Page 51 - Lighting Magazine September 2018

and Business, easily landing a full-time position at a renowned search engine optimization company in Baltimore. She enjoyed her work, but her skill- set grew in tandem with an undeniable feeling of discontent. “I was miserable,” she reveals. “I hated staring at a computer screen for eight hours a day.”
Much like her father, life on the road beckoned — and so did the industry. Blake enrolled in Kichler’s extensive rep training program and moved to the company’s headquarters in Cleveland. She spent weeks in each department – design, customer service, defects – learning every aspect of what it means to bring a product to market. A er seven months, she was o cially a rep for one of the in- dustry’s largest manufacturers.
Blake moved to Florida in 2015 to cover Kichler’s southern territories, and last November opened her own agency, adding several designer lines (such as Coppersmith) to her line card. She also teaches showroom managers in her territory how to make their stores stand out on the internet, plus uses her expertise in SEO, coding, back-end website building, and social media to further edu- cate her clients.
“I hold training meetings once or twice a week to show how to use the internet as an e ective sales tool,” Blake explains. “I’m grateful to be able
Lighting Up the World “When I was older, I helped my father
whenever I could. I saw the dedication and hard work that’s needed to run a business, and the reward that comes from the blood, sweat, and tears.”
— Lori Fellner
to combine my degree with my love for the lighting industry. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, but looking at it now, it all makes sense.”
Unlike his sister, Tyler has known what he’s want- ed to do since he was 12 years old. The youngest Fellner recalls going out to breakfast with his mom and one of their showroom reps a er a doctor’s appointment. “I liked that he had the freedom to go out to breakfast with me and my mom,” Tyler explains. “Mr. Eddie wasn’t con ned to an o ce. He got to travel and meet new people. I knew from that day that it was what I wanted to do as well.”
A er college, Tyler moved to Michigan and immediately began repping for several lighting
The “family” was together at the recent Lightovation show. From le to right: Sco Fellner, Morgan Marrale and her boyfriend Tyler Fellner, and his sister Blake.
SepteMber 2018 | enLIGHTenment Magazine 49