After seven years as a stay-at-home mom, Kiara Magee, 31, decided to capitalize on her talent for decorating and interior design and become an entrepreneur, creating Spokane-based Honey Home Designs.

In the 2 1/2 years that Magee has been operating Honey Home Designs, a luxury home staging and interior design company, the business has grown its client capacity and service offerings.

"I was pretty surprised by how high of a demand there was," says Magee. 

Honey Home Designs helps homes sell quickly, often within a month of staging, Magee asserts.

The company provides staging services for both vacant and occupied homes and decorating services for residential and commercial properties. Honey Home Designs also offers completion photo services, where staging is provided for use in marketing photos.

The company's primary service area is within Spokane and Kootenai counties, she says, adding that Honey Home Designs provides a European aesthetic that resonates with buyers in the Pacific Northwest residential market.

Properties furnished by Honey Home Designs typically are staged for 30 days. On the rare occasion that an extension is required, it's usually because the home is pending, she adds.

"Based on our data, the homes that we stage are selling within a month. I rarely have someone extend with me," says Magee. "I truly believe that staging helps bring in those offers."

Growth at Honey Home Designs has been deliberately slow and steady in the pursuit of a strong foundation for the business, over a rapid expansion fueled by debt, she explains.

"I really don't want the weight of loans or having to pay people back," says Magee. "I have people who are willing to wait, and they're being patient. If I can't get them in right away, then I'll get them in in a week or so."

When Magee first launched Honey Home Designs in April 2022, she generated clients by cold calling real estate agencies to pitch her services, which resulted in about five homes staged per month throughout the first year.

"That worked incredibly," says Magee. "I was doing the maximum amount of homes that I could handle. ... Then, we really started to grow."

Currently, Honey Home Designs has increased its home staging capacity to accommodate up to 15 homes a month, depending on the home size.

Magee attributes some of her company's growth to collaborations with homebuilding companies, such as Spokane-based Jesse Miller Homes Inc., which does business as JM Homes; Spokane Valley-based Gordon Finch Homes Inc.; and Spokane-based Band Construction Inc.

"This is my second year staging an award-winning home with Jesse Miller," she says. 

In 2023, Magee worked with JM Homes to stage a residence in Spokane's annual Fall Festival of Homes, where her work contributed to an award for Best Kitchen. 

This year, Honey Home Designs partnered again with JM Homes in the 2024 Fall Festival of Homes, in which the homebuilder won multiple awards for homes priced in the $700,000 to $750,000 range including Best Architecture & Design-Interior & Exterior for homes, Best Primary Bedroom Suite, Innovative Technology Leader, and Best Overall home.

A separate home Magee helped stage in the fall festival this year for Gordon Finch Homes earned Best Kitchen for homes priced $600,000 to $700,000, she says.

Magee became interested in interior design and home decor as a young adult. While she was pregnant with her first child at 23, she started taking notes on ideas for a future dream home, and her vision turned into a redecorating project for a few offices at her mother's business, Spokane-based Northwest Sexual Counseling.

Today, the majority of Magee's clients are real estate agents, with a lot of business coming from agents at Windermere Real Estate.

"It's a really good strategy for agents to hire a stager," says Magee. "Not only does it help their professional image and approach, but it's great business for me."

Magee updated the cost of services she provides in early 2024 to reflect the value of her expertise and services better, which she anticipates will lead to profitability moving forward.

"I was charging quite less than what I realized I was worth and the price increase has definitely helped (revenue)," she says.

Current prices for staging services provided by Honey Home Designs are $1,200 for 30 days and includes the staging of a living room, kitchen, dining room, primary bedroom, and primary bathroom. Additional rooms cost an extra $150 each for 30 days, and Honey Home can accommodate areas such as children's bedrooms, home offices, extra living rooms, and patios, she says. 

Word-of-mouth referrals and social media marketing play a crucial role in client acquisition for Honey Home Designs, with social media driving about 90% of clients to the business, says Magee.

"Before I was doing home staging, I was very into social media and I have a large following ... on all of my platforms," she says. "But, I think networking and making genuine connections with people is one of the biggest reasons why I have come so far."

Honey Home Designs operates from Magee's home office in Spokane. Inventory is held in an 18-foot box truck and in a warehouse on Newport Highway.

The company has two employees who help with staging and moving furniture, and Magee also receives help from her husband, Sean Magee.

The business will enter its third year of operations in April, and Magee says she expects Honey Home Designs to become profitable by year five.

"I'm definitely starting to see an increase in profitability," she says. "I haven't taken out any loans ... and I'm as busy as I want to be."

Looking ahead to next year, Magee plans to work with more commercial clients and expand staging services for model homes, with the goal to collaborate with more homebuilders.

Additionally, Magee says she plans to attend some home design courses to learn more about best business practices and will attend a staging convention in Las Vegas next year. She's also interested in expanding her presence in the Spokane-area community and joining professional associations such as the Women's Council of Realtors, she says.

"I'm trying to provide the best possible luxury staging to all my clients, whether they're in new construction or an old South Hill bungalow. I want people to feel a sense of belonging," Magee says.