Most dealers offer a deep sigh and think to themselves ?on no - not again?. Some dealers just hang up the phone.... A good office furniture dealer will however see it as a welcome challenge ? an opportunity to really show what they can do. To showcase their talents of listening to a client and drawing on experience and professionalism to provide the perfect solution.

Sadly, there appear to be lots of office furniture companies that don't hear the whole request ?and only hear ?we want cheap?. Even more sadly there are lots of customers who just accept mediocrity and buy a boring furniture solution on the misconception that it's all they can afford. But it doesn't have to be like that.

A good independent supplier will take brief from their client which includes; budget, timescale, design preference, and a practical assessment of their future plans. From that they can filter the offering down to a couple of suitable ranges. This is where a customer relies on their sales persons depth of knowledge and willingness to work to find a great solution.

Because each furniture manufacturer has different MFC finishes available, and each seating manufacturer has different fabrics available it is possible to pull together a package that looks much more expensive than it necessarily is. By clever selection and a bit of imagination it is possible to get exactly what the customer needs. That's not to say that customers don't need at times to be more realistic with their budgets. After all there's skilled budget matching ? and plain ridiculous targets too. And suppliers shouldn't be afraid to let a customer know that perhaps their budget needs looking at. After all, a lot of work goes into a proposal and it's wasted time if the proposal is a non starter because the customer can barely afford a basic melamine desk ? when what they have asked for is a glass desk.

When choosing a supplier for a new project ? the key is to look for is choice. It's no good going direct to a manufacturer as they can only sell you what they manufacturer themselves. And it's no good choosing a supplier who boasts of having 1,000 different suppliers as they won't know any of them in depth ? and won't get the loyalty and relationship service from their suppliers that is so important for you to get great service form your supplier.

Look for independence, and look for experts. Only then can you get the very best from your budget, your office and your supplier. And be willing to look at the bigger picture rather than just choosing on the absolute cheapest option ? after all you don't buy office furniture every day ? so why rush it?