Meet Jenn Rodriguez | Interior Designer NCIDQ, LEED AP, ASID | Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jenn Rodriguez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jenn, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I have a degree in Interior Design and it has always been not just a career but a passion of mine. Through a few transitions in my life and my kiddos getting older, I felt the timing to make the leap was just right. I had a friend of mine (now business partner) that was also in the same boat with a degree in Interior Design as well. We started talking about taking the risk and starting UmmaCasa Interior Design (although that name had yet to come into fruition). We both had a passion to bring Interior Design to the community of people who do not know how helpful an interior designer can be and all that we can do, but also want to make it affordable and accessible to those who think it may be a luxury service and would not understand the benefit that we can bring to their home projects.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
UmmaCasa Interior Design LLC was formed Feb 2022. and is co-owned by myself and Aimee Kim. We are a “full service” design firm located out of Longmont CO. We have projects all over Northern Colorado, and have been fortunate with a contract to design the interior finishes with many families/victims of the Marshall Fire rebuilds in Louisville. Umma means Mama in Korean (Aimee’s background) and Casa means house in Spanish (an ode to my last name), so in translation we are “Mamas House” which represents how we initially met through our sons.

Our services include everything from paint consultations, sourcing and styling spaces, furniture space plans, to full on design drawings and floorplans for remodels and basement finishing. We love that we can bring our services to the community as an affordable rate and in return they receive top notch service and care in what we provide. Many of our clients have complimented us on not just the design skills but also the project management service we bring, as well as the supportive and listening ear we lend them.

We started our business with one NextDoor comment, and from that initial project we started growing through referrals. Last year we were contracted with Easton Custom Homes to help them with their growing clients/victims of the Marshall Fire, and we suddenly found ourselves in full on business mode. It’s been a fast growing and busy couple of years for just starting out, which honestly blows are minds when we reflect on it. I would say it hasn’t been easy, as owning any small business is anything but, however our clients and our partnership makes it all the worth while!

I am most proud of what we bring to the table to support our clients. We design for people’s personal spaces that they and their families live and breath in and want to feel safe and comfortable in. We don’t design for the trends typically (although we do get many requests for them), but instead design for our clients tastes and how they want to feel and function in their homes. We help make the space reflect their own personalities so in the end they can call it their own. It is definitely more of a collaboration with our clients, than us just telling them what they should do.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am a little bit of both when it comes to a city girl and an outdoor enthusiast. I would love to take my best friend to Denver and explore the Denver Art Museum and Meow Wolf. I love everything artistic and creative so museum hopping would be a must. Sushi-Rama RiNo is one of my favorite go tos for food in the area, so we would also explore and eat there too. I would also probably take them to Boulder for a day up Flagstaff and then to Pearl Street for the experience and the close proximity to where I live. I would also make sure to take them for a stroll down Longmont Main Street/Downtown, as well as brewery hopping around many of the breweries Longmont has to offer. We usually bike to many of them and I think it would be an unique experience for them. Finally I would do the touristy thing and take them to RMNP. I am from Houston, TX originally and being up in the mountains is magical and something everyone should experience. It is something I definitely do not take for granted.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would not be where I am today without the support of my family and friends. I have lived in 3 states, and still have close friends in each one that have helped me be who I am today, for which I am eternally grateful. I could fill the page with their names, but I know that they know who they are.

In the current season of my life, I would be remised to not mention my friend/business partner Aimee Kim. She has been an amazing partner to grow a business with. We are like minded in so many ways and equally passionate about what we do and treating our clients as such. She is my rock both professionally and personally and shows up for me frequently, no questions asked. She is a strong, independent, intelligent, creative woman who cares tremendously for the people around her. She is an inspiration to many, most especially to me. UmmaCasa wouldn’t be what it is today without her.

Website: www.ummacasa.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ummacasa/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UmmaCasa.InteriorDesign