My journey to creating PARO didn’t begin with a business plan—it began with a pause. I was on my second maternity leave, living in a city we loved, but everything around me felt uncertain. My husband had just started his own company. I had stepped away from my career in design. We were renting while we figured out where to buy, and then, out of nowhere, our landlords sold the house. We had to leave. Fast.

We searched for a place to live, but the housing market was a mess. Rentals were scarce, prices were climbing, and every lead seemed to fall through. We finally found a place that felt right, but at the last moment, the owners changed their minds. With the clock ticking, a baby and a toddler, we had no home.

We packed our entire lives into storage and moved in with family. What we thought would be a few weeks stretched into over 10 months. For the first time in my life, I didn’t have a space that felt like mine. I was grateful, of course—but I also felt completely ungrounded.

Without my own space, I realized just how deeply our environments affect us. That season lit a fire in me. I’d worked in high-end interior design for 10 years, where clients had access to the best. But I saw a gap—what about the rest of us? The people with families, budgets, and real chaos?

That’s when I started asking why good design matters, not just aesthetically but neurologically. I discovered neuroaesthetics and the powerful connection between our surroundings and our well-being. I saw how everyday people could use design as a tool for better living—not just organization or beauty, but clarity, energy, and focus.

That’s what PARO is here to teach. And that’s why I’m here—to walk alongside people ready to change their home, and in doing so, change their life.