HSRA MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Meet Shawn Varwig

Judson Roy Home Portland, OR & Seattle, WA

Hi, my name is Shawn Varwig, and I became a Home Stager purely by accident and fell in love with it. That was over 10 years ago. Having been a furniture salesman through the 2008-2010 recession, I found myself moving from job to job as it seemed every company or store I worked at found itself bankrupt and out of business. Those were hard years for furniture stores. As fate would have it, one of the customers that I'd sold to over the years was a Home Stager and had a need for part-time warehouse help. I jumped on the opportunity and took the job, as well as another part-time job at Starbucks. It wasn't more than a few months later that I was asked to join the Staging staff full time, where I worked my way up to the Chief Operations Officer role prior to starting my company in 2016.

I live in Canby, Oregon with my amazing wife Jessica who owns an equal share of the company with me, as well as my two future Stagers, Lillyan (10) and Chloe (8), and our dog Hank.

Judson Roy Home serves the Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington markets, and anywhere in between. Our founding principles are Honesty, Integrity & Respect and these words guide every decision we make.

Q: TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF AND WHERE YOU ARE IN BUSINESS TODAY.

I have been in the Staging Industry since 2011 when I began working for another local Home Stager. I knew her from my previous career in furniture sales. Rewind to 2008-2010, we experienced some hard years in the furniture industry with the recession, and I found myself moving between jobs when the stores were all going out of business. When the other Stager offered me a job, I jumped at the opportunity and quickly fell in love with the Industry. In 2016, it was clear that it was time to move on, and that gave me the opportunity to start Judson Roy Home, named after my two grandfathers who left a legacy of honesty, respect, and taught me how to treat people with those ideals. In the last 5 years, we've grown to be a company serving several metropolitan areas in two different states and we Stage more than 300 homes each year.

Q: FROM THE BEGINNING UNTIL NOW, HOW HAS YOUR BUSINESS CHANGED?

When I began my business, I tried to go back to my roots in furniture sales, and actually opened a boutique furniture store in my city. Having recently left a position with another Staging company, I was actually a little stubborn and didn't want to continue with Staging. After a few referrals from some friends, I agreed to Stage one or two homes. Shortly after, it became clear that my store wasn't going to survive and so we made the shift to Staging. From servicing 2-3 homes per month to now servicing 8-10 per week, it has certainly changed. I now have a full staff of Stagers, Designers, Sales team, and Movers.

Q: WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE STARTING OUT?

Believe in yourself. You can do this. It's not going to be easy, but it is certainly worth it. When you want to give up, don’t.

Q: HOW ABOUT SOME ADVICE FOR THE PERSON DOING MOST EVERYTHING IN THEIR BUSINESS?

How much money are you losing by wearing yourself out? I know it can be scary to hire help, and it's costly but you can't do everything and do it well. If you want to grow, you need to hire help. Start by determining your weakest area and hire that helper first.

Q: WHAT SUGGESTIONS DO YOU HAVE ON MANAGING INVENTORY AT AN EARLY PHASE AND MOVING TO A MORE SEASONED BUSINESS?

(if you have inventory) No matter what process you use, use it. Trying to manage inventory when you have a warehouse full will be impossible if you don't start when you begin. I'm living proof! :) The extra time that it takes to keep track of what you have and where it is will be worth the effort.

Q: WHAT PROCESSES NEED TO BE IN PLACE IN A BUSINESS SUCH AS YOURS?

There are so many. I think the single most important thing is having set expectations. We do this through an employee handbook that spells out our company processes and procedures. It is revised regularly and new things are added as necessary.

Q: WHAT ARE SOME LESSONS LEARNED?

Every day offers an opportunity to learn a new lesson. The only constant is change, and what works today might or might not work tomorrow. We will always learn new lessons, but the one lesson that never changes is that I am valuable. Once we each learn this, we can change the world. Believe in yourself. Know your worth. You are valuable. Don't let anyone else tell you differently.

ANY LAST-MINUTE ADVICE FOR OUR MEMBERS?

When things are difficult, it means you are successful. Success isn't easy.

WHEN THINGS ARE DIFFICULT, IT MEANS YOU ARE SUCCESSFUL. .