“It was something that we knew about and were aware of, but my parents made an effort to not bring it home too much,” says Dau.
Though the siblings never felt pressured by their parents, both joined the business as adults. Allen took on a customer service role 12 years ago, and Dau joined the sales team seven years ago. Then, last fall, their father, Paul Dau, retired, and Dau and Allen became the fifth generation to run the showroom.
The siblings agree that they get along “exceptionally well.” The industry is full of family businesses, Dau says, and they know that’s not always the case.
“Anytime there’s tension, we know we have the best interests of the business at heart,” Dau says. “We hear each other out so that we do what’s best for the business, our customers, our employees.”
This story is from the Jan/Feb 2020 edition of DesignSTL.
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This story is from the Jan/Feb 2020 edition of DesignSTL.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Cut from the Same Cloth
“Turkey Tracks” is a 19th-century quiltmaking pattern that has the appearance of little wandering feet. Patterns like the tracks, and their traditions and myths, have been passed down through the generations, from their frontier beginnings to today, where a generation of makers has embraced the material as a means of creating something new. Olivia Jondle is one such designer. Here, she’s taken an early turkey track-pattern quilt, cut it into various shapes, and stitched the pieces together, adding calico and other fabric remnants as needed. The result is a trench coat she calls the Pale Calico Coat. Her designs are for sale at The Rusty Bolt, Jondle’s small-batch fashion company based in St. Louis. —SAMANTHA STEVENSON
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