Kathy in her office!
I had the great honor recently of being a guest panelist for LPL Financial’s annual Women’s Forum in Boston. After our panel presentation, Maddy Dychtwald, co-founder of Age Wave, gave a fascinating talk about how both women’s and men’s perception of their career path is in a total state of transformation. She and her husband, Ken Dychtwald, study patterns of aging and demographic shifts and the repercussions globally and especially economically. In fact, her new book, Influence --- How Women’s Soaring Economic Power Will Transform our World for the Better, is a great read!
In her talk and in her book, Maddy referred to this transformation as phases of ramping up and ramping down. The idea, she says, is simple. Instead of thinking of your career path as a long highway that starts at, let’s say, your initial entry into the work force and ends at that magic retirement age of say 65, as has been the accepted norm for so many years, most of us now think of that long highway differently. Instead it’s now become a highway with many on and off ramp opportunities that we are starting to take advantage of. To some, "off ramping" might mean taking a leave from the traditional career path to care for children or aging parents. For others "off ramping" might involve pursuing a degree for an intended change in career or launching their own business. Bottom line: increasingly we are seeing the traditional career path and subsequent complete and total retirement concept being cast away and replaced by a reformation of thought --- on ramping and off ramping.
For our next few blogs we’d like to pursue chatting with clients who are doing just that. Let’s start by visiting with Kathy Burke. When we first met Kathy in 2005, she had already begun her "ramping" great life. Having left a career path job with Wells Fargo, she was dipping her toes into home renovation and sale. Facing a slowdown in real estate made her rethink her strategy and led her to combine her love of real estate with her amazing talent and passion for interior design by founding what has become an extremely successful home staging business, appropriately named Sensational Home Staging. Here’s what Kathy told us when we caught up with her after her 60th birthday celebration last month.
Kathy celebrating her 60th birthday with her daughter, Natalie!
Kathy, please tell us a bit about yourself, your background, both personally and professionally.
I worked for Wells Fargo Bank most of my career, joining in 1969 as a clerk and retiring in 1998 as a Sr. Vice President and Division Manager. Wells Fargo Bank was a very rewarding, and yes, many times trying, experience. My success was something well beyond my expectations! During those years I was also a single mom, raising my daughter, Natalie, who is my pride and joy! Following retirement from Wells Fargo, I worked as a financial consultant and then joined Wachovia for a short time prior to final retirement from corporate life in 2004. Having worked in finance all of my corporate career, when "traditional" retirement came, I wanted to do something more creative. I had always enjoyed and been told by friends and family that I had a talent for interior design.
The economy and the markets this past decade forced a lot of people to rethink retirement. Please tell us how your own experiences shaped your decisions and led you to start your own firm. What was your principal motivation in starting your company?
After retirement I formed a partnership with a friend and we began to flip houses until the economy ended that! Through that process I became familiar with home staging, and thought "I can do this!" and maybe make a little money to supplement my retirement and have a little fun. I actually began by staging a couple of my own flips. Then I started acquiring inventory and doing more and more staging. Now, five years later, what started on a small scale is now a true business!
Tell us about your company and your business model.
My company, Sensational Home Staging (www.sensationalhomestaging.com), provides home staging to ready homes that will be going on the market. The largest segment of my business comes through relationships with realtors. In fact, I find that 90% of my business is via this channel. I rely on (and encourage) agents who enjoy doing business with me and the results that come from my work, to spread the word and recommend me to fellow agents. I also have clients who find me via the internet. In addition to having a website I also do some blogging.
Staging services can range from a walk through consultation to complete project management and staging. Staging also comes in many varieties: accessorizing a home to full staging of a vacant home. No two stagings are the same and that’s what keeps it interesting; that and the widely different agents and sellers!
What’s very interesting as well is that now I work with some of my "sellers" who have moved into a new home and then ask me to assist them with designing their new space. I love doing this! It’s very rewarding to know that the client was so happy with the initial staging, felt it was successful, and now wants that same look and feel in their new home. I also have several clients who refer me on to friends and family to assist them with a "re-design" of their home. Fun!
Bedroom before...
...and after.
What are the key issues that led you to open this particular type of business instead of another?
As with many things, it wasn’t totally planned out. It was small steps and decisions that led me down a path. When the real estate business began to ebb it seemed that home staging would become more of a "must do" to sell a home. It is a GREAT way to showcase a home and have it stand out, which is what this economy and real estate market began to dictate. Best: this business also allowed me to be creative!
Did you have any missteps or things you learned from this experience that you would do differently were you to be starting your firm now?
Oh, yes, there are many, but they have all led me to where I am today! Here’s what comes to mind:
- Originally, I owned all of the staging inventory, including furniture. This proved to be more than I could handle. I now RENT all furniture, lamps, rugs and some art and have it delivered and picked up by professional movers. I found that I did NOT want nor need to be in the furniture business as this is a big investment and a specialty business all its own. I have found a wonderful, locally owned business that specializes in renting such items only to stagers. It is a perfect marriage!
- Initially I had a business partner, however, we were not in sync with our goals and this proved very difficult. I bought her out two years ago and this has led to my being able to make 100% of the decisions --- good and bad! --- and has allowed me to grow my business in ways that would have been impossible had the partnership stayed in place.
What has surprised you about being an entrepreneur?
It can be scary. I’m responsible for all aspects of this business, even the things I hate to do! NO delegating allowed! It can also be a little lonely at times. I do enjoy working closely with several agents and the home staging rental company and they have become my new network!
Where do you see your future business growth? Is this a sustainable business for you for years to come?
The real estate market is currently, and for the foreseeable future, in need of home staging services. It is becoming the "norm" and with HGTV and other TV and media spotlighting staging it has helped to launch a new field and profession, making it very sustainable for the future. Going forward I hope to find more and more "partner" agents --- those who see me as their "go to" stager and an essential part of their team and their success!
We’d like to thank you, Kathy, for sharing your own journey with us! Please take a look at Kathy’s website, www.sensationalhomestaging.com. She said she looks forward to hearing from you with any and all questions!
If it’s true that we are living longer and longer, then it’s also true that we need to find something to sustain ourselves both mentally as well as, for many of us, professionally.
Kathy is definitely onto something as she "ramps on" to a new phase on her life highway.
