What is Property Dressing? This concept is now firmly established in property marketing. But how did it start?
Cullum Design is the original company that developed this concept back in 1990! Yes, we have been a family home staging business since 1990! Then, it was a very new idea and only a few estate agents were familiar with the concept. My parents, Antony & Vicky, realised that their development projects sold quicker and for more if they were shown with furniture. The idea quickly caught on and the concept grew naturally into a furniture rental business as they were asked to supply their furniture to other developers. What had started out as using their own furniture – from the kitchen table to sofas and ornaments – then developed into a business.
At first, property dressing was a very theatrical concept, hence the term staging is often used too. A narrative, stage, like theatre, was presented to help the rooms shine. The idea was to create the feeling of a private sale. Accessories adorned the antique furniture. Now, the trend is to keep it more simple, stripped back. Our parents used to light a fire, leave change on the side table, make the house feel lived in. The idea was to make the sale appear as a private sale, i.e. not a developer project, as otherwise the purchaser may negotiate more on the price.
If we counted how many homes we have helped to sell through property dressing it would be in the thousands!
We have kept true to the origins of this concept, we too like to create a narrative. How do we do this? We like to mix our style due to our large stock of furniture to include some antiques, some contemporary artwork, interesting decorative items, to create a feeling of the passing of time, not simply a visit to the local showroom discount sale. Our homes are presented as homes. A place where you want to live. Create memories. After all, to buy a new home and move house is a big decision.
The business is now managed by myself, Natalie. I share my parents love for building, interiors and design, having helped all my life – I would help my parents in the holidays. You can say for sure that I have both gained my 1000 hours!!
Cullum Design has a large stock of items, always carefully chosen for their beauty and design, means that we are one of the few companies that can work with classic country houses to contemporary Hackney flats. We work with a range of styles and briefs to assist our clients in achieving a successful sale.
Take a look at our recent projects HERE