Sustainable Office Solutions prepares to close its doors

DeWITT — Sustainable Office Solutions, LLC — a 16-year-old small business that sells and rents out new and pre-owned office furniture — is getting ready to close. Owner Andy Picco believes he will be ready to end operations in mid-December. Until then, he’s working to liquidate the firm’s remaining merchandise. Sustainable Office Solutions is located at 3955 Eastbourne Drive, off New Court Ave. in the town of DeWitt. It has operated in that location since 2022. In a Nov. 26 interview with CNYBJ, Picco cited a change in the marketplace and financial reasons for closing the business. “The market has changed completely here in Syracuse. In the furniture industry, what most people don’t realize is [the aftermath of] COVID is killing us,” says Picco. “Think about how many people are working from home that used to work in an office. Think about how much office space is wide open with nobody moving in. And lastly, what happened to all that furniture they had? It flooded the market … Nobody’s expanding. No one’s moving into [available] space, [and] people are still working from home. So, that killed us.” Picco had hoped to hand the business over to one of his sons, but neither was interested. He has a nephew who expressed interest but is now dealing with a health problem. Another potential buyer showed initial interest, but in the end, decided against it.   “That’s why we’re closing. It’s financial and [there’s] no one to run the company,” says Picco. Picco says he’s contacted a lot of furniture companies about his remaining merchandise, but very few are in the used-furniture business. “No one’s really interested in my product … so that’s why I can’t sell it to them,” he adds. So, he’s alerting people he knows, along with his customers, and the general public about the remaining office furniture that’s available. He plans to notify IMS (International Monetary System) Barter and its members. Picco would also like to donate some of his remaining merchandise to interested nonprofit organizations. “Instead of it going to a dump, or being turned into metal, I’d rather give it to nonprofits, and I have a lot of nice stuff for them,” he stresses. Remaining products include more than 300 chairs, file cabinets, and desks. Besides Picco, Sustainable Office Solutions currently has two part-time employees, both of whom are family members. He’s been leasing his Eastbourne Drive facility, and the lease is now complete. Picco, age 69, says he’s looking forward to getting away from day-to-day business activities. “I’m ready to enjoy life with my wife, so it’s not a bad thing that I’m closing,” he says.

Company history, owner advice

Sustainable Office Solutions launched on Nov. 1. 2009 at 1811 Le Moyne Ave. in the town of Salina, eventually moving in the same town to 900 Old Liverpool Road. The operations at the Old Liverpool Road location also included warehouse space in the former Will & Baumer candle factory at 100 Buckley Road, also in the town of Salina. Picco says his business lacked a revenue-in-force (RIF) base, or ongoing revenue from a given client. He went on to explain that office furniture generally lasts 15 years, so once the product is sold, his business isn’t generating any more revenue from that client for several years. Picco recommends to anyone that wants to start a business that they make sure to have an RIF base, and that they know their market. “Make sure the products are always being consumed, so you have a steady market,” he notes.

Company legacy

Picco is referring future customers to Just the Right Stuff, which his former employer Hurbson WorkPlace Furnishings, is now part of following a merger. Just the Right Stuff is located at 103 Twin Oaks Drive in the town of DeWitt — situated between Carrier and Military Circles. When asked if he believes he accomplished what he wanted to with Sustainable Office Solutions, Picco immediately replies, “No.” “I did the best I could. If the market would’ve evolved like it was supposed to … go from a bleeding edge to a cutting edge where everybody had to have it … I would’ve been in great shape,” he says, noting he was one of only two local dealers focusing on used office furniture. “The market didn’t evolve.” Despite that, Picco says he is satisfied with how Sustainable Office Solutions conducted business, specifically how it treated its customers and vice versa. “In 16 years, we’ve never been stiffed for one penny. Every customer we’re ever done business with … have paid us what we asked. I never had to sue one person. … I always made sure we gave the customers more than they expected,” he says. Picco also recalls when he started a membership group called Sustainable Upstate Network, which focused on and had interest in sustainability. “We had non-competing members. We could be referring [to] each other all the time and make it easy for the customer to really embrace sustainability … Save energy, insulation, lighting,” he says. It’s still in operation and now calls itself Sustainable Syracuse, Picco notes.