Not only is another year coming to an end, but we are about to embark on a whole new decade! As we at Beyond The Stage Homes prepares for what the twenties will bring, we wanted to reflect back on the past year, and the past decade, to highlight some of our favourite moments. As a business, we are wrapping up our 12th year in business, and as they say, time really does fly when you’re having fun!

To start, let’s talk specifically about 2019. Beyond The Stage Homes has always put our clients first, in every service that we offer, and 2019 was no exception. In fact, we introduced new services and options in order to continue to deliver on our promise of world-class quality in all that we do. We introduced short-term rental design and setup services (i.e. Airbnb) as an extension of our design services to accommodate the growing demand and opportunities for short-term rental ventures in Waterloo Region. We also introduced holiday decorating services to help to ease the burden of tackling this task yourself. Additionally, we introduced optional Staging Risk Management insurance coverage for our staged listings. This allows our clients to ensure that they are covered fully for any damage that may happen to home staging items while in their home, as well as avoid increased premiums from their current insurance provider.

This year was also a year of milestones, with both Jennifer Roth, Senior Home Stager and Marina Hermann, Executive Assistant, both celebrating 5 years with the Beyond The Stage Homes team, as well as Martha Wallace celebrating her first full year with the company! BTSH also welcomed Brooke Burnet to the team (and she will be celebrating her 1 year anniversary with the team this month). We are now proud to offer four (4) Professional and Certified Home Stagers on staff to serve Waterloo Region.

With this increased growth, BTSH has committed to additional professional development and training. As such, the BTSH team now meets 3-4 times each month to review internal updates, industry changes and trends, and to review current, past, and upcoming projects. This allows us to create the best marketing strategies for each home, plan for new inventory to keep our staging designs relevant to today’s buyers, and to ensure that our clients receive top-of-the-line, every time. In addition, Shauna Lynn, Jennifer, and Martha all attended the annual international convention of the home staging trade association, the Real Estate Staging Association, in beautiful Las Vegas where Shauna Lynn was also a featured speaker at the event. Jennifer and Shauna Lynn extended their Vegas stay to allow them to also attend the Las Vegas Furniture Market, the 2nd largest furniture and decor trade show. Shauna Lynn also attended the High Point Furniture Market in October - this is the largest furniture trade show, and saw celebrities such as Glen Peloso, Hilary Farr, Taylor Spellman, and many more!

Continuing in her commitment to the advancement of the home staging industry in Canada, Shauna Lynn held the position of Provincial President for Ontario for the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) and was voted Top 75 Most Influential in Real Estate Staging by RESA. She was also nominated for the Lori Kim Polk Lifetime Achievement Award. Shauna Lynn is the Ontario Approved Instructor for RESA’s Staging to Sell: What Every Agent Should Know designation course, and co-authored a book with renowned design industry influencer and popular podcast host, LuAnn Nigara (plus 11 other incredibly talented authors). As an industry influencer, Shauna Lynn spent a large part of the year travelling to events for speaking engagements, book-signings, and exclusive learning events. She was also featured locally in Homes Plus magazine, on the Small Business Show, and at various live events throughout the region. Her commitment to Beyond The Stage Homes, and her duties as CEO and Lead Home Stager and Designer remain the top priority, and we look forward to what the year (and decade) ahead will hold.

The Beyond The Stage Homes team continues to be proudly recognized for its achievements, winning a record number of awards this year, including Top Choice Home Staging Company of 2019 in Kitchener/Waterloo, Waterloo Region Record Reader Awards Winner in both Interior Decorator AND Home Staging Services, Build Real Estate & Property Awards, Best Home Staging & Design Specialist - Southern Ontario, to name a few. We added some new home staging assistants to keep up with our demand and did a large inventory refresh that has put us at the top of the market with creative designs for today’s homes. We are proud to continue to be your #1 choice for owner-occupied and vacant home staging projects.

BTSH continues to be a proud sponsor of the KW MS Walk by raising funds sponsoring the TeamMS and Volunteer of the Year awards at the event, as well as volunteering our time before, during, and following the event. This event helps to raise much-needed funds for the MS Society’s Grand River chapter. As an animal-loving team, it was only natural that we continued our support for the Kitchener-Waterloo Humane Society, through collected donations throughout the year as well. Cleaning out your closets (likely on the advice of our home staging team)? Donate your unwanted linens to your local humane society, and they will put them to great use by their furry residents!

Where else did you see the BTSH team this year? Perhaps it was one of the many KWAR events, including the Golf Tournament in September supporting Habitat for Humanity, the Mayor’s Panel, Market Insights event, or perhaps one of many local brokerage events, including the TrilliumWest Golf Tournament, Re/max Twin City's Christmas Party, and many other real estate events. BTSH continues to honour and support local real estate agents and the advancement of the Waterloo Region real estate market. 

As for the decade that has come to an end, it’s impossible not to reflect on what it has brought us, and where it has brought us. We made a commitment early on to own our own home staging inventory. It was a decision that required a significant investment not only in the staging items, but also storage facilities, a tracking system, and the team that would bring it all together. We have continued to grow with purpose over the years, and have come a long way from Shauna Lynn and her VW Golf that worked as her trusty staging assistant for years.

We embark on each new year with a plan to continue to grow and continue to support our local partners. We will continue to reach for the stars, and expand our opportunities to serve our community. We will also be introducing a new 4-wheeled team member in the coming months to assist our hard-working home staging team. We look forward to all that the upcoming year, and a new decade, have to offer us. Thank you to all of our valued partners for your continued support.

To enlist the services of our team of professionals, visit us at www.BeyondTheStageHomes.com.