When StudioSIX5 (SS5) opened its doors on June 5, 2003, the so-called “silver tsunami” (the coming retirement of the huge baby-boom generation) was still years away from beginning. Smartphones, active adult communities and aging-in-place concepts were also years in the future. Lea von Kaenel and I founded the company of four individuals with a focus on senior living, but also provided interior design for corporate work. Following our passions, we decided in 2005 to pursue senior living exclusively.
The company offered design and purchasing services for furnishings. In the early days, the senior living marketplace consisted of fewer but larger projects—primarily CCRCs or life care communities. These large projects carried SS5 through the lean years of the Great Recession. When it was over, the marketplace had changed. Equity partners had large amounts of money to invest, so the projects were issued as portfolios consisting of four to six communities. SS5 began a period of rapid growth and designed a succession of award-winning communities from coast to coast.