The Picket Fence has helped many Wood River Valley residents make their houses into homes over the past 37 years. The secret to their success? Understanding what their clients want. Well, that and an unrelenting talent for finding treasures—for the home and for gift giving. While The Picket Fence supplies the Sun Valley area with the finer things in life—Egyptian cotton bedding, beautiful furniture, memorable table décor, interior design services, and more—you are sure to find just about anything you might want for your home or your friends at any price point.
Jennett Zimmerman, who has been with The Picket Fence for eight years and counting, says, “Lynn Simpson, the owner of The Picket Fence, is known for her approach—do it right the first time, or it’s not worth doing,” and according to Zimmerman, that approach infuses everything that she and the staff at The Picket Fence do. Simpson, who grew up in a small town, bought the store 10 years ago because she wanted to ensure that there was a retail space in Ketchum, a place she and her family have been coming for years, that quieted the noise of the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives and offered a sanctuary from how busy we are. “Before I bought The Picket Fence, I shopped there every time I came to town. It was often the first place I visited when I arrived and the last place I stopped before I left. Shopping there always gave me such a welcomed feeling of belonging. I bought the store to make sure we could maintain that and always strive to make the experience even better.”
You don’t need to look any further than the two Picket Fence showrooms in Ketchum to see the extent to which this attitude has taken root. The in-store shopping experience keeps clients coming back. Inside either the store or the linen showroom and design studio, you feel like you are inside a welcoming home. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to have a personal shopper—look no further than the staff at The Picket Fence. When you’re in the store, the staff strikes just the right balance between attentiveness and giving you the space you need to browse. And they know their customers—their aesthetics, their style, and their homes. Interior designer Erika Blank says, “Our customers are our friends. We love seeing familiar faces walk through the door each season. We get to know people’s tastes and their likes, and from there we can make informed and inspired suggestions for their homes or for gifts for special people in their lives.” Simpson and her team ensure that every detail communicates how much they appreciate their customers—from the small things like the tissue paper and the bags to the bigger things like personal interactions in the showrooms.
What started as a small home décor store has grown into much more than that because the staff has long taken their roles as curators seriously. Zimmerman says, “Our staff takes pride in being able to find the right collections for our clients—long-standing customers and new customers who wander in looking for something special. We go to High Point in North Carolina, New York, Atlanta, Paris—you name it—we go because we are always looking for the right products for our clients.” At first, it was bedding and their mission was to provide Sun Valley area clients the best in the bedding world. And that commitment has never wavered. On a recent Picket Fence blog, Blank breaks down the various characteristics of bedding that you should consider in your search for the perfect sheets—and the pitfalls of some marketing techniques. She says, “It’s not all about the thread count,” even though thread count is what many companies push.
Yes, she concedes, thread count is important, but in recent years, companies have been misrepresenting the thread count. She says, “Excess threads are often woven into the horizontal threads to increase the thread count. These tiny broken threads, called picks, are how some sheets end up having thread counts in the thousands, yet are very inexpensive.” Instead, Blank recommends paying attention to the fiber used—“Long cotton fibers are worth their weight in gold. Egyptian cotton sets the bar by which all other cottons are judged.” Also consider weave (percale and sateen are popular ones), price (yes, price matters!), and the companies. The Picket Fence has been offering the best in bedding all these years and the companies that consistently make the cut for them include Sferra, Matouk, Nancy Koltes, Peacock Alley, Yves Delorme, and now The Picket Fence is excited to offer its own private Picket Fence bed linens. Sales associate Tina Lane says, “The introduction to high-quality bedding has truly changed the way I sleep. There’s nothing like crawling into buttery smooth Egyptian cotton sheets at the end of a long day. Once you’ve tried the real thing, you’ll never go back!”
The careful study that The Picket Fence staff has always put into their selection of bedding is now applied to other home décor and gifting items. If you are ever looking for the right gift for someone special in your life, The Picket Fence is the place to go. Whether it’s Christmas, Mother’s or Father’s Day, a birthday, a hostess, or anniversary gift, The Picket Fence has a wide selection at various price points. About the way the staff curates their collections, Simpson says, “The items we select are meant to inspire a lifestyle that celebrates family gatherings, love of home, and a love of the ‘good things’ in life. Whether it is a cookbook, a gift for a loved one, or a set of luxurious sheets, each item in The Picket Fence is intended to inspire and celebrate the beauty of living.”
It takes a dedicated and creative team to keep collections at The Picket Fence fresh and eclectic. Most importantly, the staff takes pride in how dynamic the showrooms are and how The Picket Fence experience is ever-evolving. Interior designer Heidi Stearns raves about the team she works with at The Picket Fence and says, “If you haven’t been to The Picket Fence in a while, you should stop by—we’ve changed quite a bit in the past few years.”
The Picket Fence is a jewel in the small town of Ketchum and it brings world-class home décor to full- and part-time homeowners. But The Picket Fence also develops long-lasting relationships with visitors to Sun Valley and can help anyone who discovers this gem through their extensive website where they offer a wide selection. Simpson says, “The fact that The Picket Fence is in a small town forces our buyers to select only what they think will inspire others… maybe the inspiration is to stay in bed a little longer in a new set of crisp sheets, or to set a beautiful table for a family gathering, or to linger over a new book by the fire. These are all things that The Picket Fence aspires to offer in an environment that is meant to feel like shopping in the comfort of your own home.”
For more information, call The Picket Fence at 208.726.5511 or visit www.thepicketfence.com.
