Story & Lesson Highlights with Suad Cano of Inglewood

We recently had the chance to connect with Suad Cano and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Suad, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
We’re proud of building a strong family culture. Only our designers, who know us the longest, know that most of our workers have been here for decades. From 14 years to 42 years; it’s something as an owner that makes me feel the most proud.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are one of the country’s premier and largest importers of global vintage furniture, pottery, and accessories. What makes us most unique is the sheer variety in the number of countries we import from. Currently, it stands at over 20. We have been a favorite of many of Los Angeles top designers and people in the industry for over five decades. It’s an industry that is built on trends, and keeping ahead of them is one of the reasons why we have in business for so long.

We are proud of our ability to adapt and change even after so many years. For instance, when we moved and
bought our property 8 years ago here in Inglewood. We recognized that with over 24,000 square feet of outdoor space, we were going to have to pivot a bit in our buying habits and lean into outdoor decor more heavily.
We started there, and almost immediately, designers, landscapers, and eventually the public at large recognized us as a destination for exterior decor.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I was working in downtown Los Angeles as a therapist/social worker with
African American and Hispanic teenagers. My Chaldean Iraqi ancestry offered
a unique perspective allowing me to find commonality between cultures that
typically didn’t get along. That job sparked my love for intercultural
communication and became the impetus for travel to places like Egypt,
Morocco, and Mexico, ultimately leading to importing as a profession.

When did you last change your mind about something important?
I have learned that one must remain flexible and adapt if you wish to be successful over the long term. After moving into our space and building a reputation for having some of the industry’s best vessels for both the interior and exterior, we recognized that bringing plants and life into this space was a necessary next step.

I have been in business for myself for so long, but an opportunity that felt quite fated to me came. A young brand named The Plant Daddies reached out to us by accident as we were assessing next steps in the plant space. They were at the time a relatively unknown resource in the design world, but we liked them, and we did something that I normally wouldn’t do. We invited them into the warehouse, which is my second home, to handle that aspect of the business.

All one has to do is spend 5 minutes on social media or online to see the results of this decision. I am so proud of them and what they have accomplished in so little time. We have partnered with them in a second location in Irvine and spawned many copy cats.

Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes, because this business is an extension of who I am. While I don’t always feel comfortable doing it, when I do reels on Instagram, I am always amazed at how engagement skyrockets, but I do think it’s because people connect with my love affair for what I do.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I have always done what I felt I was born to do. From the time I left Iraq as a teenager for Los Angeles by myself and made my way into USC and worked two jobs cleaning dishes to put myself through school, to my rewarding career in social work, to finally taking a chance in betting on myself to start a business as a woman in the mid 70’s I have always followed my heart and passion.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://WWW.BerbereImports.com
• Instagram: @BerbereImports

Image Credits
I have the rights to any images submitted