Today we’d like to introduce you to Maureen, Meghan, Caitie, and Colleen Smithe
Maureen, Meghan, Caitie, and Colleen, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
We’ve been involved in the family business for most of our lives. As little girls, our dad would take us to work with him and have us do odd jobs around the office, like removing tags from furniture and sorting paperwork. As soon as we could drive, we worked weekends at our outlet store, and during school breaks, we’d help out at the office. During the summer between our junior and senior years in college, we each went through designer training and spent the summer working directly with Smithe clients in the designer role.
After college, we each pursued individual careers outside our family business – Maureen as a merchandiser for Abercrombie & Fitch, both Meghan and Colleen as advertising executives at Chicago’s most well regarded agencies, and Caitie as a manufacturer’s rep for Drexel Heritage. Gaining critical work experience, outside of Smithe, enabled us to develop our own perspective and to gain experience in process and management. There was never a predetermined path for any of us to return to Smithe; however, as relevant opportunities presented themselves, we each returned.
Maureen was first to return to Smithe in 2004 when she joined our Merchandising team as a Buyer. Over the past 13 years, Maureen’s focus has been on driving distinct merchandising blocks that demonstrate our company’s ability to deliver furniture and designs that appeal to each of our clients’ unique tastes.
Meghan, Director of Marketing, came back to Smithe in February 2014, and Colleen, Director of Advertising, joined 2 years later in February 2016. Meghan and Colleen work hand-in-hand on bigger picture initiatives focused on driving the strategic vision for the company, as well as the more day-to-day tasks of managing our messaging and setting our promotional plans.
Caitie stepped back into the role of Smithe designer in March 2016. She balances her time between our Oak Brook showroom and the home office where she partners with our Merchandising team to scout industry trends and influence how those are represented across Smithe’s product offering.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Between the 4 of us, we have 17 children – yes 17!! The kids range in age from newborn to 14 years old. With that in mind, a challenge we face is simply the balancing act of being moms and committed business women. We’ve all shown up to work utterly exhausted after sleepless nights with our babies, and we’ve all certainly struggled to cobble together childcare during our all-encompassing makeover shoots, which tend to go for days on end and entail very long hours. We each have our own childcare systems that work for our families, and we’re fortunate to have super supportive husbands and a mom with enough love, time, and energy to go around! A great thing about working with my sisters is that we rely on each other so much for advice and ideas – and inevitably support or a home baked good the day after one of those sleepless nights!
Please tell us about Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design.
Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design is a family-owned retailer, founded 1945 in Chicago, IL. Three generations of Smithes are currently involved in the business, including the 4th generation Smithe sisters.
Walter E. Smithe specializes in beautiful furniture and beautifully designed rooms, created custom for each client. We have earned a reputation for quality furniture and exceptional service.
Over the past nearly 72 years, the company has grown to include 11 showrooms, including Vernon Hills, Lincolnshire, Arlington Heights, Old Orchard, Glendale Heights, Geneva, Naperville, Oak Brook, Orland Park, Lincoln Park, and Merrillville, IN, as well as a growing ecommerce business at smithe.com. We are headquartered in Itasca, IL.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
As kids, we spent hours on end in our basement with our Barbies! We had a Barbie Dream house, A Barbie hot tub, countless Barbie cars, even a Barbie RV! It was a sad day when we outgrew them and our mom cleared them out. Now we wish we had kept them for our girls to play with!
Contact Info:
- Address: Maureen Smithe, Meghan Smithe, Caitie Smithe, Colleen Smithe
Walter E. Smithe Furniture & Design
1251 W. Thorndale Ave.
Itasca, IL 60143 - Website: www.smithe.com
- Phone: 630-285-8000
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wesmithefurniture/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/walteresmithe/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/WalterESmithe
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