Celebrating a Retirement and a new (Not-So-New) Owner

After a remarkable 30 years in business, FS Design Group is celebrating new ownership. Longtime team leader Amy Tobia will be taking the reins from Bre’an Fox, who looks forward to her well-earned retirement.

While Bre’an is seriously stepping up her time spent in Italy and with her family, Amy will oversee our firm’s increasingly diverse range of projects, clients and our dynamic team.

For Bre’an, having Amy step into this role was an obvious choice, because she and Amy share very similar philosophies in their work ethic and how they interact with people.

“That is critical to me because of the effort, time and energy that I put toward this business,” says Bre’an. “It’s so nice to see it being carried on in the same manner and maintaining the reputation that we’ve all helped build.”

This shared work ethic involves working and behaving with integrity; providing service in a client-first approach; being responsible and supportive to staff members and colleagues within the industry; and continuing to be open and interested about new trends and the ever-changing real estate environment.

“We’ve made it personal, not just about business,” says Amy. In fact, FS Design Group is still working with some of our original clients and referral partners from 30 years ago.

Amy, who just celebrated 10 years with FS Design Group, looks forward to continuing the same quality of service for the relationships our firm already has and then expanding into new relationships.

“I know Amy will maintain that quality but always look for ways to improve it,” Bre’an says.

Part of the FS Design Group difference that Amy plans to maintain is making sure all of our team members are well versed in all aspects of our business. They take projects from the very beginning to the very end, which has helped distinguish our firm.

“It’s very satisfying to be at the end of a project and see how happy the clients are when they move into their new space, but it also means our team members offer better service because they see the progress and learn all of the lessons our work has to offer,” Amy says.

We don’t silo our services or people because a lot of the information a designer acquires from meeting and talking to people in the early stages could get dropped when they pass the project on to the next person. Through our contiguous approach, the end result reflects the discussion, desire and inspiration generated at the beginning of the project and beyond.

Our firm has also become known for its ability to truly achieve a design that reflects the unique brand of our client. That means we design the space for them and no one else. We guide our clients to achieve the best design, but we never try to create signature projects to reflect our own style.

When working for a landlord, we think of both the tenant’s and the owner’s goals. This isn’t surprising because Bre’an cut her teeth in the commercial real estate industry on the owner/investor/developer side of the table and then spent 30 years running her own design firm. She has shared this unique perspective with Amy and the rest of her team. Working with a 360-degree view of what each party needs, results in success for all.

As we celebrate this tremendous milestone in our company’s history, we encourage all our clients and friends to reach out to us to learn more about our ownership transition, our plans for the future, or just say hi…or maybe to place a Barolo order with Bre’an?