“Local, original art will be a key design feature of Lafayette Flats.”
This was one of our very first thoughts when we began dreaming up plans for Lafayette Flats Boutique Vacation Rentals. We want to have lots of locally created art in the space because we both love art, and we want visitors to take away a view of West Virginia that is different from the stereotypes.
When we began budgeting, however, we found that our desire might not be so readily attainable – at least at first. Oh, don’t worry, there will be art even if we have to borrow from our home, but we’ve come up with a plan for making sure that there will be a continual and plentiful supply of fresh art adorning the walls of Lafayette Flats.
We considered – briefly – using the space as a gallery of sorts, where local artists could display works that guests could purchase. We quickly came to the realization that this would be too risky and hard to manage. Developing a purchasing system would be problematic since we live an hour away and then we’d have to figure out a way to procure new pieces to replace the old ones. And since Lafayette Flats is meant to be “a home away from home”, we really weren’t keen on the idea of having labels and prices on the art. All things considered, we decided that we’d rather have a “permanent collection.”
A part of our business plan is to have a building maintenance fund. This reserve will be funded by designating a percentage of rental fees until it has reached a balance that will ensure that a sudden building problem can be dealt with promptly. One day, while Amy was stressing over having enough art for each flat, she had a brilliant idea: “Why not also create an ‘Art Fund’ that will be used exclusively for buying new art?”
So now, as an addendum to our business plan, Lafayette Flats will dedicate a portion of vacation rental income to a fund that will be used to buy local art each year. We are really excited about this plan!
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