Fitting Everything in the Frame

So you've decided to add something to your "permanent collection" and frame it for posterity.

You take your treasure to the local frame shop, where they can assemble a handsome package that will become a conversation piece when hanging in the family room. Only problem is, your legs get wobbly when you look at the estimate.

It happened to me when I wanted to frame sports memorabilia, posters and autographed photos.

That's why I was intrigued when Scott and Terri Price offered to talk about their Fairfax County framing business, called Total Framing.

The Price's love for the framing business and their maniacal attention to costs creates what is known in the small business world as an "NLO," or "Nice Living for the Owner." They earn a six-figure income, have lots of time for family events and own a nice weekend farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley.

Total Framing didn't start as a frame store.

The Prices started with four crafts stores that they bought for $800,000 in 2004 from some Virginia entrepreneurs who had run them since 1968. Each store contained a small framing business, which threw off lots of cash.

It didn't take long for the Prices to find the "sweet spot" and jettison the crafts end of the business, which was declining for a number of reasons, including the rise of big box stores and changing demographics.

"The framing business took up one-sixteenth the space in the stores, but produced more than half the income," said Scott Price, 43, who had worked on the framing end of the business most of his life.

The move to the high-margin framing business was sealed in 2005 when the Price's landlord practically doubled the rent. They closed three stores, selling off inventory in a 90-day liquidation and paying suppliers cents on the dollar.

"We had 400 employees and took 25 people with us, and that was the worst thing I ever had to do," said Scott, who announced layoffs in group meetings at each store. "I explained it was a business decision and not a personal decision. Nobody blew up. I gave employees a week's pay if they stayed through the liquidation."

Total Framing officially opened for business in January 2006.