2021 - Year in Review

What a year it has been friends!

I honestly don’t even know where to begin. When I started this business back in 2015 I never would have thought that it would grow to become a place for rich community, supportive collaboration, and innovative design.

I started this year with mostly myself, and a bit of support from Heather Guard (who has since spread her wings to Hawaii) and Michelle Miller (who has taken flight with her own business, Miller Design Studio). After a couple of months of growth, we knew we would need more help to keep up with the trajectory of work coming down the pipeline.

In short order we brought on Julie O-Toole, Mat Acker, and Kati Davis. Julie, Sr Designer, has an extraordinary and extensive background in Interior Design and her ability to transform ideas into executable, beautifully detailed designs has brought the final touch of professionalism StruckSured needed. Mat and Kati, Project Leads & Designers, are fresh in the design sphere but if anyone around here knows me, they know that I am a big believer that passion and grit are two things you can’t learn from any book. Seeing them thrive and excel in learning this trade while supporting the Sr Design team has been such a gift to me. Maybe it's the enneagram 1 in me, but educating and pouring water on a sprout gives me a tremendous amount of purpose. Also, their sweet, unjaded view of the design world is infectious and exciting to watch. It brings in fresh air and keeps us all inspired.

I also brought on Sarah Schmid, who brings an strange addiction to making all the numbers perfectly match wherever they are supposed to go and help button up out accounting systems and processes. Carrying this myself last year, while literally experiencing 600% growth was a lot and her help has brought so much peace.

Lastly, my husband Jordan. If you would have asked me a year ago if I would ever consider bringing my husband into the fold, I would have vehemently replied ‘no’. It was a late night over a couple drinks with my bestie, Tina, when she was listening to my pain points and said “isn’t this all stuff your husband does for his job” that it just clicked. His background in HR, policy writing, and leadership were all strengths I refused to allow him to flex within my business. Not sure why it took so long for me to see them….. but good news is I did. He officially left his employment at the end of last year and is now the COO Of StruckSured. Knowing that there is someone else that is the “buck stops here” person to manage business and policy is AWESOME and I am really looking forward to getting to focus on the creative and design part of this business.

So, a lot of change. What does that mean for this year and years going forward? Honestly, I’m not entirely sure but I am buckled up and willing to take the ride. I feel so damn grateful to get to work with these people. They are the best of the best and make showing up each day so, so easy.

But the stats … I know you all want the stats! Here they are:

600% Growth
40% of 2022 Already in Contract
31 Projects
5 New Team Members
1 Amazing Group of Peeps

Many, many of our projects are being completed this year. What a gift. We also did a lot of smaller projects last year that are waiting on finding the right GC or construction team (always a struggle for this community). It’s going to be fabulous to see them come to a conclusion so you can see what we have been hard at work doing. What a joy.

In conclusion, we are well. We are thriving. And we are growing. My commitment, as always, will be to serve this community. Going forward, we are vetting our projects more fiercely, saying no to those that don’t align with our values and commitment to respect, integrity, and cheeky whit. We will be taking on less, charging more, and really dedicating the time to design these spaces with intention.

I wonder what the year in review will look like for 2022. No doubt it will be just as juicy. Stay tuned.

Cheers,

2021 - Year in Review