Working With Family…Risky, But Possible!

a guest post by Lisa Landry

(www.bizchicksrule.com) — The Most Common Question

“How can you WORK with your EX-HUSBAND???” That’s the question I usually get when people find out my ex-husband is the general manager of my business. The other common response is, “Hmmm…that must be reallllly tricky.”

Well, for me, it’s really not. As an INTERIORS by Decorating Den owner of ten years who was just named Owner of the Year, I can say it’s been extremely successful!

The Early Days

After marrying Tony (my childhood sweetheart since I was 13 years old!) and going through three lucrative (but somewhat unfulfilling) careers, I decided to pursue my life’s love—interior decorating. I purchased my location in 1998, and never looked back.

Insert Child

My son, Tanner, was only 10 years old when I started my business, and I put him to work from the very beginning. From folding and throwing flyers to checking in merchandise and assisting with installations at customer’s homes, he helped out in any way that I needed. He looked so cute wearing his little uniform shirt, and customers got a big kick out of it. He learned a lot about running a small business through the years, and today, at 20 years old, he’s my full-time warehouse manager—and the customers are still crazy about him!

Insert Spouse

After purchasing my Interiors by Decorating Den, I built my business up quite quickly over the first few years, and then realized I really needed a full-time manager in my studio to oversee all the operations of my rapidly-growing business—not just the college students I’d been using part-time to handle a few of the day-to-day duties.

That’s where Tony came in. With an 18-year marriage under our belts, he quit his management job of two decades and came aboard full-time. That first year was tough, I’ve got to admit! We agreed from the beginning that there could only be ONE boss, and since I had started the business, and successfully grown it, that boss would be ME. Sounds good in theory, huh? Well, it took a full year to really hammer out the details (and to get him used to the idea).

Even though we may have been negotiating the challenges of working together, the business did great from the get-go. Our sales shot up, we moved to a larger studio, and hired additional employees. We quickly became one of the Top 10 owners (out of approximately 450) every single year. My strengths are design, organization, and sales, and Tony is really great with systems. He even developed a computerized system for tracking every detail of our customer’s projects, and this unique system has now been adopted by many other owners across the United States.

Another great idea of Tony’s was having a limo pick up an out-of-town client that was moving into a new home here in Texas. We met the limo at one of our past client’s homes, and gave her a tour of this amazing home that we had decorated from top to bottom. She told us over and over again how impressed she was with our work, and her resulting decorating purchases have now exceeded $100,000. I think the limo was a nice touch, don’t you?

Spouse Becomes “Ex”—Oops!

However, after five years of working together, we finally decided that we were better business partners than marriage partners! And, once again, we had to hammer out the details of working together, but now as a divorced couple. I have to admit that the first year was pretty tough. But we persevered, and continue today to work in a very collaborative way. To be honest, we actually have a GREAT working relationship—probably because we know each other so well.

Success Reins!

Our “team effort” has really paid off. We now have a staff of seven, and we operate from a 7,000 square-foot Studio/Warehouse. In addition to being named the 2008 Owner of the Year, I’m a 14-time Dream Room Winner (an international design contest judged by magazine editors from across the U.S.), and I’ve had my design work published nationally in design magazines and hardcover books 11 times. My location has been featured on the cover of two local magazines in the past year, which has provided us with great exposure.

Is It for You?

So my advice? Families CAN work together—even UNIQUE families—if the business is run in a professional, caring, and respectful way. Boundaries and duties must be established from the get-go, and enforced every step of the way. Working with the people that you know—and that know YOU— the very best can be extremely rewarding, and then when you succeed in ways that you never even dreamed of—well, that’s amazing!

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Lisa Landry is the owner of INTERIORS by Decorating Den in Arlington, Texas. Her work has been featured in Small Room Decorating Magazine, Window Fashions Design & Education Magazine, Decorating Spaces Magazine, Decorating Solutions Magazine, and published in Smart & Simple Decorating as well as Creating Great Guest Rooms. For additional information, please visit http://www.lisalandry.net.