Members of the Crisford family are pictured inside Front Desk Office Furniture, which will celebrate 20 years of service to the community in 2009.
One might not think to include office furniture stores on their list of environmentally friendly businesses.
But Front Desk owner Jay Crisford said perhaps they should, adding that sales of re-conditioned equipment account for more than half of his company's revenue.
"At lease sixty percent of our volume,"said Crisford. "We buy 40-foot trailers full of equipment from large corporate clients and then bring it here where it's refurbished and sold in our showroom."
Front Desk also donates many items to schools and local charities, all with the intent of reducing the amount of waste that ends of up in landfills.
"It's certainly something that's on everyone's mind these days,"Crisford said. "It used to be that people were just looking to save money on office equipment, but now they can feel even better because they know they're helping the environment."
Re-using existing resources helps reduce the amount of materials needed to produce new goods, though Front Desk can still provide new items to those who wish to have them.
"The 'assemble-it-yourself' products are still very popular with our customers," said Crisford. "And most of that is product we can ship to outlying communities where they don't have to come over to our warehouse."
Those willing to make the trip will find more executive office furniture than they can take in during any short period of time, all housed in a 35,000 sq. ft. structure located at 10401 Harry Hines Blvd.
The location is about to celebrate its 20th anniversary, a fact Crisford attributed to a loyal customer base.
"They come here because they know they're going to get more for their money,"said Crisford. "Our typical customer is someone who's starting a business and is tired of cheap box store furniture.
"They choose to spend their dollar here because they know they're going to get quality equipment at a substantial savings over the cost of new."
But the majority of his clients are existing businesses who are expanding or replacing their office furniture.
"We specialize in business-to-business relationships," said Crisford's son,John, who is a partner in the family-owned venture along with sister Chelsea.
"Buying their office equipment here makes sense for the smaller companies because it gives them access to a level of quality that in the past might have only been available to large corporations."
For more information about the company, call 214-904-9045 or visit online at www.FrontDeskDallas.com.
