Journey with Us to India
Shea and Martin’s love of traveling the globe is well-known. From food discovered and history explored, to art admired and customs observed, their shared passion for immersing themselves in unfamiliar cultures is a boon to our work — and to our clients, customers, and guests. This is perhaps most true when it comes to our SHIIR Rugs division, where Shea’s lifelong interest in textile design is refreshed anew each time she crosses miles, seas, and time zones on one of her twice-yearly manufacturing trips to India.
As principal designer of SHIIR Rugs, and the driving force behind SHIIR’s 444 standard offerings — not to mention SHIIR’s endless custom options — Shea loves to share her enthusiasm for India as much as she loves India itself. “The minute you step off the plane it’s an assault on the senses,” she says, “but in the best possible way. The sights, the sounds, the smells — India grabs your heart in an instant and doesn’t let go. Ever!”
This year, Shea added a stop in Nepal to her India trip, and Joe Schroeder — SHIIR’s operations manager — to her list of traveling companions. Together, the pair visited the two countries over an eleven-day period that included twelve flights and meetings with thirteen rug manufacturers. “It was a whirlwind,” Shea says, “but so productive. We were able to meet with our master artisans to discuss new designs and techniques, and source vendors for our upcoming hand-loomed collection.” Adds Joe, “If you know Shea you know she doesn’t slow down for a minute, so ‘whirlwind’ is the right word. But if you know Shea you also know she’s going to find plenty of time for fun and inspiration, so we did that, too.”
With an itinerary that began in Delhi and included time spent in Jaipur, Varanasi, and Lucknow before heading to Kathmandu, Shea and Joe squeezed in visits to palaces, shrines, gardens, and the Ganges. All fueled Shea’s wanderlust, inspired upcoming designs, and further broadened her already-considerable knowledge of the two countries’ geography, politics, and positions in the history of the world’s most influential cultures. “When you see the art that was created thousands of years ago, and get to meet with master artisans today who are practicing those same crafts, it’s just mind-boggling,” Shea says. “That’s why it’s so important to actually be there, to keep SHIIR innovating at the same time we’re honoring those histories.”
Operations Manager
Joe counts classic icons Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant among his style influences; food, family, and faith are his passions. “If I weren’t in the design world, I’d be running a restaurant or a hotel,” he says, nodding to the seriously service-oriented view he takes of his work.