THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 7, 1994 TAG: 9408050288
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CAROLE O'KEEFFE, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
SIGNE E. TUCKER and Troy Smith have been intrigued with wood their entire lives, so it made sense to them to go into the furniture business together.
On July 25, they opened The Smith House, a solid wood furniture store in the former Dailey grocery store on Carolina Road.
The furniture, pine and oak - both formal and casual - arrives at the store unfinished. Customers can buy it like that, or have it custom-finished by Smith.
He also puts the furniture together and makes deliveries. Tucker's main duty is the bookkeeping.
They both work in the 1,000 square-foot showroom. Smith owns the building and rents the showroom to Tucker. Tucker owns the business.
``It works for us,'' Tucker said. ``And once you've owned your own business, you don't want to work for someone else.''
While she's counting on the business becoming a success, Tucker doesn't plan to give up her other job preparing taxes. The slow furniture sales months just happen to be the busiest tax months, she said.
Before getting into the furniture business, Tucker owned a Jackson-Hewitt tax service franchise for seven years. Now she has her own independent tax business.
Smith has extensive woodworking experience. He learned from his father and later sold wood for Georgia-Pacific.
After leaving that company several years ago, he began finishing furniture for a living.
He once finished some furniture for then-Vice President Dan Quayle's Washington office.
Closer to home, Smith has refinished historic furniture for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
``There is more demand in places like D.C. and Richmond,'' Smith said.
But he still thinks he can make a go of it here. He met Tucker when she prepared his tax return. As it turned out, she had a fondness for unfinished furniture and always wanted a shop of her own.
Years ago, Tucker bought an unfinished corner cabinet. With each successive move, she has repainted it to match her decor.
That was the beginning of her dream to get into the business.
Smith, 49, lives in Suffolk. Tucker, 48, lives in Chesapeake but is looking for a home here.
``We're both small-town people,'' Tucker said. ``I want to see Suffolk revitalize downtown, and we are on the edge of it. I feel there is hope, and I would like to see Suffolk get that back.''
With the number of new building permits skyrocketing in Suffolk, the city looks like a good place for a showroom, Tucker said.
``Many couples have two incomes and don't want to buy throwaway furniture,'' she said. ``This is furniture you keep and pass down in families.''
Much of the unfinished furniture is constructed of North Carolina yellow pine. But the shop will sell solid oak as well.
``Customers won't be able to come in and ask for a finish we can't do,'' Smith said. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Signe Tucker sells unfinished furniture at The Smith House. She also
custom-finishes it on request.
by CNB