Furniture flipping? DFW woman uses social media to carve out thriving business.

Ever watch a TV show about flipping houses and thought, “I can do that.” Then, you look at your finances and reconsider.

To those folks, Maggie McGaugh says don’t despair. You can flip furniture instead.

“While house flipping is all the rage on HGTV, it’s not possible for most people, especially in this market. Furniture flipping is the same concept. You purchase (or find) something for free/cheap, fix it up to increase its value, then resell to make a profit,” she said. “It’s much more manageable and affordable than flipping homes.”

In fact, McGaugh, who lives in the Fort Worth area, found it so much more manageable she turned it into her livelihood. She started her own business, Furniture Flips and DIY Tutorials.

“While I have definitely heard of flipping furniture before, I never considered myself creative — or skilled — enough to do it myself,” McGaugh said. “After having my son last January (in 2020) I found myself bored and frustrated that I couldn’t contribute to our income. So, I loaded up the car and found a breadbox at a thrift store. I brought it home and flipped it.

“It wasn’t as easy as I thought, but I figured it out and was hooked. A few days later, I saw a dresser on the side of the road. The rest is history.”

As she began doing more and more projects, she shared them with followers on social media. They were all highly interested and asked for more, McGaugh said.

So much more, in fact, that she is approaching a million followers on social media. She has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram and more than 625,000 on TikTok. She also got a boost when she was featured on “The Today Show,” “BuzzFeed” and “DailyMail.”

Her appearance on “The Today Show” was a result of her social media prominence. She believes the recording and presentation went well, having still not watched it.

“A producer saw one of my viral videos and reached out in December. I livestreamed a furniture flip from my garage in April.”

Perfect match in Texas

Social media is also what brought her to Fort Worth from South Carolina — and it introduced her to her husband, with fate stepping in.

“Believe it or not, I met my husband when I accidentally sent him — a stranger — a Snapchat,” she said. “We became best friends, fell in love, got engaged, and I moved here to be with him when we got married.

Of course, it only makes sense then that her business is completely online.

“That’s the amazing part about what I do, it’s doable for anyone,” she said.

As for a typical furniture flip, she doesn’t really have one, McGaugh said. She flips whatever she can find. However, most are dressers and buffets.

“Most projects are as simple as cleaning, sanding, cleaning, priming, painting, and sealing,” she said.

“Most of the furniture I flip was saved from the side of the road. So, even if it’s real wood, it was headed to the landfill. I always treat all furniture for bugs, just in case.”

Why would someone choose flipping furniture over buying something new? Well, it’s less expensive, for one thing, she said, but she also noted there is a special satisfaction in bringing something back to life that was thought to no longer be of use. There’s also the environment to think about.

“A mind-boggling amount of furniture goes to the landfill every year. Flipping furniture gives it a new life, saves the environment, and feels like a treasure hunt,” she said. “Why spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on something new, when odds are the quality isn’t as good as old furniture?”

Her tutorials are designed to teach people to do what she has become an expert at. After all, being a one-woman show, she can’t flip everyone’s furniture.

“My tutorials and e-course teach people to find, flip, and resell furniture. Some tutorials teach easy home projects, such as painting your patio, kitchen cabinets, installing wallpaper, etc.,” she said.

McGaugh has help with marketing and managing her website. Otherwise, it’s all her.

“I work during my son’s nap-time and occasionally grab my husband to help me do heavy lifting,” she said.

This story was originally published May 19, 2021 at 6:00 AM.