FAQs

General Questions

What’s this about?

SideDoor is a behind-the-scenes service for independent interior designers, e-designers, stagers, and home influencers. We built proprietary tools that allow you to share your favorite products directly with clients and to make your website and social media pages shoppable. We take the critical, painstaking back-end work off your plate so you can focus on your business. Think of us as a digital multi-line showroom that has all of your favorite brands. We let you curate products from top brands into collections for your clients. Your curated collections become shoppable with a private link that you can share or embed onto your website. Your clients and followers can now purchase items you source directly from you. We handle all of the coordination and behind-the-scenes logistics, and deliver the product directly to your client. After the items have been successfully delivered to the buyer, we deposit the 'commission' directly into your checking account through Stripe Connect. The money you make is the difference between the Vendor’s Designer Net Price (Trade Price) and the price the customer pays for it (minimum IMAP or above). We build the price of the freight into the item, which is paid for by the customer.

Why did you build this?

Interior designers specify 77 billion dollars worth of product annually, but because our industry is so fragmented, independent designers have no way to leverage their power. The lack of transparency in the industry is stifling, creates confusion, and ultimately hurts the value and artful craft of interior design. We can't solve all of these problems in one go, but by leveraging the value of SideDoor’s purchasing, we can hopefully shift some of the power back to the only group that can drive the industry forward—professional, independent interior designers. With our founders’ 25-plus years of experience running businesses in the interior design, manufacturing and home furnishings industries, we understand the considerable challenges faced by designers. We believe we're stronger together. Our tools and services help interior designers increase their margins and compete without being forced to give up their independence.

How do I join?

First you must register by clicking 'Sign Up' above. If minimum criteria are met and you are accepted, you can begin using our services immediately.

Membership

What are the requirements?

SideDoor is only for professional members of the design trade. To use our tool, you must have an active resale certificate on file with us or show some other form of proof of your trade standing in addition to other founding document(s) for your design business. Please reach out to our Customer Success team (info@onsidedoor.com) if you do not currently hold an active resale certificate to determine which documents you will need to submit in order for us to approve your SideDoor account. We reserve the right to discontinue our services to any person who violates our terms and conditions, misuses our service, or mistreats our staff.

What is the best way to communicate with you?

For designers, mail is currently the fastest and most effective way to communicate; you can reach us at info@onsidedoor.com. We also have a chat function in our tool. For vendors looking to contact SideDoor, please fill out the contact form found here: https://makemorewithsidedoor.typeform.com/to/CTOqDYln

Operations

Are there any minimums I have to meet when I or my clients place an order?

Nope. There are no minimums on any of the products available on SideDoor. You, your clients, and followers can place orders of nearly any size using the shoppable links.

Can I buy from some of your vendors below Designer Net?

Not on our account. We will not allow embedding, nor coordinate the purchasing or handle the fulfillment for those. You will have to do so outside of SideDoor’s services, using your current process or old way of operating.

Can I get a quote prior to placing an order?

There’s no need. Prices shown in our digital library are for “as shown” products and set by the brand. We do not manipulate anyone’s pricing. If you want to customize or modify something that would require a new price quote, then you will need to contact your representative or approach the showroom or brand directly.

Can I get samples?

Yes, some of our partnered brands provide samples. Issuing samples is at the discretion of each independent trade brand partner. For more information, please contact our Customer Success team through the chat below or by contacting us at: info@onsidedoor.com.

Can I show product from any of your vendors?

Yes. Any product you see shown in our digital database is available for you to share with a shoppable link and embed on your website.

Do I have to pay taxes on anything that sells through SideDoor?

No. We handle the taxes and file them with all appropriate county, state, and federal agencies. SideDoor will calculate and remit the sales tax burden for items that sell through our tool. If you are ordering for yourself or for a client who you’re invoicing separately, you will be responsible for charging sales tax where appropriate. You will receive commission income from SideDoor when orders are placed through your shoppable links and product embeds on your website. This will be a GROSS payment to you as an independent contractor. This is considered commission income and no taxes are withheld from us. You are responsible for remitting the appropriate taxes due on this income.

Is there a limit to the number of products I can show?

No. You can show as many as you like. However, please remember that clients are coming to you for curation and to help navigate the countless choices they find online. Less — but better — is what they are looking for, and overwhelming visitors with choice will be counter-productive.

What about custom product?

Right now, our service is for a vendor's AS SHOWN products only. Customization tools will be rolled out in a later version of SideDoor.

Do I need to submit a PO to SideDoor or to the Vendor?

No. You don't have to do any purchase orders with SideDoor. We take this off your plate entirely. When things sell on your page or shoppable link, we handle all of the administrative tasks. Once the order has been delivered you will get a payment from us representing the difference between the Designer Net price and the price it sold for (minus the freight/tax).

Do you handle correspondence with clients prior to purchase?

No. These are your customers/clients/followers. The customer doesn't know who we are and we don't get involved until after they hit the buy now button. We communicate directly with the client only about details regarding placed and paid for orders.

I already have an account with some of your vendors. Can I still order directly through them?

Of course. But you will need to use your own systems, and won’t be able to show this product on your website or use our shoppable links unless you order it from us.

What if I want to show products from a vendor not on your list?

There are thousands of vendors in the U.S. and tens of thousands across the globe. To start, we’ve negotiated deals with 200+ of the top vendors in our industry, making a commitment to support them and to train our staff about their requirements. We’ve decided to only focus on high-end brands that were most requested by our members. We can only help you with orders from our preferred vendors. If you would like to suggest vendors for us to add, please fill out our vendor request form, found here: https://makemorewithsidedoor.typeform.com/to/U4GeCd5Z. If you’d like to order something from a vendor not on our list, you would do that directly with them or through whichever trade-only showroom they’ve partnered with in your area.

Does this integrate with my Project Management Software or Quickbooks?

No. At this time, SideDoor does not integrate with your Project Management software. However, our links can be pasted anywhere, and since you are not issuing any POs, handling any inventory, etc; the only entry you will need to make is adding your commission income as a deposit into your general ledger.

How can I use this to sell to my social media followers?

Each collection gets its own unique URL that you can use to share with your followers. From there, your followers can view each product in the collection, purchase specific items from the collection, or purchase the collection outright.

What if I don't have a website?

No worries! If you are in the process of building a site, you can still use SideDoor's shoppable links feature to share your collections with your design clients and followers.

Shipping

Do you mark up freight, shipping, or handling?

No, we use our purchasing power to negotiate the best rates possible from a network of white-glove, LTL, and common carriers. This is the best way to compete with the large e-commerce sites that are targeting customers directly.

Do you mark up product above the vendors’ Designer Price?

No. Pricing is based on the the brand or vendor's Designer Net and established MAP policies. We do not inflate prices to fabricate discount levels like some other online retailers or trade showrooms.

What happens if an order arrives damaged?

SideDoor handles all damage claims, however, we need to know about the issue as soon as possible. Items shipped to your receiver of choice must be inspected upon delivery for us to make a claim with the shipper or manufacturer. We’re here to arrange repair or replacement of the item as required if it is damaged in transit. Please note that damage claims must be reported to SideDoor within 48 hours following delivery of an item.

How are damages in transit handled?

Since we are the Vendor of Record and are paying the freight company or vendor for freight, we handle this for you. You do not need to be involved in freight or damage disputes.

How are returns handled?

All sales through SideDoor are final. If an item arrives damaged, please let a SideDoor team member know and SideDoor will either send a repairperson to repair the damaged item or send a replacement.

What if my client isn't ready for the delivery?

We can have the order re-routed to a third party of your choice. We strongly recommend sending large items to professional receivers and have a list we can provide. Some freight companies will charge for any re-routing or cross-docking fees that occur if the original “ship to” address changes after the product has shipped. We will coordinate and negotiate this with the customer and carrier so you don't need to be involved.

The Money

How do I make money?

You make the difference between the Designer Net and the price at which it sells to your customers. The price you can list online must be above the MAP (minimum advertised price) or IMAP (internet minimum advertised price), and our system will not allow for any pricing below these levels. These are set by the brand and are non-negotiable.

How does SideDoor make money?

We place all orders at the wholesale/stocking dealer price. We make the difference between the wholesale/stocking dealer price and the designer price. With this margin, we can pay for credit card processing fees, overhead and customer support, and coordinate the drop shipment or fulfillment of the order with the vendor.

How does the commission payment work?

When you join, you will be prompted to set up a free account with Stripe, which will be connected to your bank account. This allows us to deposit your commission. Your payment will be directly deposited into your Stripe account once the order has been successfully delivered in full to the end-user.

Who pays the credit card processing fee?

We do. You are not charged any credit card processing fees for items in your collections on SideDoor.

Will I receive a 1099 from SideDoor?

We are required to provide 1099s to you if you earn more than $600 in commission income, which will be delivered to you by Stripe, our payment processor. If you earn less than $600, you will not receive a 1099.