Think Small to Grow Big: New Data Shifts for Your Sales Strategy
Every day, I talk to leaders in various organizations, and they all share similar comments when we discuss how business is going: They all desire more opportunities and more sales, as they should, as that’s a key component to any business's success story. Sales, Revenue, and Profits matter to all organizations.
You can generate sales in your business in many ways, but we focus a lot on our industry's Architecture & Design (A&D) Community. According to research provided by ThinkLab in their U.S. Design Industry Benchmark Report for 2025, for office furniture only, the market size is $29.1 billion. Yes, you read that right. No matter how you look at it, that’s a lot of desks, chairs, accessories, and other products. This equates to a lot of opportunities for the manufacturers and dealers alike.
The same report indicates that the average designer has “40 times as much specification power as the average consumer has buying power.” ThinkLab has shared this statistic with our community many times before. It’s no wonder that many dealers and brands have focused A&D programs, as this community has a lot of revenue opportunity.
However, as we all know, calling on this community is one of the biggest challenges facing sellers in our industry today! I talk a lot about it on my podcast, The Trend Report, and I’ve written about it many times and will continue to do so.
As I listened to Erica Waayenberg, Head of Research at ThinkLab, present this webinar, I was struck by this profile slide that provided a breakdown of US Design Frims.
What do you see when you look at this slide?
Hopefully, we see the same thing Erica highlighted in her presentation: “business comes from a lot of small firms”. If you look at the number of employees by firm, you notice that only 2% of firms have more than 20 employees. This means that 98% of firms have less than 20 employees. Let think sink in for a minute. I would wager that if you, as a sales professional, evaluated your time spent in the A&D community, you’re spending 98% of your time (ok, maybe 80%) focused on the 2%.
The Giants of Design, as ThinkLab refers to the approximately 200 identified, are in the 2% and include amazing organizations like Gensler, HOK, and Nelson Worldwide, just to name a few. These are important firms that do fantastic work. Furniture projects from these firms can range in the millions of dollars in revenue.
Large projects are important for your business in many ways. They provide recognition and credibility so that you can successfully deliver a large project. But let's be real, large projects are not as profitable as they once were. The bidding process alone could cost your business thousands of dollars in time and resources to compile a successful bid package.
Given the competitive nature of large projects, it’s reasonable to believe, and some dealers have shared, that their gross profit on these projects is in the low teens or even single digits. I believe we can all agree that’s not a successful long-term strategy.
In the same report, Erica highlights that the average number of commercial projects that the A&D Community works on each year is 39. That does not indicate that all projects include furniture in the scope, but it gives you an idea of how busy these firms are throughout the year. This explains much about your ability to access these firms, especially the large ones. See image below:
Additionally, when you review the data from ThinkLab on Vertical Markets, you see that 61% of projects that the A&D Community works on are in the Corporate Workplace, 34% are in Healthcare, 26% are in Higher Education, and 21% are in Hospitality. See image below:
So what does all this mean for you and your business? Let’s break it down, at least from my perspective.
- If you spend a lot of time trying to get meetings, presentations, and product displays with the Giants of Design, you will not see a significant return on that investment, especially if you’re a dealer. Let your partner brand focus on this and invest its resources, as yours are better spent. Don’t get me wrong, these are important organizations to do great work, but when you only allowed, as a general rule, 15 minutes once per year to present who you are and what you do, I just don’t think it’s worth it.
- Develop relationships with 80%. This is one of those occasions when the 80/20 Rule should work in reverse. Typically, when applying this rule, you focus on the 20%, but in the case of A&D Firms, you should focus on the 80%. According to this research, 80% of our industry's A&D firms are small. I know it sounds counterproductive, but think about it this way. Everyone is vying for time and mindshare with the 20%. How often have you heard a competitor say, “We just finished a project with X Firm?” It’s bragging rights, and I get it. But I’d rather have revenue and profits over bragging rights any day. And small firms will value you more if you pay attention to them. You get more than 15 minutes once per year, and you’ll be able to build strong, lasting relationships.
- This research also says that, on average, firms work on 39 projects per year. For simple math, let’s change that to 20 projects per year. You have three small firms in your market, that’s 60 projects over the course of the year that have a higher potential of success, including higher gross profit, all because of the relationship you have built with them. I know things are changing, but when I worked for a dealer, many of these projects never went out to bid. I helped the designer develop the spec, the budget, etc., and we created a winning situation for everyone, especially the client.
- As you continue your quest for new business opportunities, paying attention to the vertical markets outlined in this research is important. Corporate, as expected, leads the way in new opportunities, and most people focus on this category. However, this list has several potential opportunities for brands and dealers alike. The few that stick out to me are Hospitality, Multifamily, and Senior/Assisted Living. Why? Because these areas are growing, and most dealers and brands don’t focus on them. Businesses in these verticals have projects and are purchasing products; you just need to find them. You can separate yourself and your company by leaning into areas of opportunity you have not historically focused on. Your quest here, especially if you are a dealer, is to find the manufacturers and products that work in these verticals at price points that align with the vertical and meet your financial goals.
I understand this is a lot of information, and I’m sharing my thoughts and opinions. Still, my goal is to help you discover new opportunities and pathways for you and your business that create the success you want and need, especially in today’s economic conditions.
So what’s next?
- First, you need to be a student of the industry and embrace the opportunity to learn from thought leaders and brands sharing information that can help you and your business. Action Step: Follow ThinkLab and register for all of their free events! Next, find 3-5 other brands sharing their knowledge, information, and research and sign up or engage to learn more. Knowledge is power!
- Create a cohort within your organization to review these topics to determine the best direction for your business. Create a group for each topic, and be sure you leverage all your employees, not just sales or design. There is a lot of power in having a diverse team come up with ideas and plans for your business.
- Start small. Select 2 or 3 ideas and move them forward. Define an action plan and what success looks like for you. Once you succeed in these, add a few more to the list. Everyone is busy, so it’s important not to overwhelm your organization with new ideas or initiatives.
- Connect with industry leaders if you need help or guidance; many of us can support you and your organization. If you need any recommendations, reach out. I’m happy to share some people I think you should connect with.
Connect with:
Sid Meadows: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sidmeadows/
ThinkLab @ https://thinklab.design/
Amanda Schneider: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandajeanschneider/
Erica Waayenberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericadonnell/