A Store On Wheels Brings Home Décor To Your Door

By Kaaren Valenta

Lynne Herrmann loves her job.

“It is every bit as demanding as when I worked in corporate America, but I go to bed at night a lot happier,” she said.

When Ms Herrmann moved to Newtown three years ago with her husband, Gerry, she knew she was ready for a career change. Although she had studied interior design years ago, she had never pursued it, opting instead to raise a family, then work in the development and delivery of educational computer software.

“Now I was at the point of life, in my mid-50s, when I wanted something fun,” she said. “My mother was quite a seamstress and I’ve been sewing since I was 16. I have a textile background and becoming an interior decorator was something I’ve wanted to do my whole life.”

After researching the field, the Herrmanns bought an Interiors by Decorating Den franchise. The company is an international shop-at-home interior decorating service that was founded 36 years ago on the premise that interior decorating services should be affordable. Approximately 70 percent of the company’s customers are dual-income married couples who find little time to shop for interior decorating products.

“The company tries to fit its products into what the customer has, and to work with the customer’s budget,” Ms Herrmann said. “I can do everything — an entire floor of a house or just the windows in a guest room.”

The Herrmann’s 20-foot-long van is stocked with samples of window, wall, and floor coverings as well as books of furniture and accessories that are brought right to the customer’s doorstep.

“I have more than 130 vendors available — nine fabric, 43 furniture, 22 lighting and accessories, plus wall-to-wall carpeting and area rugs, hardwood floors, tile — we can do the whole room, floor to ceiling, wall to wall,” Ms Herrmann said. “I develop a plan for the client without them ever having to go to a store.”

Ms Herrmann said her clientele ranges from people who want her to help them with one item to finish a room to those who want an entire house done.

“Shopping for the home isn’t easy for busy people,” she pointed out. “It’s time consuming. You can go to a furniture store and see a chair in a 20,000 square-foot showroom with 15-foot ceilings, buy it, and after waiting weeks for it to be made and delivered, find out that it is really too big for your room.”

In her store on wheels, Ms Herrmann has products in a variety of styles that include traditional, country, country English and French, Art Deco, Transitional, and eclectic, to name a few. One of its major benefits is being able to offer exceptional product lines at lower costs because of the company’s multimillion-dollar group buying power. The company has more than 500 franchises including four in the state of Connecticut.

“I’m enjoying myself immensely,” Ms Herrmann said. “I get a kick out of going to the home of someone who says ‘I can’t do anything with this room’ and develop a plan that they love.”

After speaking initially with a client on the phone, Ms Herrmann goes to the house and spends a couple of hours there, taking measurements and digital photos.

“I pretty much will see something to do when I walk in but the client may have other ideas,” she said. “By the time I’ve been there a couple of times, they are completely involved.”

Although she has catalogs with hundreds of styles of furniture and other products, she also deals with local merchants. “I can bring in things like lamps for the client to see and try before deciding to buy,” she said. “Lighting in a home has to be taken into consideration with the other elements of design.”

Interiors by Decorating Den originally started with window treatments but has grown to incorporate all facets of interior design and is continually adding vendors. “The company has changed dramatically in the past decade,” Ms Herrmann said. “It has grown to meet the demands of people who have very little time to shop.

“My clients look at me as a partner. We use spreadsheets to track their budget and make decisions.  That makes it easier on all sides,” she said. “We build relationships that become very long-term.”

There are inexpensive and expensive ways to do every project and all kinds of levels in between, she said. “You can get a nice look with elegant fabrics but have to spend a fortune. The people in this town, however, are not driven by designer labels. They just want it to be beautiful. And custom doesn’t cost as much as you might think.”

The Herrmanns, who both grew up in rural communities in the Midwest, decided to move to Newtown after living for years in the Huntington section of Shelton. “We wanted more property,” Ms Herrmann said. “Newtown has all the earmarks of the country but also the amenities of a city. When we looked at the house that we bought here, there was a man training a horse to pull a carriage on our street.”

The Herrmanns’ daughter, Terry and her husband, Richard Garneau, and their children, Satria, 16, and Shandon, 14, live in Newtown. Another daughter, Sabra, and her husband Don live in Trumbull  with their children, Frank, 15, Liam, 2, and Taylor, almost 1.

“We love it here and plan to retire here someday,” Ms Herrmann said. “My husband works as a computer consultant but he is entirely supportive of my business and is definitely a partner. He also does installation for me.”

It takes a lot of energy to operate a business from a van, she admits, especially when the product line keeps increasing.

“I no longer keep everything on the van.  It depends upon the job,” she said. “We’re always moving samples on and off. I have five shelves of furniture and accessory books alone. I have wallpaper and paint samples. My clients know they are going to get everything done without leaving their house.”

The Herrmanns are members of the Newtown Chamber of Commerce and are always looking for opportunities to use the products and services of other local businesses to expand the number of products offered to their customers. Lynne Herrmann sees a growing, glowing future for her company.

“But we will always be known as the ladies with the van,” she said.

Lynne Herrmann can be reached at 426-3694, or check out the website at www.DecoratingDen.com.