It’s Just Our Custom
Smarter Customization
“Nimble and agile are two words that come to mind in our ability at Smarter Furnishings AUS to provide our customers a tremendous level of customization. The quality we are known for is an extremely strong point of difference that starts with some tremendous people on our team and on the ground in factories,” explains company Partner/CEO Johnny Collins. He adds that the company’s working business model, since the founding in 1992, is to effectively become partners with customers to build smarter live-learn environments for their students.
“Style-wise, we develop on-trend collections that meet the needs of on campus and off campus customers and the tastes of each incoming generation of students,” according to Chief Business Development Officer Curtis Cook. “Smarter Furnishings AUS is unique in that it can provide the kind of durability both on campus and off campus developers demand, in a style that is easy on the designer-eye and can fit into a private budget.”
Out of this strong customer/partner working model, a world-class ability to create custom furniture in design and function has emerged and continues to set Smarter Furnishings AUS apart from other housing furniture suppliers in the higher education market.
Smarter listening
Our furniture is built to learn, live and last. To accomplish that mission, our team is built to listen. And collaborate at every step. “We won’t be limited by a cookie-cutter corporate mindset of take it or leave it toward our customers. We build furnishings to fit any school’s specific needs and desires,” according to Partner/Managing Director Dean Harvison. “Almost every standard furniture collection we now offer has been a result of our responding to our customer’s needs and building furniture accordingly.”
Customer care at Smarter Furnishings AUS encompasses every aspect of product and service. “Whether it’s our collection styles, designed to feel like the student’s home, or using the best materials with the best joinery for the best warranty – listening to our customers is always the starting point,” Dean adds.
The senior leadership team focuses on sustaining close relationships with our customers – housing directors, purchasing agents, interior designers, property developers and project managers. “They have my cell phone with evening and weekend access to me,” Dean admits. This insistence on ease of accessibility with customers is one reason why, after nearly thirty years serving the collegiate market, customers who start with us stay with us.
Smarter outcomes
“We are always ready to honor an interior designer’s preferences and requirements, to see how we can best deliver the custom product as they have envisioned it, ready for use on move-in day,” Curtis notes. “They appreciate that we have the willingness and capacity to create any style or trend, customize any piece or collection and name it after the designer.”
Flexibility in planning is a hallmark at Smarter Furnishings AUS. It’s what allows us to succeed in meeting the custom needs for décor/design specifications, space requirements, budgets and timeline, prototypes for review, and even the delivery and logistic challenges of a pandemic year like 2020 to maintain our perfect on-time installation record.
After almost three decades, Smarter Furnishings AUS is still humbled at the opportunity to collaborate with so many customers who trust us to make their creative vision of a college ‘home’ a reality for the students they serve.
“AUS has the ability and willingness to create custom furniture product styles & custom sizes. AUS has the philosophy of fabricating what the designer wants for a project. They will work with our designers and will create drawings of a new product design and then have a mock-up built in their factory to see how a new prototype product works and looks. Capstone is always searching for an edge in the student housing market so when we want to have a custom style furniture series that stands out as unique – it is not a problem to accomplish this with AUS.
– Jane Brakefield, Director, Capstone Interiors
What can we custom-build for you?
Let’s meet! We can livestream demonstrations from our showroom or schedule in person presentations at your convenience. Call Jennifer at 205.621.2502 or contact us online.