Editor’s note: This month’s Business Beacon is a spotlight on Summer House Lifestyle, part design haven, part style playground. Owner Melissa Skowlund talks custom everything, the art of curation, and how every project should feel like a seaside homecoming. Find them on the web and Instagram at @summerhouselifestyle and @designbar30A.
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1. How did you get the idea or concept for your business?
MS: When I first visited the area, I saw enormous potential and the need for a timeless, classic design studio as the area developed. When we moved to 30A in 2011, I did just that.
2. Let’s discuss numbers: What year did you open? How many locations do you have? How many people do you employ?
MS: We opened in 2012 and have one main location for our two-part experience: the Design Bar and the Store, which serves as a lifestyle boutique that is representative of the design work we do. We have around 15 employees between the Design Bar, store, and warehouse.
3. What do you sell or what service do you provide? What’s your best seller?
MS: We have both a design studio and a lifestyle boutique, which holds everything from clothing and accessories to fine linens and tabletop, as well as furniture and lighting that reflects the style of our interior design work. Because of this integration, it’s hard to nail down a “best-seller,” but the store definitely helps our clients with accessorizing their design projects!
4. What’s unique about what you do or offer?
MS: We offer a unique amount of customization and personalization with design projects, which we think sets us apart. Our connections with local and national subcontractors and vendors help to facilitate this level of customization to truly make the design experience unique and exciting. As for the store, we have curated a unique collection of items ranging from clothing to skincare to furniture and art—products you won’t find anywhere else on 30A.
5. How would you describe your business to a potential customer?
MS: Very customer-oriented and driven by the pursuit of design (and a lifestyle) that is classic, timeless, yet fresh.
6. What do you love most about your line of work?
MS: The relationships with clients who turn into lifelong friends.
7. What sorts of trends are you seeing in your industry?
MS: Wallpaper has been a huge trend in recent years. As much as we aim for timeless design, we love adding texture and dimension, especially using grasscloth.
8. Tell me in just a sentence or two what you feel sets you apart from your competitors.
MS: We focus on relationships with our customers and making them feel that their project is truly valued. This pairs with the high level of customization we offer, curating a high-quality and timeless, yet personal, look.
9. Who or what inspires you?
MS: My dad has been a huge inspiration, especially in his views on customer service. He always emphasized building trust through genuine care for clients and staff, and striving to make things better every day.
10. What’s the best thing about being a part of the Emerald Coast, personally and/or professionally?
MS: The unique natural beauty and the entrepreneurial community that has flourished here.
11. Are you/your business involved in the community in any way?
MS: Yes. We donate to Lauren’s Legacy, a pregnancy crisis center founded by a client and dear friend that provides healthcare, resources, and counseling to women during pregnancy.
12. What does a typical day in your business look like?
MS: No two days are the same! A day could include client meetings at the Design Bar, site visits, sourcing at a showroom, traveling to an out-of-town client’s home—the possibilities are endless.
13. What’s your best “insider tip?”
MS: The shoulder seasons [the months between the peak seasons] on 30A are the best times to be here!
14. How do you recharge or relax when the day is done?
MS: A long walk on the beach with my family and three dogs always does the trick.
15. Just the deets, please!
MS: Summer House Lifestyle is located at 26 Origins Main St., Suite 100, in WaterSound. Find them on the web and Instagram at @summerhouselifestyle and @designbar30A.
16. If there was just one thing you wish the public knew about your business, what would it be?
MS: We are blessed with the best clients and staff on 30A. We’re family-owned, and this has been a labor of love—nearly 15 years of thoughtful curation and intentional creation of what you see today.
Written by Beth Hendricks on August 5, 2025. Posted in Featured, Home Decor, Local Business
