The Story of Home With Hechart

It’s truly hard to believe that it has been five years since COVID paused our lives — and even harder to believe that five years ago I took a leap of faith and started Home With Hechart. I’m sure you can already see the correlation here as I know a lot of people redesigned their lives and pivoted in their careers. For me, the journey to Home With Hechart began long before 2020, so I have to rewind to where it all started.

I graduated from Auburn in the summer of 2017, full of excitement but unsure of what my next steps would be. In the months that followed, I babysat and worked for my family’s business, selling copiers. While I loved working alongside my family and learning the ins and outs of business firsthand, deep down, I had always dreamt of starting something of my own. I just wasn’t sure what that something looked like quite yet, but I felt like it would include interiors.

When I trace that passion back to the origin, I’m always led to one place: home. My mom has always had the most incredible eye for design. Growing up, she was constantly rearranging rooms, picking out fabrics and making our spaces feel intentional, warm and beautiful. My sister and I spent countless hours being toted around as she chose just the right pieces for our house (and often for the homes of friends who trusted her with their own spaces). Looking back, I realize that her creativity, her attention to detail, and the way she made every space feel just right were shaping me more than I ever knew at the time.

So when Covid turned the world upside down, it was the perfect opportunity to tell Santi I was ready to quit my job and start an interior design business. And let me pause and say that Santi is the reason Home With Hechart exists. From the very beginning, he believed in me — fully and without hesitation. And to this day, he continues to believe in all my crazy ideas and big dreams. I’m so thankful for his support. And if there’s one thing you need before stepping out on your own, it’s someone who believes in you. If you don’t have that person, I can’t tell you enough that you must be your own cheerleader and believe in yourself.

In March of 2020, over margaritas in my backyard, Home With Hechart was born. A few close friends and I tossed around ideas for the name until it just clicked. I remember sitting there, sipping my drink, thinking Is this really going to work? How long will this last? Will I ever even sell anything?

All I had was a dream. That was it. I knew absolutely nothing about branding, Shopify, shipping, wholesale minimums, or retail in general. Nothing. So let this be an encouragement to you — if you’re waiting until you feel “ready,” you’ll be waiting around for a long time. The only thing you need to get started is a little trust in yourself and a willingness to ask all the questions, even the ones you think sound ridiculous.

That leads me to my dear friend Anna Cate — another someone who has always believed in my wildest ideas and helped bring them to life. Anna Cate is a web and branding genius (and if you need a brand or website, I cannot recommend her enough — she owns Sela Vie Creative). She took my tiny idea and gave it an identity. She made it real. Without her, Home With Hechart wouldn’t be half of what it is today.

Over the next three to four months, I spent every waking hour on the computer. And if I wasn’t on the computer, I was on the road — driving a box truck (that I borrowed from my family’s copier business) all across Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee, picking up furniture and decor for our grand opening.

Our first launch was held at my mom’s house, and it was amazing. So many people showed up to support me, and I’ll never forget how that made me feel. For the first year, Home With Hechart was strictly online, except for the occasional pop-up. My mom’s entire upstairs became my shipping department. I’d go over there at 7 a.m. and stay until 6 p.m. most nights — until she finally had enough and would remind me that while I didn’t have to go home, I definitely had to get out of her house.

Another huge blessing in those early days was my very first hire, Mary Clay. She was willing to do anything and everything to help, and I truly don’t know what I would have done without her. She, my mom Donna, and I made some of the best memories in those early years — some of my favorite stories come from those long days of figuring it all out together.

Mary Clay and her family have since moved to Chattanooga, and she’s now pursuing her art full-time — something she was meant to do. She is incredibly talented, and I feel so lucky to have worked alongside her for three years. If you’re in need of a special piece for your home, check out her work on her website.

After some time, we finally moved into our first-ever retail space. It wasn’t glamorous, but it wasn’t my mom’s house, and that alone felt like a win. We stayed there for six months, and during that time, I met Megan and Claire, the owners of The Children’s Edit. From the moment I met them, I knew we were meant to work together. Sure enough, we all had a similar vision, and we opened our joint store at 2003 Cahaba Road.

Some of my best memories — some of the absolute best times — happened in that space. Our retail store was open for a year and a half, and then everything changed in the best possible way: I became a mom.

When I had Anna Cline, Megan and Claire, being the thoughtful and supportive friends they are, came to me and asked if I wanted to continue running the retail portion of Home With Hechart. If I did, they would have been my biggest cheerleaders. But as moms themselves, they also understood the pressure and energy that retail demands. When they offered to take over my side of the store, I felt such relief. They gave me the space to step back without any guilt!

My office is still in the back, and now, I’ve been able to pour my heart fully into interior design — the part of the business that has always sparked the most passion for me. And that’s where I’ll continue to focus for the foreseeable future. I am so thankful for where Home With Hechart is today, and I feel beyond lucky to work with my clients. Every day feels like a pinch-me moment.

All of this — every single part — is what it looks like to own a business. There are so many highs, lows, pivots and plenty of moments in between where you wonder if you’re doing the right thing. But it is so worth it. Taking this leap of faith was the best decision I ever made, and I would love to encourage you to take your own leap.

If you have a dream, a passion, a vision — go after it. The only person holding you back just might be you.