About Us
We are a small LGBTBE-certified business located in Marietta, Georgia. Our products are sourced from other small businesses from the United States and globally. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and provide support to communities everywhere around the world.
The items we sell on our online store are mostly sourced from small businesses that create artisan-quality products. We offer unique pieces like authentic Murano glass chopsticks and dipping bowls. Everything is handmade with passion and love.
And we are excited to partner with the Amani Women Center (AWC) here in Atlanta to create our own line of decorative pillows. The AWC is a non-profit that reaches out to the women in the refugee community and teaches them skills such as sewing. When they graduate from the Sewing Academy, they are guided to start their own business or they can choose to work at the production facility in Clarkston, Georgia. We have brought on the team from the AWC to manufacture all of our sewing projects under our label. A portion of each sale goes back to the AWC so they can continue to fund their outreach programs and eventually grow their production capability.
Please feel free to check out our full offerings on our company website. We ship anywhere in the United States (Alaska and Hawaii are available for shipping, but we reach out to you to confirm shipping fees).
Co-Founder/EVP Operations
After working in the IT field for 28+ years, I ventured into the world of real estate and eventually obtained my broker's license. At the time I was taking care of my 2 elderly handicapped parents (both are now passed). Having the flexibility with my hours was extremely helpful.
Would not have wanted to do anything different, I was happy to be there for them both. Shortly after my mother passed away I was diagnosed with early stage cancer. 47 radiation blasts and 2 chemo treatments the cancer has been in remission now for going on 5 years...it will never go away, but am thankful it is at least cowering away.
I currently have 2 rescue kittehs, Thor and Freya...Thor is a 22 lb beast (probably Norwegian Forest Cat in him) and Freya is a 9 lb powerhouse of an orange tabby. I've had cats for over 35 years, all of them rescued from local shelters.
I grew up with dogs, but couldn't take on a dog when I moved away for my first "real" job since I was on travel all the time.
I met Richard when I was a real estate agent and used his company to stage all my listings. We became best friends and decided to go into business together in 2016 to start up Sought + Found Mercantile.
Now as a small business owner I see the impact of small businesses in our community and wanted to make sure we did our best to create a "rising tide that lifts all boats". Meaning that we wanted to create a business model where we connected with other small businesses in meaningful ways, not just simply as a transaction.
Our goal is to bring smaller brands to US consumers and show that when you #ShopSmall you help real people throughout the supply chain. You are not helping a CEO buy their 3rd vacation home, you are helping someone send their kids to band camp, take dance lessons, or simply provide a basic decent living for those who want to leave our community in better shape than when we found them.
We are a certified LGBTBE (LGBT Business Enterprise), with certification through the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). It has always been our mantra to support the minority chambers and their membership.
In 2022 we became a corporate sponsor of WIFTA (Women In Film and Television Atlanta) to not only provide support to a great organization, but to also tap into the talent within that group of remarkable women for future efforts we pursue in the digital marketing space.
We are proud to present our wide range of quality, artisan gifts that we have acquired from other small businesses here in the US and globally. Our product offerings come from woman-owned, LGBT-owned, and other small businesses who understand that inclusivity is the key to success.
And we continue to connect with other like-minded small businesses to expand our offerings. Our partnership with the Amani Women Center (AWC) is something I have personally been looking to create ever since we had to pivot our business model to survive the effects on our business from the global pandemic.
Never thought in a million years that we could have our own brand of decorative pillows. But we found a way to support independent fabric designers, other small businesses (like the one that creates the pillow forms we use), and a non-profit that empowers women through outreach in the refugee community here in Atlanta.
We hope to add more sewing projects to the our pillow line, like placemats, napkins, and table runners.
Hope everyone is doing well and staying safe and healthy.
Co-Founder/EVP Operations
Am I a little bit of a snob? Maybe.
But I prefer to think of it as being someone with very
discerning taste. And more importantly, a keen instinct for how to create a
luxurious space that makes people feel relaxed, delighted and at home.
There’s a little psychology, some skill, and a bit of magic
involved when it comes to anticipating people’s wants and needs – tuning in and
understanding where they’re coming from, what they’re looking for, how they
want to feel. That’s what I bring to the party when it comes to selecting the
high-end décor, artwork, and furnishings we choose to carry at Sought + Found
Mercantile.
I honed those abilities during the first 20 or so years of
my career, when I worked in hospitality at various high-end establishments: I
waited tables at 5-star hotels, I was assistant maître d’ at a Four Seasons Hotel, I managed an exclusive
private country club, and I was Director of Purchasing for a luxury hotel chain. I also experienced living in several metro
areas beyond my native Kansas City: Houston, Washington, D.C., NYC, Austin,
and now, of course, Marietta, just north of Atlanta.
That move from NYC to Austin was a particularly pivotal one for
me. My late husband’s job took us there, and it was in Austin that I decided to
start my own property staging business. At first, I used furniture from our own
home. I’ll never forget the time my husband returned from a business trip and
asked, Where’s the dining room?
That was not a sustainable solution, so I started buying
pieces and storing them in the garage…then in a storage unit…then multiple
storage units…and still my collection grew. I did the training and work to
become a credentialed master stager.
I met my now business partner, Jeff, at a real turning point
in my life. My husband of 22 years had died suddenly of a massive heart attack,
and I was devastated. At the same time, I was having to find warehouse space
for my ever-growing inventory of furniture. Jeff was a real estate agent who’d
been having me stage all his listings. He found me the perfect warehouse, which
I thought I’d never fill and then of course did.
I had discovered I especially loved working with seniors.
Having lost someone dear to me, I have a lot of patience and empathy when it
comes to the emotional tug of places and things. After an exasperated agent
called me in to help with a stalled $7M listing, I was able to gain the cooperation
of the elderly owner within 45 minutes. I simply understood what she was going
through and knew how to relate to where she was. After that, I got a reputation
for being the go-to guy for the big luxury properties.
I served two years on the National Board of the Real Estate
Staging Association and enjoyed a lot of success as a stager. Live is
ever-evolving, though, isn’t it? I was at the limit of how much I could do on
my own, and I was ready for a change. In 2016, my friend Jeff and I decided to
go into business together. He has a much better business mind than I do!
I’m a bit of a rare bird, a master stager who’s no longer
staging homes. Instead, I now channel all those years of experience into the
curation of the gifts, home décor pieces and furnishings we make available to
our retail customers. At the same time, we offer an entire warehouse of curated
furnishings for rental to stagers, so they can give a property that special
magic that has people imagining themselves living there…and wanting to make
that a reality.
I know firsthand what it’s like to be looking for just the
right pieces to show off a home to its best advantage. The regular furniture
rental companies serve their purpose, but what you’ll find there feels more
like corporate apartment than a beautifully curated home. No style, kind of
cheap looking. That’s not what we do.
If there’s one thing I know as a master stager, it’s that
you always fill a house with furniture that will make the house feel more
expensive than what they’re trying to sell it for.
We specialize in luxury, high-quality furniture – the kind that’s
distinctive yet isn’t such a standout that people are going to say oh, they’re
using that sofa again. No. What I’m always looking for is the sofa where you
change out the pillows and put a different cocktail table in front of it, and
it’s a totally transformed look.
As for our retail customers, I love when someone tells us
they have never tasted chocolates like the ones we carry…or that the gift they
purchased at Sought + Found was a total hit.
It’s very fulfilling to me to provide a beautiful collection
of options and possibilities for people. And to conduct our business in ways
that make options and possibilities available for those who could use and
deserve our support.
Jeff and I are very happy to be able to do our small part to
make the world a more beautiful, welcoming place.