They say time flies when you are having fun and they are right! 10 years after our first issue came to life, we thought we would tell you, our story.
Our first home, a small one-story starter, located in the south end of Brandon was our first place to renovate, paint and make our own. That started our appetite for renovation. Our careers soon took us to Winnipeg and Regina, but as luck would have it, it landed us right back in Brandon in 2011. Throughout these moves, we finished a complete basement, ripped out bathrooms, and used paint by the gallons, not to mention landscaping and decks!
During this time, we loved going through the local design magazine we would find around the city in Winnipeg and Regina. It gave us inspiration and introduced us to local businesses. When our jobs brought us back to Brandon, we opted for a new build in the south end of Brandon, but that didn’t stop us from putting our own special touch on it. Though we had lived in the area previously, we found it difficult at times to find specific options or have people share with us where to go. This gave us the idea to bring a local home design magazine to Brandon, similar to what we have been picking up in other cities. Stewart spent months researching printing, design, and distribution options and we decided to take the plunge with our first issue in December 2012.
Our second issue, Spring of 2013, started our relationship with the Brandon Home and Leisure Show. At the time Dave Melcosky was the manager running it, and we worked closely with him to promote the show in our Spring Issue each year. We understood each other’s business, which made it a great partnership.
As with any business, you need to grow and change along the way. We initially started with 4 issues a year, but 5 years ago we moved to 2 issues to adjust to changing times. We also went through the change of transitioning from Stewart to Jaime-Lynn. Stewart started the magazine and ran it full-time for the first few years building business relationships in the community. Soon after he was offered a business opportunity and the magazine became our passion project but not our full-time job. Jaime-Lynn started to take on more of the operations until she took it over fully 6 years ago. Each issue still goes through both of them before hitting the printing press.
One thing we strive for is the relationships we have built with our partners over the years. Since day one, we have used the Leech Group for our printing needs. As much as we have grown and changed over the years, so have they and it’s amazing to work alongside a company while you both go through positive change. Leech Printing has been part of the community for 95 years and it’s incredible to watch a 4th generation growing the business. They recently re-branded their company Leech Group to encompass all the aspects of their business from digital and offset printing to graphic design, digital media, and wide format printing.
Another integral part of our magazine is Scott Kasprick at Reaxion Graphics. Stewart met Scott early on and liked his style and his experience with magazines. Reaxion Graphics will be celebrating its 15th Anniversary this Fall and Scott brings in over 25 years of experience to his business. Scott works hand in hand with us, each issue to create the beautifully laid out content.
Our magazine wouldn’t be getting out across Western Manitoba if it wasn’t for the Brandon Sun. Another local business celebrating 140 years in the community; we have worked with them since our first issue to deliver our magazines to the doors of our readers. Our remaining magazines are located on racks across Western Manitoba in high-traffic areas.
The relationships we have built with many businesses across Westman helped us design and build our current home 5 years ago. Design Your Home has been a big part of our life in many ways and we hope it has helped you in some way as well. Hearing from our readers and partners warms our hearts and brings a smile to our faces every time.
I remember clearly the day Jaime-Lynn came into our wee showroom on 10th street to offer up a space in her new magazine. We had much in common, as we were both new business owners and both a keen interest all things home and décor.
We have collaborated on every issue since the magazine began. The Design Your Home team has been professional to work with, and truly invested in our success as a business partner.
We look forward to every issue and enjoy the process of both creating the content, through to the visit with Jaime-Lynn when she delivers the mag itself to our showspace.
Congrats on 10 Years Design Your Home….we appreciate you!!!
Sue Swarbrick,
Budget Blinds of Southwest and Southeast Manitoba
