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Fantasy Furnishings

One Web retailer proves that children’s furniture is a hot commodity.

BY CELESTE MANNING

It just might be every little girl’s dream: a pumpkin coach right out of Cinderella, waiting to whisk her off to meet her prince. Thanks to online retailer Poshtots.com, the little princess can dream of that day as she sleeps in a hand-made bed shaped just like the carriage in the classic fairytale.
     Retailing for $39,500, the Fantasy Coach is by far one of the more extravagant pieces showcased by the Internet company, which was launched in November 2000 by Andrea Edmunds and Karen Booth Adams. Both are mothers who were frustrated with the lack of creative children’s furnishings available. The Virginia-based business has quickly gained a reputation for offering quality, high-end children’s furnishings with a whimsical flair that simply can’t be found elsewhere.
     “PoshTots.com’s founders searched high and low to source the PoshTots collection because there was a void in the children’s furnishings market,” says Lesley Johnson, sales and marketing manager. “They looked to artists, designers, and craftspeople to breathe creative life into children’s designs.”
     It was a mutual desire for the unique that bonded Adams and Edmunds in their quest for kid-friendly décor. The pair met in 1999 when Edmunds interviewed for a position at Fahrenheit Technology, an information technology services firm founded by Adams. Linked by the disappointing outcomes of their search for creatively designed children’s furniture, they joined forces to form the online retail site. Funding the venture with a $1-million personal investment from Adams, it took approximately 11 months to get the Web site off the ground and online.
     Simply launching the site wasn’t the biggest challenge. At a time when Internet shopping was still gaining steam, selling high-ticket, durable goods online was not as common than as it is today. As a result, many of the artisans they approached were wary of partnering with the company. “Three years ago, we were begging people to work with us,” Johnson comments. With a good sales pitch and a belief that their concept would work, The company was finally able to persuade 60 artisans and craftspeople to do business with the fledgling company. Today, however, they no longer have to convince anyone about the success of the company. PoshTots is regularly sought after by top artisans eager to join the ranks of PoshTots’ more than 100 designers. “First and foremost, all items selected for the PoshTots collection must meet the appropriate safety standards,” Johnson affirms.
     Since the beginning, the company has vied to make a name for itself as a source for the unique, while shattering the accepted notion of what children’s décor should be like. While it also offers traditional styles of furnishings and accessories, the company’s reputation is staked upon providing the extraordinary rather than the ordinary.
     It is a mission that has garnered PoshTots a following that has even withstood recent tough economic times. “We’ve found that our customers are still buying for their children,” Johnson states. She adds that as babies are born, and toddlers grow into older children, parents still want them to have unique and beautiful furnishings and are willing to spend money on their children, even when hesitating to make large purchases for themselves.
     The wide selection of furnishings and coordinating décor draws customers to PoshTots. The typical client is interested in furniture with lasting appeal that fits well with the decorative scheme and quality of furnishings in other areas of the home, according to Edmunds.
     Clients hail from throughout the country, but are concentrated mostly in the more affluent areas of states such as New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California,Texas, Michigan, and Florida. Edmunds counts both stay-at-home moms and career women among her clients and describes them as an audience that appreciates being able to customize their children’s décor to reflect the child’s personality or to match the rest of the bedroom setting. “They are primarily women doing nurseries and designing children’s rooms,” she says, adding that these busy women value the site’s wide selection and the ease of shopping on the Internet.
     Many of the creations on the site are custom orders, such as the Fantasy Coach (which is imported from England and requires English craftsmen to be flown in to assemble the bed in the customer’s home, a three-day process) or the Marina Boat Bed (retailing for $3,462), ideal for the little sailor in the family, requiring anywhere from two weeks to six months for delivery.
     Other pieces are designed exclusively for PoshTots by manu-facturers or artists specializing in children’s furnishings.
     The site has a number of high-profile fans as well. The children of Julianne Moore, Annie Liebovitz, Camille and Kelsey Grammer, and Camryn Manheim are among PoshTots.com’s pampered clients. In fact, it is this celebrity connection that might have helped the site reach success. Edmund’s husband Andy is a location scout for the Virginia Film Office, making it a bit easier to spread the word among Hollywood’s elite.
     Understandably, PoshTots’ items have made their way onto television and in movies. Most recently, viewers may have caught a glimpse of PoshTots’ Retro Crib, Black Toile Adult Glider, and Princess Wall Hanging on TV’s Friends, where the furnishings are used on the set for Ross and Rachel’s new baby, Emma.
     Being able to create theme rooms that feature fun, whimsical accessories, like the custom-made Carrot dresser (retail $3,850), is popular with PoshTots.com clients. With this one-stop shopping experience, moms can choose from furnishings, linens, wall décor, lighting, floor coverings, or even drawer pulls that complement the overall setting. Or, they can select from the wide variety of themes available online including His Checkmate or Montana Valley concepts for boys or sweet themes like Hippie Flower Power or Fanciful Fairies for girls.
     While PoshTots.com is a favorite online destination for those seeking fanciful furnishings, many also turn to the site for classy, sophisticated designs as well. Among the more grown-up, yet still child-friendly furnishings are those with garden themes, toile fabrics, or hardwoods, such as the imported nursery armoire (retail $3,949) which converts to a useful television and video cabinet as a child grows into a teen. Among the most requested items are cribs that convert to toddler- or full-size beds and changing tables that double as dressers.
     Lighting and complementary accessories also play a considerable role in the PoshTots line. “Themed lamps, rugs, and art are a hit,” Johnson discloses. Among the more popular lighting items are rose and teapot lamps from manufacturers such as Just Too Cute and Maura Daniels Studio. Chandeliers and hat-shaped sconces, too, maintain their popularity on the site. With a full line of child-appropriate lighting, parents have a wide range of styles, fabrics, and themes to choose from to enhance their décor.
     Three years after debuting on the Web, PoshTots.com is still growing. Plans are in the works for a catalog due this Spring and Edmunds and Adams are currently scoping out locales for what will be their flagship East Coast store. Even as the company grows, however, Edmunds says that they will continue to maintain their focus on providing unique children’s items and staying one step ahead of the competition by constantly adding new pieces to their line. “We’re always looking for designs that are creative and unique to PoshTots. We want our items to exceed our customer’s expectations,” she says.