A rising star in the home decor biz, Society Social founder Roxy Owens says every day is worth celebrating. For online shoppers who quickly scoop up her bar carts and other funky creations, this designer is red hot.
The just-turned-30 entrepreneur grew up in a North Carolina furniture-industry family, and her early years were spent at the High Point Furniture Market. After she finished graduate school at Parsons the New School for Design, she became a retail fashion buyer. But all that number crunching made her crave more creative stimulation. So, in 2011, Owens made a gutsy move. She left corporate America to launch Society Social, the whimsical home-furnishings website that inspires shoppers to “live sparkly.”
“The Society Social look is a reflection of my youth. I grew up in a happy home where entertaining and decorating always went hand in hand. For me, it’s all about sharing your home and your time with closest friends and family,” she says. Owens, a cocktail party aficionado, is known as the darling of bar carts and has been a passionate force behind the revitalization of home entertaining.
“When I launched my business, I knew I wanted to be the bar-cart lady. Online bar carts were pricey, selling for $700 to $2,000. And thrift-shop bar carts were inexpensive, but usually in pretty bad shape. There was no middle ground, so I set out to fill that gap with fun, chic, more reasonably priced styles,” she says. Owens started her home-furnishings line with six sassy bar-cart looks in Chinese fretwork and lattice designs. The carts were an instant hit, as were the super-bright Fifi folding chairs in purple, pink, orange, blue and green.
Today her inventory also includes sofas, tables, headboards, lamps, rugs, pillows and accessories.”I want to be a player in this industry, so I keep my designs fresh. Once Society Social started to grow, I realized that I am the face of my brand. That’s what I love the most: Personally meeting the people who identify with the company. My mom and I went to an event, and people approached me to say how much they connected with the brand. Mom made me laugh when she asked, ‘Roxy, who are all these people and how do they know you?'”
For more Roxy Owens, visit shopsocietysocial.com and cupofte.blogspot.com.