Sector guide · Window furnishings & interiors
What buyers pull apart first in a window furnishings sale
Buyers in this space are trade buyers expanding territory or product range, franchise and national groups acquiring local operators, and owner operators buying themselves a strong local brand.
Nothing on this page is legal, financial or taxation advice. Free confidential appraisal, no cost and no obligation. Last updated 15 September 2026.
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Buyers in this space are trade buyers expanding territory or product range, franchise and national groups acquiring local operators, and owner operators buying themselves a strong local brand. All of them run the same ruler over the machine. Know these numbers cold before they ask.
The due diligence dashboard
| What a buyer asks for | What it has to show |
|---|---|
| Lead volume and source mix | Where the enquiries actually come from: digital, showroom walk ins, builder and designer referrals, repeat and word of mouth. A lead engine that runs on paid and organic channels the business owns is worth far more than one that runs on the owner's personal reputation. |
| Cost per lead and quote conversion rate | The two numbers that prove the machine works. An owner who knows their conversion rate by lead source and consultant changes the tone of due diligence in one meeting. |
| Average job value and margin by product line | Shutters, blinds, curtains, cabinetry and flooring carry very different margins and very different install costs. Buyers want the split, not one blended number, and they will find the lines you sell at a loss for turnover. |
| The remake and error rate | The insider's number. In custom product, every mismeasure and remake eats margin twice, once in product and once in the second install run. A low, tracked remake rate is proof of process quality that buyers from inside the industry respect immediately. |
| The order book and production pipeline | Weeks of confirmed forward work, deposits held, and lead times. A buyer stepping into a full board is buying momentum, not hope. |
| Trade versus retail revenue split | Builder accounts, commercial fitout work and designer relationships give recurring B2B volume that smooths the retail cycle. Concentration in one builder, though, gets priced as risk like any other concentration. |
| Supplier terms and dependencies | Fabric houses, component suppliers, board and hardware suppliers, offshore makers. Written terms, realistic lead times and a second source on critical inputs all reduce the risk a buyer prices. |
| Warranty claims history | The tail every custom business carries. A documented process and a low, known claims rate turns a scary unknown into a routine line item in the contract. |
The remake rate is the insider number on this list. It is the one an experienced buyer asks for early and the one an unprepared seller has never measured.
Where QBCC licensing starts, and the gap nobody has closed
Individuals and companies must hold a QBCC licence to carry out or contract for building work valued over $3,300. That figure is the boundary for general building work in Queensland, and it is measured on the value of the work, not on the labour component. A single-room measure, supply and install job for blinds or curtains commonly falls below it. A whole-house shutter contract, an external awning contract or a custom joinery fitout will routinely exceed it.
Some work requires a licence at any value, and it is worth knowing the list because fitout businesses drift into parts of it. Drainage, plumbing and drainage, gas fitting, chemical termite management, fire protection, completed residential building inspection, building design, site classification and mechanical services all require a licence regardless of value. Hydraulic services design requires a licence above $1,100.
Some work sits outside QBCC licensing entirely. Asbestos removal and demolition fall under the WorkSafe Queensland jurisdiction. Home insulation, electrical work under the Electrical Safety Office, architectural services and owner-builder work under permit are outside it, as is work on your own property valued at $11,000 or less.
Here is the honest gap. The legal exclusions from building work sit in section 5(1) of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Regulation 2018, SL 2018 No. 138, by reference to Schedule 1. Whether Schedule 1 contains a specific exclusion for installing blinds, curtains, shutters, awnings or window furnishings could not be confirmed either way from the primary source when this page was researched in August 2026. Anyone who tells you the answer with certainty and without citing the schedule is guessing.
Deal with it the way a buyer would want you to. Write to the QBCC describing the work your business actually performs and its typical contract values, and ask for the licensing position in writing. A written answer from the regulator is a due diligence asset that adds value. A fifteen year old assumption is a warranty request waiting to happen. The enabling Act is the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991.
The QBCC licence classes that matter in this industry
| Licence class | Scope, as described by the QBCC |
|---|---|
| Cabinet making | “Install, refurbish, restore or repair kitchen, bathroom, laundry and other fitted cabinets and fitments on-site.” |
| Shopfitting (trade) | Set out, fabricate and assemble cabinets, showcases, wall units, counters and work stations. Shopfronts, commercial entries, bulkheads and component fittings. Also framing, internal linings, stairs, joinery components, door and window frames, finishes, glass cutting and installation, and aluminium fabrication. |
| Builder restricted to shopfitting | The builder-level class for shopfitting work. |
| Joinery | A separate trade class for joinery work. |
| Structural landscaping (trade) | Carports, decking, fences, gazebos, pergolas, retaining walls not requiring engineering certification, and ornamental structures. Prefabricated sheds up to 10 m², landscaping drainage, and paving and concrete for non-vehicular traffic. Relevant where an interiors business also builds external structures. |
There is no separate commercial fitout licence class in Queensland. Commercial fitout is licensed through shopfitting or through builder restricted to shopfitting. Section 7(2) of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Regulation 2018 permits a licensee to carry out incidental work of another class with a total value of $3,300 or less, which is the provision to read if your business holds one class and regularly performs a small amount of another. Class scopes are from the QBCC available licences pages, current as at August 2026.
Maximum deposits on Queensland domestic building contracts
| Contract type and threshold | Maximum deposit |
|---|---|
| Level 1 renovation, extension and repair, $3,301 to $19,999 | 10 per cent of the total contract price |
| Level 2 renovation, extension and repair, $20,000 and over | 5 per cent of the total contract price |
| Either level, where the value of off-site work exceeds 50 per cent of the contract price | 20 per cent of the total contract price |
A written contract is required for domestic building work priced over $3,300, and a contractor commits an offence by not using a compliant written contract. The homeowner has a cooling off period of 5 business days. The 20 per cent off-site rule is the provision that lets a custom shutter, curtain or joinery business fund fabrication before installation, and it depends on the off-site component genuinely exceeding half the contract price and on the contract being drafted to attract it. A buyer assessing working capital will want to know both whether your business relies on that rule and whether your contracts qualify for it. Source: QBCC, current as at August 2026.
Ask what it is worth
Free, in writing, and nobody finds out you asked. Tell me the trade and the suburb and I will do the rest.
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Find out what the machine is worth
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