Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Harrison.
Hi Alex, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
In 1990, my father quit his job as an engineer to follow his passion, making true custom and reproduction American furniture of a very high caliber. After working for my father all through high school and on breaks from college, I got to learn what truly high quality furniture is and the amazing skill required to produce it. (The next time you look at your favorite chair, really look closely at the details of the joints, how the material is sewn together and the quality of the paint or finish. Even furniture from a store like Ikea, can have some amazing, complicated design in it.)
Like most kids though, I didn’t want to work for my father’s company, so after college I went to work in the Yacht Industry. Little did I realize that many of the skills I learned from my father would carry over into the positions I had while working for yacht and boat building factories. The most valuable skill I learned from my father, was the ability to see details that most people would never notice. Throughout my nearly 20 year career, I often found myself on production lines, doing quality control checks of some truly beautiful boat woodworking, upholstery and construction. I have also become an avid hobbyist in furniture reupholstering, specifically using leather and the commercial sewing machine I bought myself a few years ago.
After nearly 18 years in the yacht/boating industry, I was ready for a new path and knew only, that I wanted to start my own company and be my own boss. In 2017, I started a company selling retractable awnings and motorized screens. This grew to include more custom awning jobs and occasionally places we were installing awnings, started asking if we could also provide outdoor furniture. At first I didn’t think much of it, however, when my own condo association asked if I could provide all new pool furniture for their 3 pools, I realized it was something I should really consider. It didn’t take long to realize that this was the direction I should be headed, it takes my skills and passions and (finally) puts them all into alignment.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Starting a business with no money, no help and no experience is a really hard way to start and not the way I would recommend anyone do it. When the only thing you have going for you, is sheer stubborn-ness, everything else is a struggle. Finding money to market against much more established companies, learning how to properly price goods, manage finances, properly track your bookkeeping, the list goes on. Thankfully, I am stubborn enough to figure it out and make it work, no matter the struggle. A skill that is absolutely required for any entrepreneur.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Harrison Outdoor Furniture?
Harrison Outdoor Furniture offers commercial grade outdoor furniture to any industry that has a need for it. We specialize in hotels, restaurants, HOA/COA Community pools, campgrounds, retirement communities and more. As a young company, with very little overhead we can offer the same products as other companies for a lower price, while still offering design and creative help. We work with a variety of manufacturers, which allows us the ability offer a huge array of products, including everything from resin dining chairs, to aluminum sling and vinyl strap furniture (which is extremely popular with HOA/COA’s and many hotels) as well as plush deep seating furniture and my favorite… Yacht quality finished, fully custom furniture for the most demanding of clients.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
If you are a board member of a Home Owners’ Association or a Condo Owners’ Association, we would love to work with you and are able to offer many options, including (potentially) factory reconditioning of existing furniture to help keep costs lower. Building a new hotel/resort or restaurant, we’d love to work with you as well and through our excellent relationship with Miami Awning company, (who are behind some of the largest and most complicated of awning creations around the country and in the Caribbean), we can not only help with the procurement of nearly any style of furniture you need, but also collaborate with Miami Awning to get awning, cabanas, shade sails and even motorized louvered roof systems as well. No matter how small or how big the project is, we’d love to work with you.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.harrisonoutdoor.com
- Instagram: harrisonoutdoorfurniture
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Harrisonoutdoor
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/alexharrisonharrisonoutdoor
