Jochebed Essel’s found herself in the world of interior design by surprise. After graduating with a degree in Health Sciences and Psychology, she took a job at a home goods store to make some money while she figured out her next step. Little did she know that this part-time job would become her passion as she fell in love with home decor and design.
“What piqued my interest was learning ways to support customers in creating beautiful spaces,” shared Jochebed. “As I moved up within the company, I was able to try different this and express my interests and interior design style working on floor plans, in-store curation and merchandising that season’s trends.”
Even though she enjoyed her role, she always dreamed of breaking out of the corporate mould and starting her brand. “The racial climate in 2020 made me take a step back and look at the organization I was working for as an individual and decide if it was a company that I wanted to be part of my professional identity,” reflected Jochebed. “I felt like I was at a crossroads, and I had always had a desire and a dream to start my brand, and it felt like the right time to make that leap.”
Get the Look
“When I started Everyday Joy, I wanted people to be able to create spaces in their home filled with joy and make it easy for them to find that joy through the objects and textiles they bring into their spaces.” Her approach to design makes it easy to find on-trend home goods that match. “We strive to provide visual resources to help our customers to recreate looks easily, and our focus is on providing content on our blog and social media to help them achieve that look.”
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“I describe my style as warm, organic and modern. I love to mix structural elements with curved pieces to reflect the natural movement in everyday life. I also love clean and tailored designs that also provide a bit of warmth so that the space feels balanced.”
Building Community
“Our overarching goal is to be both product and service based as our business has two sides,” explains Jochebed. She works with local artisans and sources products and textiles to create items in-house to offer a one-of-a-kind online shopping experience.
She has also designed an Everyday Joy Studio on Queen Street East in Toronto, where photographers can book the space for personal and professional shoots. This studio doubles as their showroom decorated with this season’s statement pieces to offer her customers visual inspiration. “I love supporting other small businesses and female-led companies. This curated space lets us connect with the community and evolve our brand.”
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While Jochebed has a plan for growing her online marketplace, right now, she is most excited about the newest collection that she designed that will be dropping online this fall. “Our focus is textiles for the fall and worked with Ontario-based sewest to design patterns locally,” shares Jochebed.
“It’s been an amazing journey to have customers across Canada connect to our products. For me, it’s been amazing to see and hear how people have redefined their spaces with items from Everyday Joy. I am also looking forward to the return of in-person experiences to welcome our customers to our studio space and curate wellness-focused installations.”
Images courtesy of Tatiyanna Williams and Shubila K.
