Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Hooper.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Mark. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Our Companies Roots Began Out of Love… and the Unpredictable and Unexpected Journey of Life’s Ups and Downs. Furniture Fixology was created out of a husband love to fulfill his wife’s lifelong dream of someday becoming a business owner and a father hope of preserving a family’s legacy by passing down the knowledge of old world craftsmanship to his son.
Mark Hooper started working in his father’s refinishing business at the age of 4 years old. By firmly placing his small feet in his dad’s hip pockets he unknowingly peered around his father’s broad shoulders into his future and a passion unfolded that has lasted a lifetime. Even at his tender age it did not take very long for the sawdust to settle into his veins and to become forever hooked by the artistic diversity of furniture making and the rewards from reviving furniture that might otherwise be discarded. He mastered his craft over his lifetime by working in the Design District as a freelance custom furniture maker commissioned by some of Dallas’ Best Interior Designers for high end clientele, celebrities, sports figures, musicians, politicians and exclusive residential homes. Mark also designed and manufactured luxury furnishings for the hospitality industry and was instrumental in creating three successful businesses in retail kiosks, custom leather, and contemporary furnishings. Literally his accomplishments took him to the four corners of the United States for design consultation, engineering, and project trouble shooting.
Fast forward a few years and the high demand forced upon one’s body in this field took its toll and forced Mark to reevaluate the relevance of his trade and figure out a greater purpose for his life. He stepped down from the prestige of custom furniture making and immersed himself in just about every possible furniture malfunction known to mankind and became a warranty technician for 5 years. In the trenches he found there to be a lack of skilled tradesman and his territory quickly expanded from the southern tip of Texas to Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Kentucky. Many calls were separated by hundreds of miles, numerous seedy motels, and driving late at night down too many unknown pitch-black dirt roads where even google maps dared to travel.
It was a difficult and often rocky road to bare but the journey taught him valuable lessons and brought him and his wife Jude to an unexpected fork in the road. When many people are settling into the hope of retirement they were faced with the harsh reality of having to start over again. An unscrupulous employer broke many promises and after one year of funding Marks travels out of pocket they were both unemployed with little prospects. With no business plan ever written, no degree hanging on the wall, no sales, no accounting, no marketing, and no web development experience the only thing they possessed was Jude’s’ tenacity to learn and Marks amazing talents and God given gifts. They pieced together a business that’s foundation was deeply rooted in love and the inherent desire to create a legacy for the children of two broken families that were now blended together as one. Out of this love came the birthing pains of Furniture Fix ology and our mission of saving really awesome furniture from its impending doom of ending up in the city dump to soon.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Mark will tell you that the biggest lesson he ever learned was to pay attention to what is happening around you and never give up. Life can be unpredictable and even the strongest of men can be thrown off course at times. It took tenacity, great courage, and vision for him to start sailing in a new direction. His last grueling year on the road hopping from state to state came to a screaming halt in October of 2015.
Little did America know of the unforeseen collision course that was unfolding before our eyes that consisted of overseas furniture manufacturing and a lack of qualified and capable people to meet the high demand. Since the 90’s the furniture industry has continued to find ways to improve their profit margins while leaving an industry crippled with not enough trained and capable people to fill the void. After a little Googling we found that the EPA did a study in 2008 and found over 10 million tons of damaged furniture was disposed of each year. We also found that in 2015 furniture and home furnishing stores generated about 106.78 billion U.S. dollars’ worth of sales. It does not take a rocket scientist to see we have a problem Houston.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Our business specializes in at home and at work onsite furniture repair and leather restoration. Whether you have saggy sofa seats, dog chews, faded leather or a malfunctioning recliner we can more than likely repair it for you in the convenience of your home or office. It’s an affordable way to maintain your comfy spaces without breaking the bank. We literally can save people hundreds if not thousands of dollars in furniture replacement costs in as little as one hour.
What we are most proud of as a company is that we were a feature story in Forbes Magazine, CBS News, and in a commercial for Google My Business. That is pretty amazing for a three-person business that boot strapped its beginnings and started in a garage a little over 2 years ago. We believe and contribute this to God because there is no other way to explain it.
What sets us apart from others is our ability and knowledge of years of mastering touch up, blending color, and overcoming multiple problems and trouble shooting them quickly in someone’s home or office. What Furniture Fixology does is fill the void of having to make the decision of refinishing, buying something new, or even worse throwing your favorite furniture away. These are all hard decisions to make and most are not considered a viable affordable option for most. We have a secret weapon in that many of the same techniques learned and used today are passed down from past generations and working with Master European Craftsman in high end custom refinishing. It is a craft that is beautifully orchestrated and takes an apprentice year to master and learn.
What were you like growing up?
Mark was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and his family moved to Orlando, Florida and finally settled in Ft Worth, Texas. As a small child he overcame many health issues and almost died the first year of his life. He had chronic asthma and as an infant he endured a risky surgery for a sternum deformity that left him very weak and gave his family an uncertainty of his future. At the age of 11 years old he decided to fight back and regain his health back by doing body building and studying nutrition. At the age of 12 his interest was peek in the art of Wing Chung, which is a Chinese Martial art that focuses on meditation, control, mind over matter, and self defense. He advanced through each level and achieved one of the highest rankings.
What were you like growing up?
Mark was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and his family moved to Orlando, Florida and finally settled in Ft Worth, Texas. As a small child he overcame many health issues and almost died the first year of his life. He had chronic asthma and as an infant he endured a risky surgery for a sternum deformity that left him very weak and gave his family an uncertainty of his future. At the age of 11 years old he decided to fight back and regain his health back by doing body building and studying nutrition. At the age of 12 his interest was peek in the art of Wing Chung, which is a Chinese Martial art that focuses on meditation, control, mind over matter, and self defense. He advanced through each level and achieved one of the highest rankings.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.furniturefixology.com
- Phone: 214-606-2760
- Email: info@furniturefixology.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/furniturefixology/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/furniturefixology/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/furniture-fixology-mckinney
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
