Meet Kimberly McGee-Littleton, Mom to 7 month old son, Aiden Littleton, Wife to Kevin Littleton, and your Local Designer with California Closets. She and her family currently reside in Fayetteville, GA about 5 minutes away from Trilith and the Piedmont Hospital and absolutely love living here. In our Q&A below, Kimberly shares her passion for designing organized spaces and why making her clients happy is her number one goal throughout the design process!
Q&A
Hi Kimberly! Please share a little bit about your background? Tell us about your career.
I’m originally grew up in New York about 30 minutes outside Manhattan on Long Island. I went to school at New York Institute of Technology with a focus on Interior Architecture. I actually took many of the starter classes the architecture students did, which was an extremely challenging program. One of the biggest skills I learned from this program was public speaking- and learning how to clearly express my thoughts and ideas. It teaches you a level of confidence that has helped me in many different areas of my life.
Unfortunately, as I was finishing up school the economy crashed in 2008 so I was forced in different directions because of the lack of opportunities. Over the years I have worked in Nannying, medical billing, property management, and I dabbled with space organization. Working in space organization allowed me to make the right connections to get back into the design world. I currently have been working with California Closets as a design Consultant for about 2 ½ years and couldn’t be happier.
What called you to become a Designer?
My whole family is extremely artistic and creative. That was always encouraged in my house growing up. My grandmother was a professional artist, and many of my family members have gone on to be graphic designers, stylists and artists. Some of my best memories as a child would be grabbing a notebook and spending time sketching drawings for hours. It was my happy place as a child. Later on as a teen I saved up about $500 to give my whole room a makeover. I had so much fun picking out the paint color, decorative pillows, furniture and details. I enjoyed the process just as much as I enjoyed the room after the fact.
Life did throw a few curveballs my way with the recession of 2008- but art and design were still a big part of my life in the interim. I picked up Calligraphy as a fun hobby and even dabbled in selling some art pieces over the years.
A few years ago, I found myself looking for something different, and that’s where this opportunity to work with California Closets almost fell in my lap. It took me years to work my way back into the design world. But,once I stepped back into it, it felt right, and I absolutely loved it. I feel like this is what I was created to do.
What does your design process look like?
I’m grateful to work for a company that really cares about our clients in every way possible and meets the customer’s needs and wants. We do complimentary in-home [or virtual] appointments at a time that best works for our clients. I try to get to know my client’s needs, wants, budget and design style and guide them in that direction during our consultation. I always want my client to be involved in every step of the way- from picking out finishes to designing every shelf, door and area in the project. We can keep things as simple or as detailed as possible. I have a 3D CAD program where I draw out the measurements of the space and dive into the design process right there with my client! It’s a collaborative process all the way through. Most of the time within 90 minutes we can bring the space to life that they can see in 3D with an exact price estimate in the same day. My goal is to make my clients feel heard, listened to, and respected every step of the way so they are 100% happy.
What is the best thing about your job?
I absolutely love what I do. I get to enjoy my love for people and design together all in one job. First, I get to meet new people almost on a daily basis, I am so grateful for every new person and client I meet. Often, this can be a very personal job and I get to know my clients well through the process. Many of my relationships with my clients have grown outside of the designer/client relationship. I treat every new client the same as I would my best friend asking me to design a space for them. I look for every opportunity to give suggestions and guide them towards their goal in a fun, positive way. I often explain to clients that I’m the driver, but they are my co-pilot. I’m just guiding the process, but my client is always in control of the direction the project takes.
Secondly, I love that I get to design beautiful spaces. It’s such a pleasure to work on a small functional space with a unique small detail to add personality, all the way to a beautifully designed piece with all the extras. No job is too small, or too big to have some fun in the design process!
What are some things to look for when choosing a Closet Company?
I’m proud to say I work for a company that pioneered the Closet Industry and has been around for over 40 years. We have perfected the process and really focused on quality and customer satisfaction. It’s our MISSION to make beautiful work that stands up for the test of time. That’s why we offer a limited lifetime warranty for every single job we sell. We focus on doing it right the first time, so you never have to worry about it again. So much can go wrong with a house- to have one less thing to have to deal with is a blessing.
We have VERY high standards on what and how we build our system. We use a steal rail construction system that mounts to the studs of the wall- giving the system the upmost strength and stability. Our boards are built out of triple core instead of single core which holds up longer and is more stable over time. We use new edge banding technology where the corners and edges do not lift up and delaminate over time. Many of our standard features are upgrades for other companies including 14” depth (most companies are only 12”,) our drawers are dovetailconstruction, undermount system with standard soft close, and we will not mark a job complete until it is 100% up to customer satisfaction.
What are some other spaces besides closets that you help design and organize?
Although Closets are what we are known for, we can do lots of other spaces as well including pantries, tv/media centers, wall units/bookcases, bar and wine areas, murphy beds, craft rooms, office spaces, kids playroom storage, laundry rooms, garages, mud rooms and the list can go on. Anywhere you are in need for storage or organization I’m able to help you find a solution that would work best that’s within your budget!
What is your best “working mom” tip?
The hardest tip I’ve had to learn, which I know many other Mom’s struggle with, is asking for help when needed. We can feel like we have the world on our shoulders and have to tackle the burden alone, but that has been the biggest game changer for me is learning it’s ok to ask for help. Whether it’s something small like asking my husband to give me a 20 minutebreak to jump in the shower, to answering yes to a friend offering to make a meal, to saying yes to have family come visit and help during a difficult time. There are so many times I just plug through those tough times and let my pride get in the way. It’s ok to ask and accept help.
What is your favorite “mom hack”?
My son is only 7 months old, so I’m still so new to this Mom life. I am always desperate to learn what I can do better to help my son. When all is said and done, in those hard moments Ms Rachel on Youtube is the best thing to happen in my household. Whether it’s meltdown central, or I just need 10 minutes to step away – she is absolute GOLD. No other show or entertainment enthralls my son better than she can. I try to limit screen time as much as possible since he’s still so young- but you know the big guns to pull out in those tough moments and Ms Rachel will never disappoint!
What do you love about Peachtree City and the surrounding areas?
Although I live in Fayetteville, I am a 5 minute drive into the heart of Peachtree City. Between the beauty of the area with all the lakes and parks, amazing restaurants, fun local events, and places to visit and over all just friendly small town feel I adore living in this area. I still travel to Atlanta for work or a few events here and there, but I find there is everything I could need or want right here in town. I love to take my son to the park behind the PTC library and just go for a stroll around the Lake enjoying the beauty of the area. I love having a girl’s night out at one of the amazing restaurants in the area. Our current favorite is Porto Di Venezia in Senoia for their amazing home made pasta! I’m also greatly looking forward to celebrating all the fun local holiday events with my son and creating so many fun memories to look back on.
What TV show are you loving right now? Book? Movie? Podcast?
Unfortunately, my son has a very nasty habit of waking up between the hours of 4-5am every morning (thank you day-light savings!) So, working full time, and also taking care of my son and family doesn’t lend to too much free time. But I am a Survivor fan. I absolutely love the strategy and heart behind the show. It’s my biggest guilty pleasure. Even if I am able to keep my eyes open for 1 hour after bedtime at night I consider that a win! Ha ha!
Is there anything else you would like to share with our Moms?
First and foremost, I’m a Mom, Wife, Homeowner and Friend. I don’t consider myself as a sales person. I view being a sales person as someone who will do anything to make a sale, and that’s not my focus or goal at the end of the day. I love meeting and connecting with new people, and also helping to fulfill their needs and wants while designing something fun. My number one goal is to make someone happy and satisfied with the service I offer. If they decide to go in another direction, or shelf the project for a while I totally understand because life happens! Who I am as a person, the morals and values I stand for goes well above anything else in my life.
You can connect with Kim through these QUICK LINKS below:
IG: @Kimscaliclosets
IG: @CaClosets
FB: Kim Littleton, Design Consultant for California Closets
