We were lucky to catch up with Adam H. Dobbs recently and have shared our conversation below.

Adam H. , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Alright, so we’d love to hear about how you got your first client or customer. What’s the story?

I had been practicing furniture making as a hobby when my wife and I lived in California for a few years. When we moved to Nashville in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, I thought I wanted to get into real estate. I figured I would be good at it, I knew Nashville was booming, and I thought it would allow me a little more free time where I could still build some furniture on the side. So I took the necessary courses, got my RE license and joined a team. It didn’t take long for me to realize that real estate wasn’t for me. It was a lot of cold calling because I didn’t have a pool of friends and family here I could call upon to get business and referrals. Everyday I would long to finish my calls and meetings so I could get down to the basement to build and learn.

At the time, my wife was working for a high-end furniture company as a salesperson and designer. She had a client who was in need of some custom wood furniture (a dining table, two credenzas, two floating shelves, and two end tables) and so gave her my information. We spoke on the phone as to what she was wanting and I started to put a proposal together. I had no idea how to price what she was wanting! I completely lowballed myself because I wanted to make sure I booked this job. I had to match the dining table’s price to something similar that she saw online, and everything else I just did the best I could for the estimation. The total was still enough money, though, that I felt like if I booked it, it would be a good opportunity to take the leap and do this for real full time.

I sent the proposal and waited. And waited. I think maybe a few days went by, possibly a week, I can’t remember. The feeling of anxiety was eating me alive. I was miserable doing the real estate thing, and I just had a feeling about this. I remember going to an antique store to look at a couch my wife had seen online and asked me to take a look in person. It was early March, a little chilly, and raining a little bit outside. The couch was too dirty to purchase, but seeing the antique furniture in the shop, smelling the wood, feeling the patina with my hands, it just knew I had to live in this world. As I walked back to my car in the cool drizzle I texted Anna to tell her the couch was a no-go and checked my email. My proposal was approved and I went from having a potential client to an actual client. I got in my car and began sobbing, which is something I rarely do. Not only did someone trust me enough based on a few pictures of pieces I had built, but they were willing to pay me for my services. It solidified my belief in myself, but more importantly it just felt like making furniture was what I was meant to be doing.

I sent a screenshot of the email to Anna and began planning how I was going to tell her I wanted to give up real estate and do this full time. I had a commission check on the way for my one and only real estate transaction, between that and the furniture I felt like it was enough money to hold me over for a few months. Due to my lack of equipment at the time and how long everything took to make, I for sure “lost” money, but it was my jumping-off point and I was eternally grateful for the opportunity that client gave me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I make bespoke furniture for clients who are looking for pieces that require a custom size, color, look, feel, or function. Sometimes they send me inspiration photos they have found and we work together to adjust details, wood species, color, etc., or sometimes we completely design an original from the ground-up. Either way, it’s 100% collaboration between myself and the client because I want to ensure they are getting exactly what they want. I also do built-ins, vanities, and custom cabinetry.

I am most proud of my attention to detail and complete commitment to whatever I am building. I stress about small details and issues because people have a choice where they buy their furniture and buying custom is not inexpensive. They deserve the highest quality I can provide and it’s not something I take lightly. I want them to feel like they are a part of the process every step of the way and deliver them a product that exceeds their expectations, to not only make them realize the investment was worth it, but to keep them coming back if there is a need in the future or to recommend our business to friends and family.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Constant contact and word of mouth. Continually reaching out to potential clients is something I definitely could improve, but I have seen results that come along with it. I even had to make myself stop a few months ago because my lead times were getting too long which might deter some clients. It’s a delicate balance when running a business solo with no employees yet. I whole-heartedly believe that as long as I provide a stellar product with an outstanding experience throughout, I will get business through client referrals, which I love. I have already seen the fruits of that labor as well. It still blows my mind!

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Reaching out to interior designers has helped me the most. Not only do they have clients who are more open and willing for custom furniture, but they deal with multiple clients at a time. I can contact a handful of designers, but the end user result is ten times that much because they might have multiple projects going on at once that require custom woodworking. And then of course hopefully they will think of me for future projects as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.hamiltonrosewood.com
• Instagram: @hamiltonrosewood