One of the striking factors that differentiates leaders from each other is their ability to influence. Often held in a negative connotation, having influence as a leader conveys one’s ability to drive people’s actions towards an aligned goal.
Powerful influence enables leaders to achieve effective results, as opposed to coercion. A high level of trust and a high level of competence accompanies one’s level of influence.
A person of influence is someone who people believe in and trust to guide them in the right direction in order to attain the desired results.
Eoin Harrington is an example of one such influential leader who believes that true leadership is not about control but about fostering an environment where everyone can thrive and bring forth their best ideas.
Harrington is the Founder and CEO of MINE, a company transforming the world of physical retail. Over the last few years, MINE has been quietly building a network of over 1200 physical furniture showrooms across the US, showcasing designer curated assortments of home furniture and furnishings. These showrooms are open 7 days a week for anyone looking to buy a piece of furniture or discover design inspiration. Rapid growth of this nature was made possible by partnering with the largest public home builders, transforming their model homes into shoppable experiences, and allowing visitors to purchase the products they see on MINE.
Spearheaded by Harrington, the former SVP of Innovation at Restoration Hardware, MINE is on a mission to make great interior design affordable and accessible to everyone.
Fittingly, Eoin Harrington features on the Cover of Exeleon’s Influential Business Leaders in America. In this Cover Feature, we look into his journey, how MINE is disrupting the traditional furniture retail industry, and his vision going forward.
A Seed Sown Early
Harrington has had an entrepreneurial mindset from a very early age. He recalls that his first business venture (back in Ireland) was a lawn mowing service: “When I was around 10 years old, I wanted to make some extra pocket money, so I went door to door with a gas-powered lawn mower offering to mow the lawns of neighbors’ homes.”
Considering it was a time-consuming task, Harrington convinced some of his friends to bring their family lawn mowers and join the effort.
Soon, he had gathered an entire crew of young, ambitious lawn mowers. “We made enough pocket money to get all the sweets and candy we wanted.”
He jokingly adds, “When I think back now, I can’t believe we were entrusted to handle machinery like that!”
This early experience sowed the seeds for his future ventures, instilling in him the principles of leadership, leading by example and working together to achieve more.
The Realization
During his time working at Restoration Hardware, Harrington realized two things about the furniture retail industry.
First, furniture is a highly considered purchase (a complex buying decision with a high degree of financial and/or emotional risk) that people prefer to buy in-person. He explains, “Having the chance to see, touch, and experience products in a real-life setting is critical to making a good decision.”
Second, furnishing an entire room or home can be extremely overwhelming. There are many important measures to take both literally and figuratively. Without guidance on how to create a cohesive and curated look, it can be challenging to design a space that truly reflects one’s personal style and supports the life you want to live.
Enter MINE
Harrington partnered with industry leaders like Stephane Nguyen, Sandra Stangl, and Bennett Hauser to create the MINE platform. A one-of-a-kind platform that offers the tangible benefits of physical stores without the associated overhead costs. “We wanted to offer a means to have all the benefits of a physical store network without the overhead costs of buildout, rent, inventory, personnel, and marketing,” he explains.
By partnering with major home builders and turning their model homes into furniture showrooms, MINE was able to avoid these costs and pass the savings on to the customers – in the form of exceptional products and high-touch services to help them create a beautiful home.
Today, MINE is disrupting the traditional furniture retail industry by working with multiple furniture vendors and home builders across the US.
Most importantly, Harrington emphasizes that having a broad range of styles and price points is key to resonating with a diverse base of customers. “In some communities, we have up to 16 model homes that will range from Contemporary and Classic to Mid Century Modern and Scandinavian.”
Steering the Market
At the heart of any disruption, there lies a delicate challenge – getting the market to embrace and adopt new behaviors.
Harrington mentions, “We have to inform customers that there are furniture showrooms in their neighborhood that are open 7 days a week and ready to support their furniture and design needs.”
MINE has created one of the most convenient ways to discover design inspiration and acquire home furnishing products. However, as with any new business that is predicated on a new consumer behavior, “we continually challenge ourselves to find the most cost effective and efficient ways to get the message out there.” Nevertheless, with a remarkable Net Promoter Score of 90/100, MINE’s performance highlights the successful adoption and satisfaction among customers upon discovery.
Taking a page out of his book, he advises leaders and entrepreneurs to believe in their vision. “Every industry, no matter how traditional, has room for innovation. Disrupting a long-standing system requires resilience, agility, and a strong commitment to bring your vision to stakeholders and potential partners with clarity, passion, and conviction.”
Being Connected
Talking about his day-to-day role at the company, Harrington asserts “I try to remain as connected as possible to the foundational elements of our operation.”
According to him, the farther away you are from your customers, the more you will be out of touch with the business. On a daily basis, he is also heavily involved in strategic decision making, key partnership developments, and protecting the integrity of the company’s vision.
For Harrington, being an influential leader narrows down to leading by example, understanding the importance of empathy, and empowering the team. As the CEO of MINE, he has integrated these principles by ensuring open communication, providing ample opportunities for growth, and consistently challenging both himself and his team to push the boundaries.
Empowering Designers
Going forward, MINE is building the world’s largest network of “Real-Life Retail Showrooms” that will make the discovery of furniture far easier, cost-effective, and seamless than it is today.
Moreover, in a bid to expand its network of showrooms at rapid scale, MINE will extend its proprietary technology to designers across the U.S., turning suitable projects into shoppable experiences, enabling those designers to grow their brand, win more business and generate additional revenue for both them and their clients.
Harrington concludes, “Designers will have access to the entire technology platform we have built to run their business including a live multi-vendor product marketplace, project management tools, smart floor plans, shopping lists, and dynamic mood-boards, enabling design projects to be completed in ⅓ the time.
