriously interested in furniture, but may still make a smaller purchase at our store. Finally, it is a really easy way to keep our store looking fresh all the time since there are new items coming in year-round. “
To get the word out, Patio Place has been experimenting with what’s available in their market area, including local coupon ads, Google ads, radio spots and more, although they have noticed the biggest difference is keeping their website updated.
Gabor says that the one thing that sets Patio Place apart from the competition is love.
“Our customers LOVE us,” she says. “We offer impeccable service, and we really do our best to make sure that they have a great experience and walk away with a good feeling about buying from us. We also try to focus on the details when it comes to building that relationship with the customer. We send each customer a handwritten thank-you note, which does bring many customers back to us year after year. Many of our customers are also happy about working with a family-owned business, since they know that we care about our reputation and that we plan to stick around for the future. As a note, we always hear good things about our local competitors as well, which I believe says a lot about casual retailers!
Gabor did say that she is not seeing much interference from full-line retailers who have entered the outdoor space.
“Full-line retailers usually offer a different level of quality than we do, so this does not interfere with our business very much,” she says. “Most of our customers are not full-line retail shoppers. (Full-line retailers) are competing with each other more than they are competing with us. Other brick-and-mortar stores that buy container loads may struggle more with this. For us, our competition is mostly online retailers who carry the same brands we do.”
Any advice for a struggling casual retailer?
“I would suggest focusing on what you can offer that others can’t, rather than trying to compete on price,” Gabor says.
