Today we’d like to introduce you to Matthew Juros and Kristin Naumann.
Matthew and Kristin, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Kristin and I value engagement with the communities where we live and work. It’s a big part of who we are. Our studio is located in the gateway community of Haverhill, MA.
It’s a pocket-sized city that is a bustling hot-house of urbanism, art and politics. It is just big enough to have a vibrant and growing downtown, an active arts community and a city government that is both sophisticated and inclusive. The majority of our clients and projects are in Boston and Cambridge, but we are IN Haverhill up to our elbows. We work with local developers, non-profits as well as other businesses. Although we’re likely to be found in front of the city council representing clients, it’s not unheard of that one of us would attend city council meetings just to take part.
We met in 1989 while working at a firm in Cambridge, MA. Kristin had just finished her Master in Architecture at Rice University in Houston, TX and I was just about to begin my own masters in the same program.
For roughly the next 15 years, we worked at different firms in Boston and Cambridge and collaborated often.
In early 2004, we opened Fishbrook Design Studio in the repurposed hayloft of a 18th century barn overlooking the Fish Brook in Boxford, MA. The firm eventually outgrew the space, which had been a recording studio before we took it over. We didn’t move very far. In 2011, we swapped our view of the Fish Brook for a view of the Merrimack River in next door Haverhill, MA.
Today we practice in our bright store-front office at 52 Wingate Street. As an integral part of the downtown ‘Arts District’ Fishbrook Design Studio, is helping to reshape Haverhill’s burgeoning downtown.
We are proud to continue practicing well-crafted, personal architecture born equally of our client’s vision and our reverence for technology and history.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Has it been a smooth ride? No. Not close.
We founded the firm during the sizzling economy of the early otties. During that time, my marketing consisted of answering the telephone and saying, “thank you.” We were so busy that we didn’t have time to grow. We were an office of five souls when the great recession struck.
Our employees had to fend for themselves. Kris found a gig doing medical interiors and I got busy developing my networking and marketing skills.
It was a grim period but I think it made us a stronger, more fit business. We re-assembled the office in Haverhill with a broader set of design experiences and healthier approach to business development.
Fishbrook Design Studio – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I think one feature of our business is that we continue to learn. Kris and I have a background in retail, residential, office interiors and educational design. Fishbrook’s clients and projects reflect our experience.
When Kris rejoined the firm, she had a new skill set. She trained me in senior living interior design. We eventually met Paige, our Purchasing Director who has a deep back ground in furniture and equipment purchasing. Medical and senior living interiors has become our most important type of project.
Lately, we’re spending a great deal of energy on multi-family residential design. I am working with three local developers on projects in downtown Haverhill which, if they are built, will shape the community for years to come.
I look at Design as a collaboration between the client, design team (including consulting engineers) and the contractor. I need to understand what the building or space needs to communicate. My job is to create an environment that delivers that message. This is the essence of design. The design is guided by the client’s message. It can be flamboyant or understated depending on the tone and content of the message. If our work effectively communicates my client’s message our design is good. If the message is communicated with inventiveness and delight, it is important. So that’s the key. We want to do important design.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I am most proud of our interior design and furniture purchasing for senior living communities. Call me a geek, but this is a complex space. It’s technically challenging and is rapidly evolving as we prepare for the next generation of “seasoned adults.”
Contact Info:
- Address: Fishbrook Design Studio
52 Wingate Street, Haverhill, MA - Website: fishbrook.com
- Phone: 978-914-6876
- Email: mjuros@fishbrook.com
- Facebook: facebook.com/Fishbrook-Design-Studio-529102827223559/
- Other: linkedin.com/in/fishbrook/
pinterest.com/fishbrookdesign/boards/ - Yelp: @Fishbrook
Image Credit:
Laura B. Kozlowski Photography
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