Broke, Happy, and Building Wealth with Heather Osmond
with Heather Osmond
About this episode
Some women build wealth quietly, one small sacrifice at a time, long before anyone notices. Heather Osmond is one of them. On this episode of the YES! Women's Network Podcast, host Jodi Lemon talks with the Utah entrepreneur and designer behind Osmond Designs about starting broke and happy in a basement apartment with 6'5" ceilings, growing a furniture and interior design company, buying and selling dozens of properties, and rebuilding after a 28 year marriage ended.
It is a conversation about patience more than luck. Heather does not describe a single breakthrough moment. She describes a series of small decisions, made early, that compounded into freedom.
How Heather Osmond Built Osmond Designs From a Chair and a Bookcase
Heather is a born and raised Utah girl. She went to Provo High and BYU, worked in the women's clothing department at ZCMI in Orem, married at 19, and had four children. When she and her husband wanted their first home, they needed a down payment, so she got her real estate license.
Showing houses taught her something unexpected. The homes were fine. The presentation was not. She started rearranging what sellers already owned, making suggestions, and helping homes sell faster and for more. Other agents began hiring her. The hobby grew until she was hiring friends from her BYU days to keep up.
"I really believed wholeheartedly that you could have beautiful furniture at affordable prices, and you could have that with all the best designer brands."
That belief became Osmond Designs, which began with a chair and a bookcase on a desk. Today the company offers full service interior design, from exteriors and interiors before the hole is even dug through all the furnishings. Heather's team handles model homes for some of Utah's largest builders and some of the state's most expensive homes in Park City, Holladay, Walker Lane, Alpine, and St. George. She also hosts a KSL real estate show every Saturday at 11 a.m., something she has done for more than seven years.
Broke, Happy, and Buying the First House
Heather and her husband bought their first home and lived in the basement while renting the upstairs for the full mortgage. The ceilings were 6'5". Her husband was 6'3". He ducked under the light fixtures. They installed used cabinets, used carpet, and clearance tile from Home Depot.
Meanwhile, friends lived in condos with swimming pools and drove new cars. Heather remembers her parents checking in to make sure she and her husband were okay.
"We were broke. And we were so happy. We just had big goals and big dreams, and we were willing to sacrifice at that time so that we could build wealth."
They bought a second home, then kept going. At the peak they owned 33 single family rentals. Heather sold real estate in the evenings, cared for two small girls during the day, and designed every property. In her words, they were equity rich and cash poor. In the early years they painted, carried toilets, and hauled sheetrock themselves, sometimes recruiting friends with the promise of pizza.
Moving From Rentals to Assisted Living to Retail
Eventually the rentals became a full time job they no longer wanted. Her husband's goal was assisted living facilities, so they sold the single family homes, used 1031 exchanges where they could, and built or bought five assisted living properties. Heather designed all of them. They sold all five at the height of the market right before COVID, when waiting lists were full.
After that came retail shopping centers. Heather still owns many of them. She helped some tenants with their interiors, including a sushi restaurant and an American food restaurant, and she now owns townhouse condos as well. Her philosophy of never paying retail extends beyond furniture. She holds a car dealer's license, a skill she picked up from her firefighter father's side business of buying, fixing, and reselling cars.
Low Cost Updates That Help a Home Sell
Asked what she would do with $1,000 in a small home headed for resale, Heather kept it simple. Paint transforms a space faster and cheaper than anything else. Good pillows make an old sofa look intentional. A great blanket and a great rug hide a lot. Her own first sofa, a hand me down from her sister's mother in law, had a tear in the back. She covered it with a pillow and a blanket and loved it.
Faith, Divorce, and the Line Every Woman Should Hear
Given the network's four pillars, Heather chose faith. She credits parents who talked the talk and walked the walk, and says she leaned on their testimony before she had her own. She also loves the service and shared priorities that faith communities create, regardless of which church a woman belongs to.
Her advice to women starting out has two parts. First, dream big and stay flexible. Plan A may not be the right plan, and there may be a plan C, F, or Z. Second, and she says this plainly:
"Your husband is not your financial plan."
Heather is divorced after 28 years of marriage and four children. At the time she thought it was the worst thing that had ever happened to her. Looking back, she calls it one of the greatest blessings, and says she does not feel like she is surviving. She feels like she is thriving.
She also collects joy on purpose. She sponsors furniture giveaways at Stadium of Fire, where she has been a fan since childhood. She designs a clothing line made in Italy. She recently purchased the Best of State awards business, previously built by Mark Layton, as a passion project to help other business owners. And yes, she won a car on The Price Is Right, playing a game called Temptation while her husband waited outside in a rented minivan with a crying baby.
Action Steps
- Make your first property work for you. Renting part of a home, as Heather did with her basement, can cover the mortgage while you build equity.
- Build your own financial base regardless of your marital status. Know your income, assets, and credit independently.
- Refresh a space cheaply before you sell: paint first, then pillows, a blanket, and a rug.
- Stay flexible about the vehicle, not the goal. Heather moved from rentals to assisted living to retail as her life changed.
- Enter the room you keep imagining. Someone wins the car, applies for the sponsorship, or buys the business. It may as well be you.
If one part of this landed, start where Heather started: with the smallest asset you already have and a goal worth sacrificing for. Pick one property, one skill, or one account, and give it your attention this month.
About the guest
Heather Osmond
Read the full transcript
This automated transcript has been lightly formatted for readability and may contain errors.
Welcome to Yes! Women’s Network. I’m Jodi Lemon, and we have [00:00:30] today with us, we have Heather Osmond, and we’re so glad to have you here. Heather Osmond: Thank [00:00:35] you. Jodi Lemon: We- Thank Heather Osmond: you so much for inviting me.
Jodi Lemon: You’re welcome. You’re welcome. Heather and I have [00:00:40] a mutual friend that introduced us, and, and after this, we’re [00:00:45] gonna become besties. Heather Osmond: Yes, we are. We already are.
We are. We have so [00:00:50] much in common- Yes … Jodi Lemon: don’t we? For Heather Osmond: sure. So tell us a little bit about you.
[00:00:55] Yes, so I’m actually a born and raised Utah girl, so Utah County. I went to Provo [00:01:00] High- Great … And BYU, and I worked at [00:01:05] ZCMI in Orem in the women’s clothing department. Awesome. And at 19, my husband [00:01:10] came along.
Oh. He was 24. In Utah, essentially. In Utah. So yeah.
It was just the [00:01:15] Utah way. So I dropped out, of course, got married, and had [00:01:20] four kids. Great. Uh, Jared and I bought our first home, and we were [00:01:25] married for 28 years. And just, you Jodi Lemon: know- That’s a Heather Osmond: long length …
[00:01:30] right? So BYU made a big move to Orem after we were married, and then [00:01:35] we lived in Orem, different locations throughout, and then Cedar Hills, and now I live in [00:01:40] Alpine. Oh, great. So definitely homegrown Utah girl. It’s all I know.
I [00:01:45] love Utah. Traveled other places, but there’s no place like home. Jodi Lemon: No place like home. [00:01:50] Mm. I agree.
I’m from Idaho- Okay … So I know that feeling, but I love being in Utah. [00:01:55] It’s beautiful. My grandparents were from here, so- Yeah … It’s kind of the same.
Home. Heather Osmond: Yeah. Jodi Lemon: Home. [00:02:00] It’s great. So tell us about Osmond Design.
Yeah. Tell us about your company. [00:02:05] Heather Osmond: So Osmond Designs is my furniture and interior design store, and it is like [00:02:10] a fifth child to me. It’s a passion project for me, something that, y- you [00:02:15] know, during the humble beginnings, I started with a chair and a bookcase [00:02:20] on the desk, and that was it. Uh, as soon as I got married, we were [00:02:25] broke.
We wanted to buy our first home- Jodi Lemon: Yeah … Heather Osmond: and I needed a down payment, and so I decided [00:02:30] to get my real estates license. I would go and look at homes, and there were a lot of great things. [00:02:35] However, I felt like most of the homes were not decorated [00:02:40] well. I did take a semester at BYU, and one of those classes was [00:02:45] interior design.
Another class was business and advertising and, of course, Book of Mormon and [00:02:50] all the- Uh-huh … Things, right? Yes. But, um, as I was going through [00:02:55] homes and being a real estate agent, I realized that people needed help. Oh, yeah.
And so I would go through [00:03:00] people’s homes, and I was horrified at what their homes would look like, and I knew I could help them. Oh, [00:03:05] good. So I just took what they had, moved things around, made suggestions and [00:03:10] recommendations, and made their home sell for more in a quicker amount [00:03:15] of time. Hm. And it wasn’t too long that I had other real estate agents [00:03:20] hiring me, and I became so busy staging homes- Oh …
And redesigning [00:03:25] homes that I actually had to hire some of my friends from my- Oh, great [00:03:30] BYU days- Bet they fought … Which was awesome. So it was just this little hobby that blew up. And [00:03:35] back in the day, there were big box stores, and then there were overpriced design stores. [00:03:40] Mm.
And there wasn’t a lot in the middle, and I just knew that there was a better way. [00:03:45] I really believed wholeheartedly that you could have beautiful furniture at affordable [00:03:50] prices, and you could have that with all the best designer brands. [00:03:55] And, um, that was, that was my humble beginnings- Oh … Of Ozmen Designs, and [00:04:00] something that I’m still passionate about today. We do a lot of production homes.
[00:04:05] We do a lot of model homes for some of the biggest builders throughout the state of [00:04:10] Utah. Okay. And then we also do some of the most expensive homes in the state of Utah as [00:04:15] well, up in Park City, and Holladay, and Walker Lane, and Alpine, and- Oh you know, St. [00:04:20] George, and all over the state, which has been a lot of fun as well. Jodi Lemon: So you design the [00:04:25] inside of the home.
So we’re full service. Heather Osmond: A model Jodi Lemon: home or Heather Osmond: whatever it is. Mm-hmm, full service interior design, [00:04:30] so from start to finish. So before they even dig a hole, we do all exteriors- Oh … [00:04:35] all interio- all interiors, and then all the furnishings as well.
Jodi Lemon: Oh, great. Heather Osmond: Yeah. Jodi Lemon: All of [00:04:40] it. Heather Osmond: It’s so good. One-stop Jodi Lemon: shop.
Heather Osmond: One-stop shop. No one beats our prices on anything that we sell, [00:04:45] which is awesome. And that actually led me to what I do now as well, [00:04:50] which is a KSL real estate show. So it’s on every- Tell us about Jodi Lemon: that … Heather Osmond: it’s on every- I, yeah …
[00:04:55] Saturday morning at 11:00 AM, and I’ve been doing that for over seven years. And we have [00:05:00] guests and experts throughout the state of Utah that come, and I get to do what you do, where I [00:05:05] interview them- … On the show and share tips and tricks on how to buy [00:05:10] a home, how to sell a home- Oh … How to invest. This morning’s guest [00:05:15] was an AI expert and how you incorporate that with business.
Jodi Lemon: [00:05:20] Oh, great. So- Oh, AI is just blowing up. Heather Osmond: It’s blowing up. Jodi Lemon: It is. Heather Osmond: But [00:05:25] I think what I love most about not only owning my furniture store [00:05:30] but also the KSL radio show is just the people The [00:05:35] people that I have met because of my business, and [00:05:40] they’ve really become my friends.
Even the clients are my friends. Oh. And [00:05:45] then they give me referrals, and they recommend me to their friends, and it’s [00:05:50] so fulfilling and so rewarding, and I love it so much. But then, like you and I were [00:05:55] talking about earlier, I also do real estate investing, which is a lot of fun. [00:06:00] So back in the day, my husband and I- Mm-hmm …
We purchased our very first home, and we [00:06:05] lived in the basement, and we rented the upstairs for the entire [00:06:10] mortgage. And the ceilings were only 6’5” … And my husband was [00:06:15] 6’3” Oh and the light fixtures hung down. Oh. And so he would have to duck under [00:06:20] them.
But we were broke. Oh. And we were so happy. And we has, we had used [00:06:25] cabinets and used carpet, and we had Home [00:06:30] Depot clearance tile that we installed, and we loved it. And- That’s Jodi Lemon: [00:06:35] amazing …
Heather Osmond: at the time, we had friends that were living in condos with swimming pools and had brand-new cars, [00:06:40] and we were slumming it. In fact, I remember my parents- Jodi Lemon: Wow … Heather Osmond: [00:06:45] checking on us to make sure we were okay. In the house. They probably thought we needed [00:06:50] intervention or, are they okay?
And we loved it, and we were so happy. And we just [00:06:55] had big goals and big dreams, and we were willing to sacrifice at that time so [00:07:00] that we could build wealth and then someday live like no [00:07:05] one would ever be able to without those sacrifices. So we bought that first home, [00:07:10] then we bought our second home, and we just kept rolling. That Jodi Lemon: is right. Heather Osmond: You know, at, at the height of [00:07:15] all of that, we owned 33 rental properties.
Wow. So it was a really a full-time job. Single family? [00:07:20] Single family. Jodi Lemon: Single family homes?
Heather Osmond: Yeah. Wow. So we did that for many, many years. Jodi Lemon: And did you manage them yourself? Heather Osmond: [00:07:25] So my husband did that.
My job was to be the real estate agent, to take care [00:07:30] of our two small little girls at the time. Oh. So I was being a mom. Mm-hmm. I was selling real estate in the [00:07:35] evenings.
We were broke, but we were collecting venture income. But you were [00:07:40] still happy. And we were equity rich and cash poor. Jodi Lemon: Yes. Heather Osmond: And it was okay [00:07:45] because we knew it would pay off at some point.
And, um, after a while we [00:07:50] decided that we were tired of that. My husband had a big dream and goal of [00:07:55] owning assisted livings. Jodi Lemon: Okay. So Heather Osmond: we sold all of those properties and we invested [00:08:00] in assisted livings, and- Jodi Lemon: Did you 1031 Heather Osmond: into- We did do some 1031 when you were able to [00:08:05] 1031. And of course, I was the designer for all the single-family homes.
Yes. Picked all the exteriors, [00:08:10] interiors. There was always remodeling that Jodi Lemon: needed to be done. And many of them we [00:08:15] actually built from scratch. So there was a lot of new construction- Oh, Heather Osmond: okay …
That we did as well, which was, [00:08:20] which is great through my career, not only to help other clients do that, but, you know. Jodi Lemon: Did you do some of the work on [00:08:25] that? Um- On those homes? Did Heather Osmond: you get to do- So in the beginning we painted. We were carrying toilets.
[00:08:30] Right. I remember carrying sheet rock, right? We had more time than money, and we [00:08:35] were exhausted. And it was awesome. It was so good, and we learned a lot.
I think [00:08:40] that most of our friends after some time probably wouldn’t even pick up our [00:08:45] phone calls anymore ‘cause we’re like, “What are you doing this weekend? Do you wanna come help paint?” They’re like- They’re like, [00:08:50] “No, we are not.” Not Jodi Lemon: today. Heather Osmond: We don’t have any friends anymore ‘cause we were using and abusing [00:08:55] everyone we knew, and buying them pizza and, you know, whatever.
Yeah. But … Jodi Lemon: But [00:09:00] you get somewhere. You- When you go a step at a time, Heather Osmond: don’t you? You do.
Yeah. And I [00:09:05] think when you love what you do, it’s not work. Mm-hmm. And those little [00:09:10] sacrifices eventually do pay off. Jodi Lemon: They do.
Heather Osmond: They do. Yeah. So then we invested [00:09:15] in assisted livings. Jodi Lemon: Assisted livings. Wow.
Tell me about that. Heather Osmond: So that was our [00:09:20] story Jodi Lemon: for- Do you still have those? Heather Osmond: Or do you still- So we eventually sold all five- Okay … Of those at the [00:09:25] height of the market right before COVID. Jodi Lemon: Oh, great.
Heather Osmond: And there were waiting lists. Oh, yeah. And it was [00:09:30] amazing. And we got really, really lucky. It was a lot of work.
Jodi Lemon: That would’ve [00:09:35] been hard during COVID. Heather Osmond: It was so difficult. Really hard. Uh, we had four kids at the [00:09:40] time. Mm-hmm.
I was running a multimillion-dollar furniture business, furniture and interior design [00:09:45] business, Osmond Designs, and so that really was, a lot of that was on my husband [00:09:50] and what he wanted to do with that, which was great. Okay. There are stories of, um, you know- [00:09:55] experiences of him being on the, the bus with [00:10:00] all of the, the tenants and singing karaoke. I mean- Oh, cute … At the time it was super sweet [00:10:05] and super fun, and that was great.
And then after a while he got tired of that. Jodi Lemon: Uh-huh. Heather Osmond: And [00:10:10] sold all of those, and then we invested in retail shopping [00:10:15] centers. Jodi Lemon: Okay. Heather Osmond: And we- Jodi Lemon: You’ve just kind of gone the whole gamut with real estate Heather Osmond: The whole thing, girl.
[00:10:20] Jodi Lemon: You’ve done from single family- Mm-hmm … To assisted living- Yes … And now commercial. [00:10:25] Okay. Awesome.
Heather Osmond: So we purchased some. We remodeled some. Many of those I still [00:10:30] own today. We built some from scratch. Again, I picked the exteriors.
[00:10:35] I even helped some of the tenants do their TIs, the sushi restaurant, and [00:10:40] another, um, American food restaurant. I helped them with their interiors, which is a lot [00:10:45] of fun. Jodi Lemon: Oh, how fun. Heather Osmond: And now I do own some townhouse condos and some, [00:10:50] some different things. But I love real estate, and they say 90% of all billionaires made their [00:10:55] money in real estate.
Right. So for me, Osman Design- It Jodi Lemon: just grows. Heather Osmond: Yeah. I [00:11:00] mean, selling- Yeah … Sofas and candles is super fun, and I love- Mm-hmm …
Jodi Lemon: I love a good pillow- … And you know- Yeah … All [00:11:05] those things, but real estate- Well, it kind of goes hand-in-hand with real estate. It kind of does. ‘Cause you can go and design it.
[00:11:10] Mm-hmm. Make it look pretty. Heather Osmond: It’s so fun. And I truly believe there’s no place like home. [00:11:15] Yeah.
So having a place that you love to be- Jodi Lemon: Mm-hmm … Heather Osmond: is more important than ever, [00:11:20] and I think especially in today’s world. So if you had some young starting [00:11:25] out kids Jodi Lemon: that were, they have this small home, they have $1,000 [00:11:30] to invest, and they’re going to put some new stuff out of Osman Design, what [00:11:35] would you put in there? Okay. So- So they’re going to resell it.
They’re going to resell Heather Osmond: the home. Yeah. So [00:11:40] paint is super inexpensive and can transform a space [00:11:45] Quicker than anything that you can do. As far as furnishings, uh, some great pillows on even an [00:11:50] old sofa makes things look great, and a great blanket. You can hide a [00:11:55] lot.
Jodi Lemon: Yes. Heather Osmond: In fact, our very first sofa that we ever- Great rug. Yeah, [00:12:00] ‘cause a rug’s the other thing. Um, the very first sofa my husband and I ever [00:12:05] had was one from my sister’s- Oh … Mother-in-law, and it had a big tear [00:12:10] on the back of it.
Oh, yeah. And we threw a pillow over it and a blanket. And it looked great, and we [00:12:15] loved it. So that’s what I would do with $1,000, because I think you can hide a [00:12:20] lot and make a, a average space look really great just with some [00:12:25] simple, inexpensive retouches. That’s awesome.
So do you have, do some of your kids [00:12:30] work with you? Jodi Lemon: So they have Heather Osmond: at times. Okay. And Jodi Lemon: do they love real [00:12:35] estate? Do they love furniture?
Heather Osmond: So my oldest daughter is actually a commercial real estate agent, and she’s [00:12:40] amazing. Oh, good. Like, she’s a matchmaker. She’s a go-getter. I, I’m just so [00:12:45] impressed with Alexis.
She actually owns a reception center in Lehigh- Oh, neat … Right [00:12:50] now. Nice venue. She’s doing a beautiful job. She works so hard, and I’m [00:12:55] so proud of her.
Her and her husband do that, so that’s really great. Jodi Lemon: Oh, good. Heather Osmond: My second oldest daughter, [00:13:00] Paige, worked in the store for quite a while. Oh, great. In fact, oftentimes I’ll still [00:13:05] call her during Parade of Homes times- …
And model home installs and- Like, “Help.” “Help, I need [00:13:10] you this weekend.” And she’s always so great. Um, Landon, not so much. He’s been a [00:13:15] warehouse guy a couple of times.
He’s strong and buff, but- Jodi Lemon: Uh-huh … Heather Osmond: it’s kinda not [00:13:20] his thing. Um, he actually just recently did get his commercial real estate license. I think he’ll [00:13:25] do that, which will be cool. Jodi Lemon: Oh, good.
And Heather Osmond: then my youngest daughter, Jocelyn, is currently on an LDS mission [00:13:30] in Dallas- Oh, neat Texas. And I think of any of my kids, she’ll probably take over [00:13:35] Osmond Designs someday, ‘cause I think she loves it. Jodi Lemon: That’s great. Don’t you love to watch your kids grow [00:13:40] in the things- So good … That you love?
Heather Osmond: And I don’t- Jodi Lemon: And then they’re part of you. Heather Osmond: I agree. And I [00:13:45] really don’t care what they want to do as long as they’re passionate about it. [00:13:50] Mm-hmm. And I will be their biggest cheerleader for whatever they- …
Decide to do. [00:13:55] But you do have to be passionate about something. And for me- Yes … [00:14:00] Osmond Designs being the furniture and interior design store, and then of course my real [00:14:05] estate is so much fun. Um, one thing that’s interesting is I have this personal [00:14:10] philosophy of never pay retail.
And so I have my car dealer’s license. [00:14:15] My dad was a firefighter for Provo City growing up. Great. And [00:14:20] so, you know, policemen and firemen, they always have a side hustle. Jodi Lemon: Mm-hmm.
Heather Osmond: And for my dad, it [00:14:25] was selling cars and fixing cars, and then reselling them. So [00:14:30] when he and my mom went on three LDS missions to keep that active, [00:14:35] he had to put someone on it, and I was… There’s two daughters [00:14:40] and three sons, and I was definitely the car girl and so we put- Oh, don’t you Jodi Lemon: love cars? Heather Osmond: I [00:14:45] love it. Jodi Lemon: Me too.
Heather Osmond: It’s so much fun, right? Oh, I love it. And they don’t even have to be super expensive [00:14:50] cars. I just love good cars. Jodi Lemon: I like old cars.
Heather Osmond: Old cars. Yeah. Cars [00:14:55] that work. Jodi Lemon: Kubotas. I like all kinds of cars.
Finding Heather Osmond: cars that run. So I have [00:15:00] that- I just like to see them sitting … Which is so great. I have my car dealer’s license. Yeah, that’s great.
And so I have [00:15:05] that handled. I also have my own clothing line. And- Jodi Lemon: Oh … Heather Osmond: I have a little [00:15:10] boutique- Really? In my Orem Osman design store, and I design clothes and have them made, [00:15:15] and then we sell those in our store, so that’s super Jodi Lemon: fun.
Do you have them made local or Heather Osmond: [00:15:20] overseas? Italy. Jodi Lemon: Where? Yeah. Okay.
Yeah. So I import most of them. And you design [00:15:25] them. Heather Osmond: I design them. Jodi Lemon: Do you have any more time in your day?
I mean, you’re [00:15:30] kind of busy here. You sound busy. I have a lot going on. Heather Osmond: But at this point in my [00:15:35] life, it’s all just so fun. Jodi Lemon: Yeah.
Heather Osmond: Seriously, what Jodi Lemon: a- Then you don’t feel like you’re [00:15:40] working, right? True. Or when you love it. Heather Osmond: What Jodi Lemon: a- When you’re doing something … Heather Osmond: great time of life.
[00:15:45] And I think each of us have our own story of blood, sweat, and tears, [00:15:50] and oftentimes people don’t see that. But it’s [00:15:55] rewarding, and it’s fun, and if you love what you do- Jodi Lemon: Mm-hmm … Heather Osmond: then it doesn’t [00:16:00] seem like work, and it is… It’s a lot of fun. I have a great team.
I always [00:16:05] call them the dream team. Jodi Lemon: Oh. Heather Osmond: So my furniture store, I have managers that run both of the [00:16:10] stores. Okay. And that allows me the freedom to work with big clients, and big projects, and [00:16:15] fun things.
Good. Clubhouses for big builders, and parade of homes, of course I’m always [00:16:20] passionate about. Love that. So that’s good. But then a l- a couple of months ago, I just purchased the [00:16:25] Best of State business.
Jodi Lemon: Yeah, tell, tell me about that. Heather Osmond: So I don’t know if you’ve seen those gold [00:16:30] medals- Mm-hmm … In restaurants. Jodi Lemon: Yeah. Heather Osmond: Or, you know, on billboards on I-15.
But [00:16:35] I’ve been a participant of Best of State for many, many years as [00:16:40] just trying to make myself different than the competition- Jodi Lemon: Mm-hmm. Heather Osmond: Okay … In my, in my industry, furniture [00:16:45] and interior design industry. So that was something that I was really passionate about, that I love doing. Good.
[00:16:50] And it became available. The owner passed away this last summer. Oh, okay. Mark [00:16:55] Layton, someone that I admire and respect, and am so grateful- Oh … For the many, [00:17:00] many years that he spent putting his dream together to help [00:17:05] businesses like myself.
And when that came available to purchase, that was [00:17:10] just a- Great … No-brainer for me. And it’s not a money maker. It’s another passion [00:17:15] project- Mm-hmm … That I just get to give back and network with other business owners to hopefully [00:17:20] be helpful to one another in building our businesses, and then helping new [00:17:25] businesses.
Get their start as well. Jodi Lemon: Oh, good. So with [00:17:30] that- Mm-hmm … I was at, um, the Stadium of Fire. Heather Osmond: Yes.
Jodi Lemon: So [00:17:35] on July 4th. Heather Osmond: Mm-hmm. Jodi Lemon: So, and I saw you up there. Heather Osmond: Okay. Jodi Lemon: And [00:17:40] is that what you were doing?
You were giving out your Best of State award? Heather Osmond: No. Okay. So anyone [00:17:45] that knows me Jodi Lemon: knows- Yes … Heather Osmond: that I am one of the most patriotic people- Jodi Lemon: Great Heather Osmond: in Jodi Lemon: the world.
I Heather Osmond: love that. I’ve [00:17:50] been going to the Stadium of Fire for as long as I can remember, probably since I was a [00:17:55] little girl. That really was something my parents saved for, that [00:18:00] our family could go to every year. We didn’t have a lot of money. My dad was a firefighter.
My mom was a [00:18:05] stay-at-home mom and did- Mm-hmm side hustles. But it was something that we really looked forward to. [00:18:10] Forward to Jodi Lemon: going. Heather Osmond: And so I’ve been to the Stadium of Fire my entire [00:18:15] life. I love Jodi Lemon: that.
Heather Osmond: So four years ago I reached out to them to see if there were any [00:18:20] opportunities for sponsorship, and there were. Oh, great. And as part of [00:18:25] that I get to be on the stage and I get to meet all [00:18:30] the, the talent that comes. I love Jodi Lemon: it. Heather Osmond: My first year was Journey.
[00:18:35] Jodi Lemon: Okay. Heather Osmond: Which is my all-time favorite group. Like I seriously, [00:18:40] bucket list was over. I could have died that night and been the happiest person in the [00:18:45] world. It was so cool.
You took lots Jodi Lemon: of selfies? Heather Osmond: Oh, it was so amazing. Anyway, [00:18:50] but giving away a sectional or a sofa and a couple chairs or bedroom [00:18:55] set or a dining room set, all of that. I mean, for me it’s faith- [00:19:00] Family and freedom- Jodi Lemon: Okay … Heather Osmond: are the most important things in my life.
[00:19:05] And so Stadium of Fire is something that I will probably continue [00:19:10] doing every single year, and I just keep collecting more and more furniture that I can give [00:19:15] away. So I’m gonna be like, “You get a house, and you get a house.” I wanna be Oprah [00:19:20] Winfrey someday. Yeah. Everyone gets a sofa or, you know, something cool.
There you go. Jodi Lemon: I don’t know. [00:19:25] That’d be great. Heather Osmond: I’ll keep working hard. Yeah.
That’s my goal someday. I Jodi Lemon: [00:19:30] think that’d be fun. That’s a great goal. Wouldn’t that be great? Yes.
Heather Osmond: Oh my gosh. Jodi Lemon: I would love that. I Heather Osmond: would die. Jodi Lemon: [00:19:35] Yeah, so that’s that. That’s funny that you saw that.
I love that. So speaking of your [00:19:40] faith and family and- Mm-hmm … So with Yes Women’s Network, we have four [00:19:45] pillars. Mm-hmm. So we have the faith, and we have finance.
[00:19:50] Mm-hmm. And we have wellbeing, and, um, we have [00:19:55] the fourth that I’m not thinking about right now. It’s really good. [00:20:00] Yeah. We’ll think of it in a minute.
It is really good. But it is great to have those, you [00:20:05] know, in your life, to have those pillars that you go, “What would make me whole?” Heather Osmond: Mm-hmm. [00:20:10] Jodi Lemon: And I think that we have to think about that, the younger generation and the people that are [00:20:15] looking even to, to have, you know, some goals in mind. And, [00:20:20] and I ask you today to pick one of those four, and you [00:20:25] picked Heather Osmond: faith.
So tell me why you picked faith. Faith is the foundation for my life, [00:20:30] and I am far from perfect, but it guides me [00:20:35] every minute of every day. I was raised [00:20:40] by the most incredible parents in the world. Jodi Lemon: Oh. Heather Osmond: Had the best childhood.
[00:20:45] My parents not only talked the talk, but they walked the walk, and [00:20:50] they are full of love and service, and they are devoted [00:20:55] LDS members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I was raised with [00:21:00] that. Mm-hmm. And before I even had my own testimony, I relied on theirs, [00:21:05] and they gave me opportunities so that I could develop my own [00:21:10] testimony. I love being a part of the Utah [00:21:15] community, and I love what it represents, and I love the [00:21:20] people that I get to associate with that you wouldn’t normally meet in any [00:21:25] other way. I love the service that any church, regardless of what church- Right …
You [00:21:30] belong to. I love the service opportunities and [00:21:35] being centralized, um, with similar goals [00:21:40] and priorities, I think is what faith- [00:21:45] really connects us in that way, and I’m grateful for that. Jodi Lemon: I love that. [00:21:50] I love that. So what would you tell these young entrepreneurs that are coming [00:21:55] up and they just want a place to start?
You know, I get, I get asked all the time, and I [00:22:00] probably you do too. Heather Osmond: Yeah. Jodi Lemon: And people say, “Where do I start?” Like, I remember [00:22:05] when I was 20 years old going, “Okay, I’m going to save enough for this rental.” Heather Osmond: [00:22:10] Mm-hmm.
Jodi Lemon: I’m in real estate, too. Heather Osmond: Yeah. Jodi Lemon: So I would save for one, and then I’d save for [00:22:15] the next, and the next, and I got started when I was young, and pretty soon you [00:22:20] It’s a snowball effect. For sure. And you grow and grow.
Mm-hmm. But then some people might go [00:22:25] through divorce. Mm-hmm. And all of a sudden they don’t know what to do because they’ve stayed home with their [00:22:30] young children. Yeah.
Or there might be a 20-year-old girl out there going, “What do I [00:22:35] do? Where do I start?” What would you tell them? Heather Osmond: Right? Okay.
So I would [00:22:40] first say dream big. You will be [00:22:45] amazed at what you accomplish if you just have the courage to try. And [00:22:50] your plan A may not be the right plan. There may be a plan C and a plan F [00:22:55] and a plan Z. But if you just keep a forward momentum and [00:23:00] be flexible, you will be surprised at what doors open for you.
And [00:23:05] my life is better than anything I could have ever dreamed of. Um, and I think [00:23:10] part of that is going back to faith, follow- following those promptings- Jodi Lemon: Mm-hmm … Heather Osmond: and knowing [00:23:15] which direction you should go and what’s right for you and your family, I think is very, very important. [00:23:20] Second, um, your husband is not your financial plan. Jodi Lemon: Right.
Heather Osmond: [00:23:25] I am a divorced- We, we Jodi Lemon: don’t always recognize that. Heather Osmond: Mm-hmm. I am a divorced woman. My [00:23:30] husband’s life goals went very different than mine. We were married [00:23:35] for 28 years with four children, and he’s on the Housewives of Salt Lake [00:23:40] City television show.
It’s very controversial. And [00:23:45] I am … We could not be polar opposites. And I have no regrets- At Jodi Lemon: this stage … At [00:23:50] this stage in your life.
Heather Osmond: I think at the time, I knew without a doubt that I was supposed to marry [00:23:55] him, and looking back Jodi Lemon: You don’t regret it? Heather Osmond: No regrets. That was great. I was [00:24:00] there exactly the amount of time that I believe I was supposed to be, and [00:24:05] I don’t feel like I’m surviving. I feel like I’m thriving since that time.
There’s a Jodi Lemon: [00:24:10] big difference. Heather Osmond: Very … At the time, I thought it was the worst thing that ever happened to me, truly. And [00:24:15] looking back, I think it was one of the greatest blessings that’s ever happened to me in my entire life, and I [00:24:20] think that I was protected in ways that I could not [00:24:25] have foreseen. Jodi Lemon: Yeah.
Isn’t it great how we change and mold- So amazing … And have to [00:24:30] maneuver? And sometimes when we’re young, we think it’s a, it’s this direction. Heather Osmond: [00:24:35] Yeah. Jodi Lemon: But yet we can also start in college, or we can go any different direction.
[00:24:40] And whatever it is that you like, go that direction. For sure. And I think if you [00:24:45] talk to Narrator: anyone about, did your home, did your life [00:24:50] go the way that you planned it? Heather Osmond: And we can all say- … No, [00:24:55] absolutely not, right?
It … You almost- Right … Just have to laugh about it. And oftentimes I’ve just said, “Where’s the candid [00:25:00] camera?” Like, is this for real?
Like, this cannot be real. I must be on a television- It’s on Housewives … Show. [00:25:05] Exactly. Luckily, I’m not on that show, but I mean- Right there’s just things that [00:25:10] you just have to have a good sense of humor- Jodi Lemon: Yeah …
Heather Osmond: about. And there are lessons to be learned [00:25:15] in bad experiences as well as good experiences, including failures and [00:25:20] successes. So- A Jodi Lemon: lot of those- A lot … Throughout life … A lot of those.
And what do you do with them? Heather Osmond: And [00:25:25] be Jodi Lemon: grateful for them. It is … Is it really a failure, or is it a stepping stone? Heather Osmond: Oh, I mean- Jodi Lemon: [00:25:30] Change of direction …
Heather Osmond: we’re learning. Jodi Lemon: Always. Heather Osmond: Always, whether we want to or not, [00:25:35] right? But I, I truly am grateful for those experiences and the opportunities, and I wouldn’t be who I am [00:25:40] today without that. Jodi Lemon: That’s great.
Great. So you, you’re not going to be on Housewives, but [00:25:45] you said earlier to me that you were on Price Is Right. Heather Osmond: I was on the Price Is Right. And, and Jodi Lemon: now you [00:25:50] wanna be on Family Feud, ‘cause I was on Family Feud. I do.
And so how fun is that? Heather Osmond: I have FOMO. I [00:25:55] want- Jodi Lemon: I might wanna go on your Price Is Right. Heather Osmond: You guys, I won a car on the Price [00:26:00] Is Right. Jodi Lemon: You did?
Heather Osmond: It was … I always knew I was going to- Oh … Ever since I was a little girl. [00:26:05] And one day, I was at my parents’ home, and we were having dinner, and we were talking about all the [00:26:10] things that were on our bucket list that we haven’t accomplished yet. Jodi Lemon: Oh.
And it was after [00:26:15] my second Heather Osmond: daughter, and I just had a new baby, and- And we were just throwing out [00:26:20] ideas and, and my parents, of course, and my siblings were saying, “Well, yours [00:26:25] is something that you could actually do.” ‘Cause I had said, “I just want to be a [00:26:30] contestant on The Price Is Right, and Jodi Lemon: I, I’m going to win a car. I know I am.” Heather Osmond: And my [00:26:35] husband at the time, he didn’t have anything to say about it, right? It’s the in-laws, Jodi Lemon: they’re- You manifested that [00:26:40] car, didn’t you?
You manifested it … Heather Osmond: there’s all the pressure. He couldn’t say no. So right then and there, we [00:26:45] planned a road trip to California. Jodi Lemon: How fun.
Heather Osmond: In a minivan. What kind of car did you win? [00:26:50] You guys, this was so great. So the game was Temptation. Jodi Lemon: Uh-huh.
Heather Osmond: So they bring out a [00:26:55] prize, and you’d have to guess the prices of that prize. So it was, like, a [00:27:00] huge amount, I think it was, like, 30 board games, and then there was an ice [00:27:05] cream bicycle that I- Oh had to guess the price of, and then there was a [00:27:10] windsurfer was another one of the prizes. And then at the end of guessing [00:27:15] all of those prices, which each of those were one of the numbers in the price of the car, they said, [00:27:20] “You can have all of these prices- Jodi Lemon: Oh … Heather Osmond: or you can risk them and go for the car.” Ooh.
And I Jodi Lemon: [00:27:25] risked Heather Osmond: it. And I remember- Oh, oh … Looking at all the prizes and thinking, “I’m really not going to miss [00:27:30] any of these, and I really came here to win a car.” And if I won the car, [00:27:35] I won all the prizes, too. Jodi Lemon: Oh, great.
Heather Osmond: And so one by one, Jodi Lemon: the [00:27:40] numbers came out. Oh. Heather Osmond: And I won. And at the time, my husband was sitting [00:27:45] outside in the minivan, the rented minivan- with a crying, you know- Oh … Couple [00:27:50] month old baby.
Jodi Lemon: Oh my goodness. Heather Osmond: And I was nursing in between when we’re standing in line [00:27:55] all day- Oh … In the stairway. I mean, it was a ridiculous story, but I’m here to tell you [00:28:00] that dreams do come true, and sometimes you just have to be brave [00:28:05] enough to try because, you know, why not you? Someone’s gonna win- Yeah …
A car that day. Right. [00:28:10] That’s true. And that’s a lesson I learn over and over and over again. And the way to be Jodi Lemon: positive- [00:28:15] And- Heather Osmond: You have to keep going …
And you Jodi Lemon: don’t always win. Heather Osmond: Yeah. Jodi Lemon: And that’s Heather Osmond: okay, too. Yeah. Sometimes you [00:28:20] win or sometimes you get something better, and sometimes that’s not winning.
Jodi Lemon: No. [00:28:25] Well, good. It’s so nice to have you today. Heather Osmond: Thank Jodi Lemon: you. It’s so great.
You’re [00:28:30] adorable. Oh, thank you. Heather Osmond: We need to go hang out. Jodi Lemon: I know we do. This’ll be [00:28:35] fun.
Heather Osmond: This’ll be Jodi Lemon: fun. Yeah, it’ll be fun. We can do a lot of fun things together. Good. And let’s go build [00:28:40] something.
Heather Osmond: Let’s go. I’ll do it. Let’s go do some real estate. Let’s go find a project to do together. Jodi Lemon: [00:28:45] Oh, I’d love it.
So Heather, thank you for coming today. Of course. It’s been so fun- Heather Osmond: Thank you for Jodi Lemon: having [00:28:50] me … Getting to know you. You can find Heather or Osmond Designs or Best of State [00:28:55] connected with our Yes!
Women’s Network. Narrator: Every honest [00:29:00] conversation moves a woman forward. This is what Yes! Women’s Network was built for. [00:29:05] Faith, relationships, wellbeing, and finance, and one community that [00:29:10] holds you accountable and wants you to win in every aspect of life.
Women [00:29:15] rising together. This is [00:29:20] [00:29:25] Yes!
