Entrepreneur Niki Cheng:
On Growth and Change

 

There’s no place like home—this is the core of Niki Cheng’s business strategy and philosophy. And as the owner of three Calligaris stores and one multiline M Collection store in New York City, as well as being the first to bring Camerich to the city, Niki makes sure it comes across in her showrooms. “A piece of furniture that you bring into your home will be there for years. That is a part of you,” says Niki. “So when I sell, I don’t want to sell a piece of furniture; I want to sell a home.”

Niki has kept this concept in mind since opening her first furniture store with her husband, Shaokao Cheng, in 2003. A decade and a half later, the couple is well-known for successfully building their presence in the New York City furniture market “from nothing to something.”

 

First Steps

Niki was born and raised in Malaysia and came to the United States on a student visa. After working and thriving at a furniture store, Niki found that her talent was in sales. So, when she and her husband felt the market needed more affordable, quality furniture, they decided to partner with BoConcept, a young but stylish Danish furniture company with a weak international presence, and develop the brand’s presence in New York City.

“We thought, even if it doesn’t work, we need to try everything,” Niki recalls. “There is no limit in business, in how you become a cook, how you become a mom, how you become anything.” Niki and her husband, at that point in their late 20s, applied this energy to their work and became a reputable name in the New York City furniture sphere.

Sitting in her Chelsea Calligaris store, Niki reminisces about the start of her business journey and laughs. “We were so naive. All we thought about was having a beautiful showroom. We didn’t even think about needing to do delivery.” But the couple pushed through and made it work. And now, Niki’s clean and impressive store, the culmination of years of hard work, reveals little of their struggle to get to this point.

But Niki remembers how tough the beginning was for her and her husband. “We made many mistakes together, but we learn from the mistakes.” To the couple, this process of constant growth is the very essence of running a business. Even with their current success, staying stagnant is never an option. “I want the brand we represent to grow with us,” Niki insists.

 

 

Back to Square One

Despite Niki’s renown for successfully developing BoConcept in New York City, she and her husband decided to transition away from the brand to Calligaris at the end of 2017. Calligaris is a 95-year-old Italian brand that, according to Niki, offers high quality and sophisticated luxury furniture at an affordable price point. To Niki, this translates into the opportunity to represent a brand that is a better fit for the New York lifestyle.

Speaking of the switch, Niki relates it back to her first steps a decade and a half ago. “Switching a brand is like starting a new business. We went back to square one last year.” And there were challenges: In switching over to Calligaris, Niki and her husband suffered monetary loss, put in increased working hours, and experienced intense emotional stress.

This time, however, Niki was older and wiser. Almost two decades of experience has taught her how business—and business in New York City, in particular—works. With this knowledge under her belt, she is tackling the challenges of starting over with a confidence she didn’t have in her 20s: “If I could build BoConcept, which was nothing, to something, I can also build Calligaris, which is already something, to something bigger.”

In addition, the switch allowed Niki to finally curate her own collections with other brands (for example, the Camerich brand, which is housed inside her Chelsea Calligaris store), something she wasn’t able to do with her previous partnership. For her, this means being able to inject her own creative inclinations, which have matured over the years into a classic yet contemporary style, into her showrooms; for her customers, this provides a wider selection of stylish, quality, yet affordable furniture.

With all things considered, Niki believes the switch was the right choice.

 

 

A House Is Not a Home

The secret to Niki’s astounding success? “No matter who, you have to find out what their lifestyle is to make them a comfortable home.” These words manifest in a heartwarming attention to detail. As she mentally walks through her New York City stores, Niki points out nuances of the different lifestyles displayed in her various showrooms: The SoHo store has a lofted style, while the one in the Upper East Side reflects the sectioned living of the neighborhood’s residents. “Every showroom caters to the lifestyle of the neighborhood,” Niki explains. “You want the showroom to be relatable before you sell.”

Relating to the customer is a cornerstone of Niki’s business. One piece of advice she gives to her sales staff: “Sell things with your heart. Really mean it. Deliver this kind of message, so that people can trust you.”

According to Niki, this customer-first attitude is her edge in the business, and it has contributed to her success in New York City. “Here, all the big brands are owned by corporations. Our stores are owned only by Shaokao and me. We try to be in touch with the clients; that’s how we can remain in this retail industry,” she says.

When asked what she wants to bring to a client’s life, Niki smiles and pats the sofa she’s sitting on. “Furniture is an aspect of making a home a home. Enjoying the home without having to pay too much—I want to bring that to people.”