Know anything about giant mirrors or reception desks?
 

My wife and I are in the middle of opening a private fitness facility in Orange County, CA (Aliso Viejo). I have been given the task of buying the mirrors and a receptionist desk.

The mirrors are about 8 feet high and we need around 40 to 50 feet of wall covered. We know of a gym that is moving and can get their mirrors but it obviously involves taking themdown and transporting 15 miles.

I have shopped around for the desks and found that the prices can be totally rediculous, as in $5000 for something made out of IKEA laminated particle board! the desk is an L shape with a glass top (approximately 7 feet by 7 feet).

Any advice regarding the mirrors or desk is really appreciated! If anyone knows of a good office furniture or glass place in SoCal would be great.

Well, I am not an expert but I have worked in corporate real estate for the last 10yrs... If it were me in this day and age I would have the mirrors installed by a glass company that uses some type of safety glass for liability reasons..... If I was needing a desk and needed it to look professional but be very sturdy, I would start by framing my own out of 2x4's top it with granite and cover the sides/fronts with beaded plywood that could be stained or painted to match the rest of the facility. you could add a couple drawers and some metal filing cabinets under the granite top....... I know first hand the cost of cubicles and other type of "Business" furniture and the prices are outragous... I am sure somebody may be able to send you off in a better direction, but this is just what I would do if I were in your situation.....

If you were installing them on the ceiling, I could help you out...

Our office does the interiors for a major U.S. health club chain - I'll get some of the information on the vendors they use (I don't deal specifically with that client, but I can ask).

For the desk, just call a cabinet shop. I'm sure they could come in far under $5k, with better quality than something off the shelf from IKEA. Plus, you can match stains with the rest of your trim (if any), and have total flexibility regarding top material and color.

+1 on the cabinet shop. Laminated counter material is relatively cheap. I paid $1200 for my reception desk and coffee area countertop+ cabinet.

You might be able to find a desk that will work at a public auction from some other closed business. There's zillions of auctions on the weekends.

If you move the mirrors on your own DO NOT lay them flat in the bed of a truck or anything. The vibrations from the road will shatter mirrors and glass. That is why you see windsheilds and windows being transported in those racks that keep them up and down instead of laying flat.

I'd lend you a hand moving them but I am just a few miles away. Sorry.

be aware that how the mirror was installed will determine the chance of them breaking when you remove them, if they are all glued in place flat to the wall you may be better off hiring someone who has removed/moved them before (glass shop), we removed some very large pieces at our old shop, about 14 iirc and more than half cracked when they were pulled off the wall......it takes a certain skill to do it imo.

+1 on the cabinet shop

For the receptionist desk, look in the yellow pages under used office furniture then just call and tell them what you are looking for. Our company saved a LOT of money and usually got better quality stuff over the years by buying used office furniture.

I've been a fan of Craig'sList lately--check it out for a desk--maybe even mirrors but not likely.

Thanks for all of the advice guys. We have some specific parameters to work with but I think I might be able to find something on Craigslist.

The lobby for the building is shared between our business and the building owner's business upstairs. Part of our lease agreement is that we will provide a receptionist desk and a receptionist, it's desirable for us because it opens up valuable floor space. Because of this arrangement we have some specific requirements placed on the desk color, type, etc..

I'm personally not too excited about trying to move giant mirrors, I have visions of mirror glass all over the freeway.

The office furniture retailers must run on the policy of OPM (Other People's Money) just like weddings. The people doing the buying are generally not spending their own money so the price doesn't matter much. I was absolutely shocked at the prices I saw at a local retailer, the cheapest desk was a floor model on sale at $3000. In order to get something better than IKEA particle board you need to spend at least $8000 at this store! We're talking about a 7 foot by 7 foot L-shaped desk here!

Hi, Jess-

Before opening my own business, I used to live in Modjeska Canyon and was a project manager for a large glass company in SoCal. If I still lived in SoCal I'd come over and help you. In fact I have a house for sale if you are interested www.fridaydevelopment.com :)

Regarding your mirrors, the sizes sound too large for anybody who's inexperienced to move. Just one mistake and you'll have a very, very large gash in your leg or arm.

Regarding getting the mirrors from the other gym. You may not be able to get them off the wall due to mirror mastic and I'd be scared to have one break while I was doing it.

Since you are installing the mirrors for a business, I'd also suggest you do it per code as you'll be in a bad spot if you have a mirror come off the wall when somebody hits it while working out.

Just re-read my message and it sounds pretty negative (sorry about that) I just don't want you to get hurt.

A good company down south would be Heinaman Contract Glazing @ 949.587.0266. If the job is too small for them ask for a referal to another shop.

good luck

Dale

Dale-

Thank you very much for the advice on the mirrors. I didn't pick up a negative tone and I really appreciate the advice from someone experienced in this area. I completely agree that the mirrors absolutely need to be secure on the wall. I will give Heinaman a call, as far as I can remember the mirrors are about 9 feet tall and we need 25 linear feet. Pretty big mirrors!

We are also looking at glass movable walls for a different area and those run $2200 per 2' x 9' panel!

Regarding the desk I found a place (ABC Furniture) directly across the street from the first shop I visited. Get this....ABC Furniture had the exact same desk as the first place and it was $2K dollars. That is literally $2500 less than across the street! They are even made by the same manufacturer.

I guess people who do the buying don't really bother to check on prices.

I found a local granite company that does all the high end condos around. They order all of their countertops pre-made from China and some of them get cracked in transport. I looked through the crates of broken countertops and found a color that will work very well for our desk. They will be making a granite countertop for the desk and granite inlays for the front of the desk to really make it look nice at a very reasonable cost to us. The backsplashes are 4" which will fit perfectly in the inset decorative areas at the front of the desk. I just hope we never have to move the thing because I'll end up with a hernia.

Oh and even though we aren't open yet you guys can check out the website.

Bonne Vie Fitness

Hey, Jess-

A lot of times stone will break along the grain during the installation process. Due to this potential problem, have the stone company do the install. Then if the stone breaks it is their problem.;)

good luck,

dale

Dale-

Oh yeah, I am definately having them do the install. The facility has marble floors and I could just see a giant piece of granite break off just to bust up the expensive marble....I'd be sleeping on the couch for a while if that happened.

cool