A lot of the people who contact me have very different budgets for their commissions, and the most natural question to ask is of course “how much will it cost?”. Here I want to try to explain how I arrive at the prices I charge.
How is bespoke furniture different?
Bespoke furniture is far removed from its high street equivalent in the same way that a Savile Row suit is tailored to perfectly fit each client. It is more expensive than anything mass produced, but money invested in my work doesn’t go towards a highly staffed showroom on the high street, it goes directly into the best quality materials, the running of the workshop it’s made in and the days and weeks spent making it.
Each piece is therefore designed to your taste to create luxury for your home, using your choice of materials and finish.
The Commissioning Process
After discussing the commission, I will either show computer drawings to get the ideas into a tangible state and/or work out a first estimate to give the client some idea of the costs within the range of materials and design details discussed. Drawings remain the property of Sam Brown Furniture and copies are only given to the client when the commission has been confirmed.
The cost of each commission is on average evenly split between workshop, labour and materials. Before starting work I usually ask for a deposit of approximately 50% of the estimate to cover most of the material costs.
Once a commission has been accepted and the work commenced, the client is always welcome to visit the workshop in north London to see the work in progress or if that’s not convenient photographs can be sent by email.
When completed I will come to the clients home and install or fit the furniture. In the next two years should any problems arise due to workmanship or material failure then it will be repaired free of charge although if the damage is due to misuse then the client may be charged for the repairs.
If clients later change address and the furniture has to be moved and re-installed that can be arranged at the current labour cost and expenses for that time.
