Popping Up for the Holidays: Red Door Home StoreJesse and Stacie Borjon opened this small business in 2015 with hopes to fill a niche they believed Topeka was missing.

Photos by: Emma Highfill | Rose Wheat Photography & Grace Place

Open the bright red doors of Red Door Home Store in Fairlawn Plaza Shopping Center and step into a world of timeless furniture, home accessories, seasonal items and holiday decor and gifts. Jesse and Stacie Borjon opened this small business in 2015 with hopes to fill a niche they believed Topeka was missing.

“When Stacie and I wanted to shop for home decor, we often found ourselves going outside of Topeka to find the things we wanted.

So we thought, why not have those things offered right here in Topeka,” Jesse said.

The couple took their ideas to the Washburn Small Business Development Center and put their dream into action.

The Borjons named Red Door Home Store after a property management company they own called Red Door Property Management— which was named after the odd pattern in the properties they looked at purchasing—they all had red doors.

“When we opened up our home decor store, Red Door lent itself well to a home decor store, so we went with that,” Jesse said.

The first few years that Red Door Home Store was open, the Borjons participated in the Junior League of Kansas City’s Holiday Mart at Bartle Hall. While there, a representative from the Town Center Plaza Shopping Center in Leawood approached them and asked if they would do a Christmas store.

“We were pretty confident in its potential based on the response we received from our customers in Topeka and at the Holiday Mart, so we thought we should take the risk and give it a try,” Jesse said.

In October of 2019, Red Door Home Store expanded by opening its first seasonal pop-up store at the Town Center Plaza located in Leawood, Kansas. The store was open from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, and according to Jesse, the store was a success.

“We try to carry things that are not readily available online and to be competitive in pricing,” Jesse said. “We style the store to give our customers ideas on how to use decor items to achieve a certain look, but it really comes down to customer experience.”

The Borjons weren’t always small business owners. Jesse worked for the state for 15 years and Stacie is a high school biology teacher. The two have really enjoyed being small business owners and make a point to give back to the community.

“We wanted our store to be very involved in the community. We supported SLI Festival of Trees, are involved in the CASA Holiday Homes Tour, and most recently partnered with the Helping Hands Humane Society to sell fun little tea towels that raised funds for the shelter,” Jesse said.

“I think it is an important part of small business to be able to give back.”

With the success of the seasonal pop-up store at Town Center Plaza, Jesse says they are exploring the possibility of adding more locations regionally.

“We have been pleasantly surprised by the number of customers that are coming to our Topeka location after shopping with us in Leawood,” Jesse said. “We have been blessed with very talented wonderful folks that work at the store and a very loyal group of customers.”

Red Door Home Store in Topeka is open year-round, and in addition to home decor and furnishings they offer in-home design services with a highly creative, experienced group of designers.