On June 22, The Shade Store and Business of Home joined with local designers at The Shade Store’s new showroom in Leawood, a suburb of Kansas City, for breakfast, networking and a lively panel discussion. Moderated by BOH editor in chief Kaitlin Petersen, the talk featured local designers Katy Cassaw and Kate Benson of Nest Interiors and Annie Anderson, who shared their insights on how they have built and now run their businesses. Following the lively conversation, guests browsed The Shade Store’s showroom and explored the wide range of swatches and window treatment styles on offer.
“In so many ways, Katy and Kat at Nest have a business that works very differently from Annie’s,” said Petersen. “Those differences proved to be the heart of this conversation—proof that no matter how you structure your firm, vet your clients or organize your workflow, there’s so much to be gained from talking about your business and learning from your peers.
“It’s such an honor to host this series with The Shade Store, which puts so much care into its relationships with and offerings for the design community,” she continued. “Designers who attended were able to make new connections with industry peers, gain a fresh perspective on their business and experience a new showroom that has a suite of services designed to ease their stress and take work off their plate. What could be better than that?”
“We had a great time on this panel talking about business processes and how our company has evolved and grown over the years,” said Benson. “Owning a business in general is such hard work, and owning one in a creative industry like ours is a wild ride! Between learning how to navigate different client personalities, managing multiple projects and trying to remain creative, there is so much we could discuss. No one can relate to our crazy lives better than other designers, and we love to talk shop and compare notes with other creatives in our industry. We’re all in this together and we need one another for support and inspiration—and sometimes a drink! We were so honored to be a part of this event and grateful to BOH and The Shade Store for hosting.”
“We were thrilled to welcome so many great designers into our new showroom in Leawood,” said Michael Crotty, chief marketing officer at The Shade Store. “Kansas City is a newer market for The Shade Store, with our second location opening soon. This event gave us the opportunity to get to know the design community better and to introduce many new designers to the services that we can offer.”
