As the home organization and design industry continues to grow, entrepreneurs like Thomas Scott, the founder and CEO of Home Run Franchises (Up Closets franchise), are looking at new ways to evolve the industry, especially in creating a lean closet franchise brand. 

Scott’s first franchise venture was Showhomes Home Services. Reflecting on his early experiences, Scott recalls, “We started out staging closets, garages, and pantries, and then got into doing some light work.” These formative years provided Scott with invaluable insights into the needs and preferences of homeowners, setting the stage for his future ventures.

As a franchise consultant, Scott’s expertise expanded, allowing him to work with many major brands in the space. His collaborations with industry giants offered him a comprehensive understanding of the market dynamics. However, his keen observation of the industry’s inefficiencies led him in a different direction.

Scott and his team have developed a method for Up Closets that prioritizes efficiency and affordability. “We outsource everything for the manufacturing side,” explains Scott, emphasizing the cost advantages of this approach. By leveraging lean labor and strategic partnerships with manufacturers like Tiny Squares, Home Run Franchises has positioned itself as a formidable player in the market.

He describes the basic setup for Up Closets as an owner with one to two salespeople and one to two on the install crew. When it comes to marketing, Scott says they have a “pretty aggressive marketing system” built around how they go after customers.

Scott’s eye for untapped opportunities has allowed the company to effectively target younger demographics. Through AI-driven virtual consultations and a robust social media presence, Up Closets engages with millennials and Gen Z, offering them a hassle-free experience tailored to their preferences. “Our customers skew younger,” he says. Over half of the customers for Up Closets franchises are millennials or younger, so they market to that group specifically.

“We try to use AI in our software as much as we can, which is really helpful,” he notes. “We do a lot of responsive design work, which is a way to prequalify somebody virtually without having an actual consultation. That’s been huge for us.”

Scott attributes the success of that approach to the fact that younger customers prefer a more simplified consultation that doesn’t require the designer to come to their house and spend a lot of time. They don’t have the patience for it, he says.
Up Closets offers a diverse range of products to suit every need and budget. 

The company caters to a wide spectrum of clientele, offering everything from luxurious walk-in closets to functional pantry and laundry room solutions. 

Scott emphasizes, “We’re just different... We look at what our competitors do and try to do things they’re not doing better.”
One area where Up Closets sees immense potential is in European-style cabinets and kitchens. Scott identifies a gap in the market for affordable yet high-quality options, hinting at a possible expansion into this segment. We do a lot of work with Lockdowel for our cabinet boxes, Scott says. And there is potential to explore other options in the cabinets business including the kitchen.

“We’re not a disrupter, we’re just differentiated,” he says. “We just, we’re just different. We look at what our competitors do, and try to do things they’re not doing, better.”

Best practice tips for franchisees
When asked what key qualities and skills are needed for closet franchises, Scott notes the importance of a consultative sales approach over traditional methods and the ability to provide solutions and build trust.

A successful business focuses on recruiting individuals with a passion for design and basic sales skills who are then trained in other aspects of the business. He adds that the goal is to create a personalized and organic sales process that prioritizes customer satisfaction.

When it comes to marketing, beyond the use of social media and digital marketing, the company also focuses on inbound lead generation, and they prioritize local networking and relationship-building, encouraging enthusiastic promotion of their business. 
They also engage in in-market activities such as yard signs, door hangers, and partnerships with real estate professionals and builders. The emphasis lies on conversational marketing and creating a frictionless experience. Despite their smaller size, their unique approach has drawn interest from larger competitors seeking insights into their methods.

When asked what advice he would give to someone considering entering the closet design industry, he reiterated the advantages of outsourcing instead of manufacturing your own products. 

“It’s very hard to build a business case that outperforms outsourced manufacturing today,” he says. “I can out compete someone manufacturing their own stuff by a pretty significant margin.”

It is also important to understand modern sales behaviors and structures as most customers today are sensitive to being “sold to,” making the traditional sales approach less effective compared to more emotionally engaging methods.

“We’re just not trying to sell people stuff they don’t need to make more commission, we’re trying to get them the solution of their dreams and have them buy into it. We call it [licking paint],” he laughs. “Where they get so excited that they want to lick the paint off the walls. That’s an emotional sale.”

To learn more, visit upclosets.com.