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Let’s face it: If you haven’t entertained the “twin” fantasy at some point in your life, you are stronger person than I.
Which is why after an hour with the two men behind duoHOME, the interior design studio and store in the Gordon Square Arts District, I knew their yin-and-yang offerings had the potential to satisfy most anyone’s steamy-hot decorating fantasies.
duoHOME is about duality. It’s both a design studio and retail store. It’s the merchandise that is high quality but surprisingly affordable. It’s an aesthetic that straddles a zone between antique and modern style.
And it’s the two owners: Tim Kempf and Scott Suskowicz — practically twins (if fraternal), they manage to finish each other’s thoughts while maintaining complementary design skills (Scott’s the technical one, Tim “prefers to deal with fabrics”) and philosophies.
And as they’re quick to clear up: They’re single, not together and not exes.
I started our recent conversation by asking how duoHOME came to be in November 2007, and sat back as the chat took on a life of its own after that.
 “We’ve known each other for probably about 15 years. We both worked at the Ohio Design Centre in Beachwood,” Tim says. “… We’re both educated in design; we’d talked about going out on our own.”
“Truth be told,” Scott adds, “it was one of those days when you’re very frustrated.”
The two had attended the opening of what is now their neighbor store, Kitsch City.
“‘Gosh, we could do this,’” Tim says they realized. “‘We could have a cute store here.’”
Detroit Shoreway was in the beginning stages of its current makeover, and Scott says they heard the rumblings of what was on the horizon. “You could see they had a vision.”
Tim had a bigger vision: turning Gordon Square into the “gayborhood.”
“I thought that since this is Detroit (Avenue) and they’re trying the make this ‘the’ neighborhood, they should make this ‘’mo town,’” he says.
“We were most emphatically rejected by Detroit Shoreway,” he adds with a laugh.
Their ultimate, not-as-lofty-as-a-gayborhood vision was something they had seen in other cities.
“Columbus has some other lifestyle shops, like we are. When you get to Cincinnati, a lot of the designers there have little storefronts,” Scott says. “… So we looked at it and said, ‘This sort of thing does not exist in Cleveland.’”
 An often-heard comment from customers: “Oh, you’re like shops in Toronto.”
“I can’t think of another store that’s like ours,” Tim adds.
Design is the bulk of the pair’s business, but the physical location has a purpose.
“We wanted to have a storefront to give us credibility,” Tim says. “We try to present things that are different and unique that real people can afford.”
Plus, he adds, “You get to live vicariously through things you purchase for the store.”
So how would they describe the store’s merchandise?
“Our overall studio style is more transitional,” Tim says — somewhere between antique and modern. “... (It’s) more about things that you love.”
The 800-square-foot storefront packs enough to satisfy even those shoppers addicted to browsing. Currently on display is the artwork of Laurel Herbold, along with her whimsical Wee People glassware. There’s Primitive Artisans — recycled glass bowls in vibrant colors. And Positively Green, which features 100-percent-recycled-paper greeting cards. (The company gives a chunk of its profits to green nonprofits.)
And “some mid-century stuff because they’re just iconic pieces of furniture that have been loved for more than half a century,” Tim adds.
 With a location in the inner-city, in one of the hottest neighborhoods in Cleveland, you might be surprised by duoHOME’s clientele.
“We’ve had an insurgence of people from Bay Village,” Scott says, not to mention a steady stream from Chagrin Falls.
“The neighborhood people have been very supportive, so we see them all the time,” he adds.
But what about the gays?
“Not as much as we had hoped,” he says, laughing. “The business plan counts on it!”
Click here for Part Two of our conversation, in which the duoHOME duo tackle bad Cleveland design, Precious Moments figurines and why dimmer switches and a good bed are the best investments any gay can make.
The Details
duoHOME
6507 Detroit Ave., Cleveland
216-651-4411
www.duohome.com
Hours:
Tuesday through Saturday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday: 12 to 5 p.m.
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