By Katie Vaughn | Photography by Hillary Schave
When Jill Dybdahl opened Dybdahl Design Group with her husband Paul in 1992, their four-year-old daughter Anna began coming to the office with them whenever she wasn’t in school. In a pair of full-circle moments, Anna Herman officially joined the company in 2010, and now her daughter, Charlotte, is growing up observing the business too.
Based in Middleton for more than 30 years, Dybdahl Design Group focuses on helping homeowners create custom-designed kitchens, bathrooms, offices, wine cellars and other spaces. With more than 2,000 projects to their name, the company works in styles ranging from traditional to modern — and everything in between.
“The only thing I’d say [that’s] signature to us is our quality,” Dybdahl says. “It’s known that each project is unique to that client.”
“Everything is absolutely custom made to order,” Herman adds.
Dybdahl and Herman enjoy the work, and how each project provides the opportunity to improve their clients’ lifestyles.
“It’s important to us as a company to learn how people use their spaces,” Herman says, “to find what’s best for their family and flow.”
Clients seem to appreciate the commitment and sense of stability that come from a family-run company, and Dybdahl and Herman say that working together suits them as well. It helps that each knows her individual role — Dybdahl is senior designer and Herman runs the business side.
“It’s perfectly natural,” Dybdahl says of working with her daughter. “We have such mutual respect for each other’s gifts and talents.”
“Clients love her,” Herman says of her mom. “A lot of them become lifelong friends.”
It’s also meaningful to both Dybdahl and Herman that Charlotte is growing up not only spending so much time with them, but also seeing her mother and grandmother work well together.
“I think it just shows really good family values,” Herman says.
“We have excellent communication,” Dybdahl says. “Our phones are always on for each other. We are always available for each other.”
