In the first half of my conversation with Nicola Manganello, founder and principal designer of Nicola’s Home in Yarmouth, Maine, we explore the remarkable path that took her from a small retail shop on Marina Road to one of Maine’s most respected full-service design-build firms.

Nicola reflects on her early years growing up in a deeply entrepreneurial family—her father built Olympia Sports—and how being raised around creativity, risk-taking, and constant reinvention shaped her own instincts as a designer and builder. She shares the story of opening her first shop in her 20s, living in half the building and running her business out of the other half, and how a single customer’s comment—“I can get something for me, something for my home, and something for my soul”—sparked an entirely new direction for her career.

What began as a small, warmly curated store evolved organically into interior design consulting, then into full renovations, and eventually into Nicola’s signature aesthetic: creating homes that feel timeless, gathered, and deeply lived-in. Her early projects, including whole-house renovations she lived in and sold, became her first marketing portfolio.

This episode also traces the bold leap that led to Maeve’s Way, her signature 12-acre neighborhood in Cumberland Foreside—conceived and built during 2008, one of the most challenging real estate markets in recent memory. From lifting and relocating an original farmhouse to investing in full landscaping and furnishings, Nicola describes the risks she took and the vision that guided her: building new homes that look and feel as though they have always been there.

Throughout the conversation, Nicola speaks with candor about the work ethic instilled by her parents, the emotional realities of building homes for families, and her belief that the right space can keep people together. Her philosophy is rooted in intention, comfort, and a desire to create gathering places where memories can take root.

💬 Key Themes

• Entrepreneurial roots: how growing up in a retail family shaped Nicola’s approach to design, business, and risk-taking
• From shop to studio: the unexpected moment that propelled her from retail into interior design
• Design as storytelling: creating spaces that feel familiar, warm, and “broken-in”—never precious, always welcoming
• The leap to Maeve’s Way: building a signature neighborhood during a recession, moving a historic home, and shaping a cohesive aesthetic
• Spaces that gather and hold: why Nicola believes thoughtful design can keep families connected across generations
• Craft, comfort, and memory: her philosophy of blending elegance with ease, creating homes that become part of a family’s story

Episo

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