feature story / 11 needs eventually became challenging. She recalls, “I had my second child and it just got to be too much for me – travel overseas and commuting.” While Marisa was searching for a career alternative, a friend asked if she would decorate her apartment. “It was on a budget and it was very minimal,” Marisa says, “but they loved it.” And they told some friends and the friends told some friends. “The next thing you know, I was getting calls every month to do projects on the side.” Scott eventually suggested that Marisa devote herself full-time to her design business. After all, he was in- vesting in real estate on the side and her talents could come in handy. She launched Marisa Friedmann Design six years ago and l a t e r f o l d e d it into a partner- ship with S c o t t when he decided to pur- sue real estate in- vesting full-time. Two years ago they launched their venture, “The Home Revivalists,” which encompasses house flipping, commercial development, interior de- sign, as well as full-scale client renova- tions. Marisa handles the design while Scott handles the project management. Reflecting on how his corporate experience prepared him, he says, “[Towards] the end I was managing 100-person teams with $10 million budgets for projects for Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan. What I’m do- ing now is very similar. I’m project managing home renovations and stick- ing to strict budgets and timelines. So it was actually a pretty easy transition for me.” Once a house is ready to go on the market, the Friedmanns work with realtor Robert Northfield to list it. Marisa says, “We are a well-oiled ma- chine with him. He handles everything with grace for us. And he has such a big team that it makes it easy.” Marisa says they approach each home project with the mindset “What would we need in order to feel happy living in the space with our kids?” Of course, neighbors notice when a home is undergoing a renovation. Left: the house was completely transformed and painted a bright white. Right: Once the back yard was cleared, the Friedmanns could see the house's potential. Scott and Marisa Friedmann SERVICE  KNOWLEDGE  EXPERTISE Broker / Sales Associate 973-214-4636 Susan.Blodgett@cbmoves.com Sales Associate 973-219-8865 Virginia.Spiegel@cbmoves.com Susan Blodgett, ABR Ginny Spiegel @WeKnowNJRealEstate MAKING HAPPY HOMES  EVEN HAPPIER. 145 Maplewood Avenue Maplewood, NJ 973-378-8300 MAKING HAPPY HOMES  EVEN HAPPIER. THE TENTH MUSE GALLERY 170 MAPLEWOOD AVENUE | MAPLEWOOD NJ 07040 973.313.2722 | INSTAGRAM @thetenthmusegallery www.TheTenthMuseGallery.com C E L E B R AT I N G 1 5 Y E A R S — N OW U N D E R N E W OW N E R S H I P ! NOW FEATURING CLARE V BAGS! is in the air!