Samples

[David Hantoot]

I am just starting up a home based framing business in the Richmond Virginia area. I have all the legal and tax areas covered as well as have all the equipment I should need to start. I am now looking towards supplies. I have purchased some mat boards at the local shops but now need a full set of samples for both mats and frames.

The nearest vendor for wholesale moulding looks to be CMI located in Virginia Beach which is about two hours from my house. My questions are: does anyone know of any other wholesalers in the Richmond area and what is the least expensive way to purchase mat & frame samples?

I'm sure this has been discussed prior in this forum but could not find it. Any assistance would be appreciated.

 

[Mary Fender MCPF GCF]

Hi David,

I also am in RVA. Welcome to the "Framer's Corner"!

Turner used to have a distributing location here but no longer.

Contact the mat companies directly for samples.
As far as frame samples, many vendors will give them to you.

When I first started (the 3 months before I had my storefront) I bought a fair amount from G & G Moulding 1-800-343-9351. They are in Morganton, NC. They delivered to one of my colleagues whom was kind of enough to accept the delivery for me when I was unavailable.

If you meet minimums CMI/Washington DC 1-877-263-6335 may also deliver to you.

Both of these vendors also sell supplies.

Turner, Shenandoah Framing Inc. (all in VA) as well many out of state vendors will UPS to you and have friendly reps.

Best of luck to you!

 

[David Hantoot]

Sample

Thanks for getting back to me. Since I submitted this thread, I spoke with the Virginia Beach branch of CMI. They will get me a sample set of mats for free and charge me for 1 lin. foot of each piece of moulding I request samples of. I am currently waiting on a retuern email from them with pricing. They seemed fair enough and being the closets distribiter, I will be paying them a visit this week.

I signed up for membership to PPFA and received confirmation from PMA on March 14th, yet I am still registerd as a guest. I am just today able to get into the "members only" section of this forum. Any suggestions?

 

[Mike Labbe]

Hello David

Welcome to PPFA!

I will raise your access on the forum, at once.

The PPFA membership database and the forum membership databases are not tied together at this time. We check it when someone makes a new account, but don't know when someone has recently signed up. It is a manual process to raise someones level, and I was just able to confirm that you are now in the database.

Welcome!

Mike Labbe

 

[Ellen Collins MCPF]

A big benefit of PPFA membership is chapter membership. Lucky you! You are in one of the best chapters in the country... and I am Past President. Our next scheduled meeting is in October, where we will have Hugh Phibbs speak. It will be at the Lorton Workhouse, so not tooo far from Richmond.

And there could be a bonus meeting in September, with a Real Big Name speaker, but those plans aren't totally firmed up yet.

 

[David Hantoot]

Mike, thank you for taking care of that for me. Its a pleasure to see such quick responces. By the way, I spent my teen age years in Bristol R.I.

Also, thanks for the meeting info. I plan on attending as many events as possible.

 

[Mike Labbe]

Very nice. Bristol is a nice historic community, and home to the oldest 4th of July celebration and parade in the country. We were practically neighbors

Welcome!
Mike

PS: If there is anyone else reading this who recently joined PPFA or renewed, please click CONTACT US. This will give an option that let's you request that your access on the forum be raised up.

 

[Les Martin. MCPF]

Getting Samples

When I started out what I would do was talk face to face with the rep. and negotiate a deal where I would pay for the samples but after an agreed upon length of time if I had done a certain amount of business with their company they would credit my account for what I had paid for the samples. Seemed like a win - win at the time. Still works today in certain situations.

 

[Kai Vanuffelen]

Hello David,
You are located in Richmond, Virginia. That is the town where the PPFA used to have its headquarters before its merger with PMA and their shift to Jackson, Michigan. Is that why framers in the region of Virginia are so friendly with each other. Perhaps there is more a sense of community among framers than for example New York city where framers have to compete more with each other.

We have the same in New Zealand. Auckland is the largest city with 1 1/2 million residents, but framers overthere do not interact much with each other. Yet to the south in rural Waikato is where the sense of help among framers much more evident. This is a also quite an affluent region with horse-racing and dairying playing an important part in the economy.