spotlight
BOBBYBERK BETTER WORLD
QUEER EYE FOR DESIGN BUILDING A
by joel martens He’s got hisQueer Eye trained squarely on building a better world both
inside and out. Changing the perspective of what defines a home for those he and his five compatriots work with: one person at a time, one room at a time and one heart at a time. Bobby Berk’s personal success story is the stuff American Dreams are
made of. How he escaped the oppression of the Bible Belt and Assemblies of God church that he grew up in is nothing short of inspirational. Walking away from a place that constantly reminded him that being gay was an “abomination,” literally digging his way out from under it and building a life and successful career from the ground up. Success that most recently landed him as the celebrated interior design star on the Netflix seriesQueer Eye. His life is a testimony, illustrating that even under the most difficult of circumstances, living your truth is tantamount to achieving success.
It’s a victory he shared withThe Rage Monthly as he discussed achieving it and what it took for him to attain it.
So, tell us the story about how you got started in the design business. Honestly, I kind of fell into it. I’ve always liked design and it was something that captured my attention; but growing up in Missouri I never thought of it as something I could do for a living. I ended up leaving home at 15 and working in retail in home stores like Bombay Company, The Great Indoors and Restoration Hardware, places like that. Through that I started working in the design areas, then I started working at Portico in New York and when they ended up going under, I thought, “Well hey, I’m going to try and do this on my own.” I sold a couple things online while I looked for another job and did really well. After that I started opening up my own stores in New York, Miami,
Atlanta and L.A. and through those stores I started designing furniture and customer’s homes. Then I had the opportunity to design the show home for the International Builder’s Show a few years ago. I enjoyed it way more than I liked running a retail company, so as my leases came up I eventually closed
WE DIDN’T WANT TO TEAR ANYONE DOWN
AND WERE SO TIRED OF ALL THE NEGATIVITY ON TELEVISION AND IN THE NEWS.
WE WANTED TO BUILD PEOPLE UP AND POINT OUT ALL THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT THEM AND HELP WITH THEIR SELF-ESTEEM.”
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RAGE monthly | SEPTEMBER 2018
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