Stacey Lancaster Blazes New Trails for Women Doing Business in China

March 18, 2011 0 Comments

CENTRAL — For Central’s 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year, Stacey Lancaster, business trips to China have become a routine affair. In her 10 years in the home interior business, Stacey has designed more than 2,000 products. She contracts with factories around the world to manufacture the products she designs and ship them back to the United States.

She and her husband, Charlie, own Lancaster House in Central, which is popular for their one-weekend-a-month retail sales. But what most people in Central probably don’t know is that Stacey’s retail sales are just a small percentage of her business. The vast majority is wholesale to gift and home interior stores throughout the South.

The products on display at Lancaster once a month are used as a wholesale showroom the rest of the month, which other retailers visit to see Stacey’s latest product designs and place their orders.

Stacey Lancaster’s business career began very humbly and almost by accident. In 1999, she was just hoping to make a little extra money. “In the spring of 1999, my husband Charlie came home with a load of old cypress fencing that the plant was discarding. He thought it might make a great fence. However, I had other ideas!”

“My dad and I began making birdhouses and trellises. Soon, my friends and relatives all wanted one. I thought we might have something here! I made a truckload of birdhouses using recycled door knobs and iron fleur de lis and brought them to Lezard Rouge in Baton Rouge. I sold the whole truckload! Thus began our new business!”

“Within a year, I began making designs in ornamental iron with the help of my friend David Heil. He was great at helping me design templates to mass produce my designs. I began setting up at craft shows and bringing my collections to shops in Louisiana and Mississippi. Before long, I was making trips to Mexico and adding pottery and garden ironwork to my designs. I began my warehouse sales using the mailing lists I had collected from the shows.”

“By 2003, I was making trips to China and India and added a line of home decor. Although it was not very profitable the first year, I was determined to make it work. Each month, my goal is to have new items to preview so that customers will stay excited! My warehouse sales grew too large for our 2,000-square-foot building. So in 2004, we rented a warehouse on Sullivan Road. We thought we could never fill 10,000 square feet. But by 2006, we were out of room again. We signed a lease on what was formerly known as the TG&Y, on the corner of Hooper and Sullivan Road. Now we had an additional 12,000 square feet and an air conditioned facility! This move made it possible to have our wholesale and retail in one location.”

Every time Lancaster House opens its doors to the public in Central, the parking lot at the Central Shopping Center, Hooper at Sullivan, is packed. Lines at the cash register can be 30 or 40 customers deep. It’s a sight to see — kind of like Wal-Mart on steroids.

This week, eight containers arrived at Lancaster House packed with goods from China, the store’s largest shipment ever. Keeping the lines of supply flowing takes a lot of work on the manufacturing side, which is why Stacey Lancaster has to spend a lot of time traveling to China.

One thing she sees very little of in China is American businessmen and far fewer American businesswomen. “It’s really rare to see another woman over there,” she said. But she had a surprise not long ago. While visiting one of her factories in China, an American woman came up and introduced herself. After visiting awhile, Stacey asked the lady if she had a store in the United States. The lady, Barbara Green, said she did, actually about 400 stores. Barbara and her husband David Green are the founders of Hobby Lobby, and they open a new store every two weeks.

Stacey has done a lot of business in India but said the Chinese manufacturers are generally easier to work with and more reliable.

Her busband Charlie and mother MaryAnn Blue have travelled to China with Stacey, and Stacey plans to take her nephews with her on a trip soon.

Stacey is excited about a new alliance she has formed with artist Joycelyn Boudreaux of Houma. The result will be new products and new designs, mostly with Louisiana themes, such as pelicans, crabs and of course the fleur de lis.

Stacey said she attributes the success of Lancaster House to “the unconditional support that I have received from my family and friends. At an early age, my parents taught us that we could do whatever we put our minds to. I was lucky enough to have a husband who believes in me and is supportive of my ventures. I have been blessed to have my mom, dad, husband, along with my nieces and nephews, aunts, and best friends working with me. I am looking forward to see what our next new venture will be!”

By Woody Jenkins, editor, Central City News