With a loyal and ever-expanding base of customers, Seville Home and its longtime professional team have enjoyed two decades of durability in what can be a fickle industry. Once the maven of Tuscan style, Seville Home has repositioned itself at key junctures to become a designer-led business that keeps its look current for the modern consumer.
Stuart Wilkins, and his wife Sue, merged their many years of retail management and fashion experience to found Seville Home in 2000. Wilkins says that being an independent business has allowed Seville Home to adapt quickly to market changes in lifestyle and technology. “We’re nimble and can shift quickly and strategically to lead in our category. If you’ve followed us over the years, you know how our lines have changed and our point of view has evolved. It’s really an exciting time for us.”
Wilkins attributes the success of Seville Home to his team of 17 employees, including degreed interior designers, many of whom have been with the company for 10 to 20 years. “We’ve been blessed with a great team. These are knowledgeable, full-time people committed to the business and with a great passion for the product and for pleasing our customers. We go the extra mile. People know we’re honest and trustworthy.”
Wilkins also credits Seville Home’s success with the ability to re-invent themselves. “We started before all the lifestyle stores came into the market. We were importing from Mexico, Indonesia, and India, telling a global style story which served us well until customers moved away from that. Today, we have lighter colors and cleaner lines with looks that are transitional, new traditional, and even leaning modern.”
This willingness to adapt included a bold move in 2008 to pursue the under-represented luxury customer. With the offer of complimentary in-home design consultations, the decision paid off. “We’re able to offer a mix of product from value-driven to high-end luxury. Our stellar designers offer as much help as our customer wants or needs.”
As the trend has moved from matched furniture sets for formal rooms to an eclectic, curated look in open floor plans, the challenge for homeowners has also evolved. How do you accomplish an effortless, casual, family/pet friendly lifestyle with seamless indoor/outdoor living using well-appointed furnishings in appropriate size, scale and color without costly mistakes? This is where Seville Home really shines.
Designer and Gallery Manager Carrie McColgan explains. “Customers often come in after making an expensive mistake. Planning a space is critical, regardless of your style. Our complimentary design service delivers the confidence needed to pull together a beautiful, cohesive look.”
McColgan adds that Seville Home welcomes independent designers into its retail gallery. “We embrace our claim of being preferred by Kansas City’s top designers and open to everyone. Our range of service, in-stock selection, custom-ordering and intimate knowledge of the home furnishings landscape blends to deliver a truly unique solution. We believe everyone should have a home that’s both beautiful to look at and wonderful to live in.”
