ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
A Legacy of Linens When Jane Scott Offutt Hodges ’87 was engaged to be married, she looked enthusiastically for trousseau items to monogram with her new initials. A Kentucky native, she was disappointed not to find any near her new home in New Orleans, despite the fact the city is a well-known resource for Old World things. She broadened her search but discovered that beautiful linens with high quality monograms had become “seemingly extinct.” Seeing a niche in the marketplace, she founded Leontine Linens. Linens are very personal, explains Hodges. “What could be more personal than what you
wrap your baby in? Our products are heirloom quality, but they are also meant to be lived with and enjoyed—and then thrown in the washing machine.” Hodges started the company out of a back bedroom in her home. The company began to take off after she met with a decorator in New York who was intrigued by the concept and the quality of her products. At that time she realized there was a national market as well. “I finally moved my office out of the house when I felt I could separate work from the rest of my life.” But the separation wasn’t complete, as her husband Philip soon joined the
company. “I am the products person, and he is the numbers person,” she says. “Having your own business is a huge commitment. If you don’t have a partner who is willing to give as much as you are to your family, then you are in trouble.” Having him on board allowed the company to expand and eventually purchase their Kentucky-based manufacturing studio. But other troubles came last fall with Hurricane Katrina. They were running the marketing and operations out of their new shop in New Orleans, which opened just prior to the storm. “We lived in New Orleans because we loved it,” says Hodges, whose grandmother was a New Orleanian, “but the evacuation allowed us to focus on the manufacturing end of the business in Kentucky. She says that settling back into the family homestead has been their silver lining. “It is a wonderful place to raise our children,” she adds. In fact, when they were watching the TV one evening last fall, the mayor of New Orleans came on and mentioned the city would be back in action in five to eight years. Her daughter Talley sat there counting out loud and declared, “Mommy, I will be at Taft by then!” Hodges has no doubt that New Orleans’ recovery will be much quicker than that. Their shop has been up and running since October, and she says, will remain open. The company is now celebrating its 10th year, and Leontine Linens have appeared in House Beautiful, House & Garden, New Orleans Magazine, Elle Décor, Southern Accents, InStyle, Washington Post, Martha Stewart Living, Better Homes & Gardens, and Traditional Home. For more information, visit www.leontinelinens.com. b Jane Scott Offutt Hodges ’87 displays Leontine’s heirloom linens at her shop in New Orleans. Doug Keese Taft Bulletin Summer 2006