Gold + Oak, the lifestyle, retail merchandising and design division of Mt. Prospect, Illinois-based Nicholas Family of Companies (NFOC), today announced it has formalized its interior design capabilities with the launch of Gold + Oak Interiors, broadening its offerings to include full-service interior design for multifamily, residential, hospitality, sports and recreation, retail and industrial projects.
To support its expanded capabilities, Gold + Oak has also brought on three strategic new hires as key team members of the new interiors division. Megan Vosburgh, Karen Hultsch and Jenna Scialabba have all joined Gold + Oak Interiors from Eleni Interiors, a former project partner on past NFOC multifamily and commercial work that has since merged with another firm, bringing their robust interior design expertise across multiple sectors to the company.
“Given our previous working relationship with Megan, Karen and Jenna on past NFOC projects, folding them into our Gold + Oak Interiors team was a natural opportunity to build out our interior design capabilities and expand on the end-to-end, value-add services we offer under the NFOC umbrella,” said Katie Papanicholas, founder of Gold + Oak who will also lead the new interiors division. “Having worked directly with them as part of the Eleni team on many successful NFOC projects over the years, including most recently multifamily communities such as The Henry at Harms Woods in Skokie and The Frederick in Oconomowoc, Wis., we know their talents align with our priorities and our pipeline of work.”
Vosburgh now serves as senior lead designer at Gold + Oak Interiors, bringing 24 years of interior design experience from her time as a senior interior designer at Eleni Interiors. She holds a Bachelor of Science in interior design from Illinois State University. Hultsch joins as senior lead designer at Gold + Oak Interiors, bringing 27 years of interior design experience from her time as senior interior designer and manager at Eleni Interiors. Preceding her time at Eleni Interiors, she spent seven years in the industry, specializing in merchandising, management and residential interiors. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in interior design from the International Academy of Merchandising and Design in Chicago. Scialabba now serves as lead designer with Gold + Oak Interiors after spending four years at Eleni Interiors as a junior interior designer. Before her time at Eleni Interiors, she spent two years working with a construction firm developing construction documents. She earned a Bachelor of Science in interior design from Western Michigan University.
In addition to expanding its interior design offering, Gold + Oak is also growing its retail footprint with the addition of a second storefront offering a curated selection of home goods and gifts. Joining the original Gold + Oak boutique in Mount Prospect, Ill., the new store in Oconomowoc, Wis., will open this fall as one of the first commercial tenants at Pabst59, a 59-acre live/work/play community being developed by Wingspan Development Group and built by Nicholas & Associates, which are both NFOC firms.
