Michael Zhao Of Homebody: Five Strategies I Used To Grow My Business To Reach Seven Figures In Revenue

Quality Craftsmanship: We pride ourselves on our unique, seamless modular sofa & recliner — products of exceptional craftsmanship. Every detail, from removable arms to adjustable headrests, showcases our commitment to lasting quality and innovative design. A Homebody will look and feel great for years to come.

As a part of my series called “Five Strategies I Used To Grow My Business To Reach Seven Figures In Revenue”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Michael Zhao.

Michael Zhao is the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Homebody — the modern, furniture startup. Having grown up in furniture factories, he was able to watch production lines and play with fabric swatches that would later inspire him to become a second generation furniture maker. In 2022, he launched Homebody with a mission to reimagine today’s home shopping experience with furnishings that are deliberately and meticulously designed to bring out the “homebody” in all of us.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in. Our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

As a second-generation furniture maker, I spent a lot of time in factories growing up. By studying and experiencing every step of the manufacturing process, I developed a deep understanding of the industry. Through this exposure at such an early age, I began dreaming of creating furniture that represents my taste, values, and style. The whole process of designing and producing furniture has always fascinated me, especially when it comes to couches — they are the heart of the home. With that, when establishing Homebody, I made it my goal to create the most seamless, modular reclining couch that anyone could envision in their home, no matter the size or space!

Can you share the most interesting or funniest story that happened to you since you began leading your company? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Launching Homebody in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic definitely made things interesting — lots of lessons learned. For instance, right before the official launch of the brand, I traveled to China to work on the supply chain. Unfortunately, due to pandemic restrictions, I was not allowed to leave the country and could not return to the U.S. for months.

On the heels of launching, I was challenged to pivot not only my business strategy but my leadership efforts as well. For instance, we had to develop new communication processes that brought everyone together, despite the many different time zones. It was an adjustment that ultimately encouraged me to trust my team’s expertise and direction on how to continue bringing Homebody to life from near and far away.

Do you have a book in your life that impacted you and inspired you to be an effective leader? Can you share a story?

John Doerr’s ‘Measure What Matters’ definitely helped influence my role as a leader. I am a product person, so creating the best product has always been my core objective. This book helped me look at the bigger picture — really capture the steps and thought processes one must take to set and achieve goals. It also helped me understand and evaluate all of the other business functions — especially critical for a tech DTC start up breaking into a competitive market. I have everyone on my team read this book!

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

We are always working on innovative new products that are timeless, unique, and of the highest quality. This winter, we’ll be launching an additional iteration of our best-selling sofa with a new pet-friendly fabric — Shell, a soft, neutral beige color meant to inspire gatherings and encourage everyone to relax. For a warm, inviting room with true resilience this Shell fabric is the answer! Both two and four legged friends are invited.

When developing products for the home, our goal is to help people make their lives easier and more comfortable. Launching Shell was really a response to our customers. We were considering new fabrics and the response to Shell was overwhelming. Everyone loved its soft light tones in a pet friendly fabric. They could envision it in their homes.

We want to help with every aspect of someone’s couch journey. For us, it might start with instant messaging or a custom consultation. However, that is just the beginning. We want to hear how their lives are evolving and how they need their couch to adjust also.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

My grandfather always encouraged me to be independent. He instilled this core value in my father as well. It was important for him to encourage this mindset from generation to generation, knowing how far hard work and determination can take you in life and business.

The moment where I really felt my grandfather’s energy, influence, and compassion, was when I decided to stay in the U.S. I had been living with a host family since I was 14 years old. My parents were worried about my decision to stay, but it was my grandfather’s encouragement that ultimately drove me to pursue my dreams in the U.S. and create my own path.

Let’s talk about what you are doing now, and how you achieved the success that you currently enjoy. Can you tell our readers about the business you’ve created?

In 2022, I officially launched Homebody, with my Co-founder Shuang Liang, in the hopes of establishing an elevated living room experience with furniture that enables a deeper level of comfort. Products that are just as attractive as they are easy to sink into.

Being second-generation furniture makers, we leveraged years of experience and industry knowledge to design quality furniture that helps create a new level of relaxation. Understanding that purchasing furniture takes time and thought, we prioritize quality over quantity and currently specialize in two core products — the Couch and Recliner. Since it is modular, you could start with a recliner and add a seat to make a couch; the options to expand and customize are endless. A few product-specific highlights include ergonomic edgeless designs, advanced reclining tech features, multiple layers of plush cushioning and luxurious eiderdown feathers.

And, our mission seems to be resonating, as Homebody expects to hit $10 million in sales by the end of 2023. We also just recently surpassed another milestone by achieving over 100k Instagram followers! This success ultimately stems from a multi-pronged approach including the ability to address every facet of our customer’s journey along the way.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Homebody’s specialty lies in our innovation and customer-centric approach. Our meticulous craftsmanship and modular designs enable the products to evolve with your life. The multiple sizes, configurations, and colorways give limitless options for customization. Created for the contemporary household, The Couch can fit into any space in a range of ways. Similarly, our award-winning Recliner (also offered in an assortment of colors and textures) only needs two inches of back clearance in order to fully recline at a 140°angle. A typical reclining chair needs at least 12 inches of space to reach its full extension. The options at Homebody are endless and this flexibility is at the heart of what sets us apart. We strive to offer a comfy solution that seamlessly integrates into the lifestyle of any modern home!

What was your vision when you started this business? What’s the WHY behind the work that you do?

Homebody was founded with the vision of establishing a newfound appreciation for the living room where comfort, relaxation, and happiness reach new heights — someplace where life’s anxieties and challenges disappear.

For me, enjoying life means no compromise! Drink spills and dirt happen — we felt it was important to create a product that can withstand all of life’s little headaches while still looking new. To inspire homebodies of the present and future, we’ve taken the traditional sofa and transformed it for the modern-day contemporary household

We’d love to explore the traits that help you achieve your success. What were the mindset obstacles that you had to overcome in order to reach the place of earning a million dollars? Can you tell us what you did to overcome them?

With any new endeavor, particularly in business, you must be realistic and accept that there will be many obstacles to overcome on your journey to success. For me it has been about developing a mindset of flexibility. When a challenge arises, I pause and focus on my goals. As long as I stay true to my objectives, I am always willing to pivot — find another way to make it happen. I ask myself, what needs to be true to achieve my goals. Then I brainstorm with my team on a solution.

What were the external obstacles that you had to overcome in reaching these milestones? And how specifically did you overcome them?

Our challenges are things that everyone encounters. If you optimize something, it always takes longer than you expected. However you know it is worth it. Our continued transparency and candor with customers have helped alleviate frustrations around specific shipment delays. For instance, last year we increased the extension of our recliner’s headrest to provide an even better product experience. Our customers appreciated this update and agreed that it was worth the wait.

Transparent customer communication has been the key to overcoming our obstacles. While the furniture business is known for its longer lead times, at Homebody we are adamant about setting a new standard. Our goal remains to deliver products within 3–4 weeks time and we expect this to be a reality come early 2024!

Was there ever a point where you wanted to give up on your journey to creating a million dollar business? How did you work through that panic point?

Honestly no! Having grown up in the furniture business I always knew that this industry was where I wanted and needed to be. I knew what I was getting myself into! What I can share in the hopes of helping a struggling newcomer is that entrepreneurship is filled with ups and downs. Keep your eye on the long-term vision of your business and stay determined in achieving your goals. Be willing to adapt at all times and open your mind to others ideas and advice.

Great! Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “Five Strategies I Used To Grow My Business To Reach Seven Figures In Revenue”.

• Quality Craftsmanship: We pride ourselves on our unique, seamless modular sofa & recliner — products of exceptional craftsmanship. Every detail, from removable arms to adjustable headrests, showcases our commitment to lasting quality and innovative design. A Homebody will look and feel great for years to come.
• Customer Experience: Our aim is to simplify the home shopping experience. This starts with seamless navigation when browsing the Homebody website or looking through our social media. While many customers are able to make a straightforward purchase, our product specialists are just a click away. These experts can provide live consultations and advise on the style, fabric, color and configuration to help create the most personalized setup that fits your needs.
• Creator Community: We recognize the enormous power of creators and strategically vet home / lifestyle influencers that have a genuine affinity for Homebody. They delight in the many options our modularity provides and share in our excitement of the latest product offerings. Our brand embodies a life-friendly approach, and with that we always aim to give creators the freedom to inspire their followers through the custom content they create. While the influence varies, this approach has worked for us as a notable 13% of all sales can be directly tied to creator posts.
• Path to Purchase: We understand that purchasing a couch is a thoughtful decision and an investment item for many people. As a direct-to-consumer brand with an average order value of $6K, we offer multiple touchpoints to bolster customer confidence. Reviews, creator content, interior designers, email newsletters, and digital advertising provide diverse perspectives and data to help customers make the most informed choices.
• Test and Learn: At Homebody, we’re always experimenting with new tools to enhance the customer experience and broaden our exposure. We evaluate against predefined goals and embrace unexpected insights to constantly evolve and optimize our approach.

We are sure that you are not done. What comes next? What’s your next big goal and why? What plan have you put in place to achieve it? Why is it a stretch for you? What will achieving it represent for you and for others?

My ongoing goal for Homebody is to continue enhancing the reclining experience which goes beyond just designing comfortable seating. It’s about creating a space where families can connect, share stories, and strengthen their relationships. Homebody is dedicated to bringing joy and inclusion to the lives of our customers. When people think of recliners, we want them to immediately associate it with the comfort, innovation, and the inclusivity that Homebody offers.

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I’d love to inspire people to have open and respectful dialogues that promote the exchange of various opinions. Creating a safe space for discussions will allow more people to express themselves with an open mind and without fear of judgment. In order to continue to evolve as a society we need to consider alternate viewpoints!

We are very blessed that very prominent leaders read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)

John Doerr — one of Silicon Valley’s most famous Venture Capitalists who continues to inspire me each and every day.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us and our readers. We know that it will make a tremendous difference and impact thousands of lives. We are excited to connect further and we wish you so much joy in your next success.