Young blood mixes things up at Exceed Floor and Home

CRYSTAL LAKE - Hawley Haleblian has decades of experience in interior design, and she’ll be the first to say that mixing old and new can be a great stylistic choice.

          But she’s not just talking about interiors; she’s talking about her team at Exceed Floor and Home in Crystal Lake.

          Within the last 10 months, Haleblian, owner of Exceed with her husband, Haig, has expanded her design and sales team by three, pulling in a trio of young designers from the recent graduate pools of the Illinois Institute of Art - Schaumburg.

          Haleblian taught at the Schaumburg campus for nine years and said when the school hosts portfolio reviews, she’s always on the lookout for new designers.

          Now, she has Katrina Percak, 29; Katelyn Brown, 28; and Krystal Reuter, 23, as her newest interior designers, and she’s thrilled.

          “It’s new energy; it’s young energy,” Haleblian said. “It’s fun for me personally. If I’m working on a job I’ll say, ‘Let’s get some different opinions,’ and to see what they come up with is mind-blowing.”

          Each of the new designers said they’ve always been creative, and while it took Percak and Brown a bit longer to decide to become interior designers, they now see it as a calling.

          Percak used to build houses out of LEGOs as a child, she said, and Brown recalled her Barbie houses were always well-organized and planned out - perhaps premonitions of their future careers.

          Reuter, the youngest team member, said she’s always had an artistic nature and spent her early years dabbling in sculpture, ceramics, painting, drawing and more.

          Her last semester in high school, however, marked a turning point. She enrolled in an interior design class and eventually turned down a college athletic scholarship in tennis to pursue her dream of becoming an interior designer.

          Working at Exceed has been a great place to launch their careers, the trio said, though they’re quick to point out that, although they’re young, they know the ins and outs of the industry.

          “We have the knowledge to roll out a huge project from start to finish,” Brown said.

          And they’re not “decorators”; they’re interior designers who are proficient in AutoCAD, Google SketchUp, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop and more.

          “People feel more confident dealing with someone who knows what’s going on, the trends, safety - we know our stuff,” Reuter said.

          In fact, that’s one of the best things about having young designers on board - the entire team can learn from one another, Haleblian said.

          “There’s so much computer-wise and technology-wise that’s very over my head that the girls understand, and they’re learning from my husband and myself in return,” she said.

          The young designers also appreciate the dynamic of having mentors on staff alongside developing talent.

          “I still go to Hawley for advice,” Brown said. “Having someone to consult with who’s been doing this for so many years is definitely important.”

          “It’s a wonderful mixture of the latest and greatest and tried and true,” Percak said.

Exceed Floor and Home is located at 5186 Northwest Highway in Crystal Lake. To learn more, call 815-459-3113 or visit www.exceedfloorandhome.com.