Friday, April 16, 2010 | Modified: Monday, April 19, 2010, 10:56am MST
Startup
Web site connects contractors with homeowners
PHOENIX BUSINESS JOURNAL – BY Lynn Ducey
“ISEARCHDECOR IN PHOENIX BUSINESS JOURNAL”
A conversation about home remodeling and decoration led Michelle Maxwell and Alicia Guerrieri to launch iSearchDecor, a Web site that connects customers with independent businesses and service professionals in the field.
The women are self-financing the venture and have recruited some investors, which they spent the past year developing. But iSearchDecor isn’t their first enterprise together. They launched Decoratours in 2007. The personalized service offers clients one-on-one trips to select home boutiques and decorating businesses.
“But after that, we still had people coming to us for referrals, and that’s how we got the idea for iSearchDecor,” Maxwell said.
The women hired a company to develop their new Web site, which features home decor, lighting, flooring providers and installers across the region.
The site is free for consumers, but businesses pay fees based on the number of leads they receive from the site. Maxwell declined to share financials, but said the goal is to turn a profit while also supporting local companies.
She said the site is more than a listing service because participating businesses are vetted before earning a spot on the site.
“We call them the ‘hidden gems’ in the Valley. We go out and actually visit the stores and meet with the service professionals,” Maxwell said. “We really scour the Valley to find these great places.”
Even though the women live in the same Scottsdale neighborhood, Maxwell said it was important to expand the breadth of the site to reflect the entire Valley.
“We find that our clients want to venture out and explore and see what is out there. We also think it’s important to expose people to different options and ideas,” she said.
For more: www.isearchdecor.com ; www.facebook.com/isearchdecor; twitter.com/isearchdecor
Read more: Web site connects contractors with homeowners – Phoenix Business Journal:
Tags:
