Deanne says that her affinity for pillows started at home with her family. “I have so much love for throw pillows, and have so many covers for them at home.” Deanne says. “My mom and I love it.” With her family, Deanne discovered that changing throw pillow covers are the easiest way to switch up the mood of the space.

As an interior designer, Deanne had a thorough understanding of textures, patterns, and quality materials that were essential for home furnishing. “I had to do a market research to find out if there was a market for pillow covers, and there was! That was when I decided to start the pillow business.” 

COVID-19 was an unprecedented economic setback for many, but some business owners, like Deanne, took the opportunity to brainstorm. “I started Twenty Third during a pandemic,” Deanne explains. “I had so much time [to work on it] because I can’t go out, no gym activities, no friends, no socializing.” 

With a lot of time in her hands, Deanne manifested the idea of Twenty Third by Deanne to reality.

“Currently, the biggest struggle is scaling the business since Twenty Third is run from home.” Deanne says that making sure there’s enough space for all the resources needed to run the business as well as not having enough manpower for operations are some of the challenges. “I started it alone in 2020, and the team is slowly growing but as of now, it’s still small. I produce most of the content and everything is home based.”

Deanne expresses that doing similar things every day can be demotivating. “The beginning was easier than what it is now, since there was nothing to prove to anyone but yourself. But as you go along, doing the same thing every day is a struggle. I ask myself, ‘How do I stay motivated? How do I sustain this?” 

Deanne says that she relieves herself of the day to day struggle by being passionate about the business and the products. “I am motivated by my dream of what Twenty Third can be.” 

“The pressure of what’s next is always there, and that’s scary.” Deanne says.

However, she doesn’t let the pressure get to her, and is determined to pursue bigger dreams. “Eventually, my goal is to become a full home furnishing company.” As of now, Twenty Third by Deanne is focused on vintage and patchwork pillows, rugs, throws, and other home accessories, but Deanne dreams of expanding to furniture, fixtures, and other home needs. “I want to be able to furnish a whole house with just Twenty Third products.”

“Focus on staying true to yourself and creating the content that makes you the happiest!” Sara says. 

Sara also shares that her favorite part of her home is definitely her living room.  “It’s the coziest part of our home where we spend the most time as a family.” She considers it the true heart of her home. “I love taking in all of the little details we put so much work in and being reminded of the memories of us building everything.”

She emphasizes the importance of her family in her journey. “I’m a very simple person that finds fulfillment in the love for my family and creating. I had to overcome extremely hard struggles in my past for the happiness and success that I currently have today—we literally started from the bottom.” She explains. “I treasure everyone that believes in me and roots for my family everyday. We don’t have much of that in our personal lives, but the amount of support from the people that follow us is overwhelming and beautiful. We are so thankful.”

As we wrap up women’s month, it’s good to be reminded of how women supporting other women goes a long way. I owe a lot of the success of Twenty Third by Deanne to our loyal customers, and I’m committed to making the shop bigger and better for all of you. On another note, celebrating women shouldn’t only last one month— let’s celebrate the amazing women in our lives every day! Once again, happy International Women’s Month. 

Love, 

Deanne