Our Beginnings
Keep It Casual was founded in 2002 as a collaboration of the father/daughter team of Bill Deas and Meredith Tollison.
Bill opened his first patio shop in the early 1980s. Patio Place was located in an old home on Gloster Street in Tupelo The shop catered to the high end of outdoor offerings that were available at the time, as well as pool supplies and outdoor accessories. The small rooms with hardwood floors and high ceilings in the old house offered a cozy and welcoming feel of home, and Patio Place built a loyal customer base.
Bill eventually moved into the wholesale side of outdoor furnishings, and Tupelo was without a specialty outdoor shop. So he and Meredith opened Keep It Casual.
Keep It Casual Rebranded
Keep It Casual operated out of a large retail space in a shopping center in the middle of town for over 15 years. In 2017, the store made a big move. Meredith bought a building not far from the original location and renovated it for the new shop.
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The building for the new location was constructed in 1977 as a jewelry store, with solid concrete walls and bulletproof windows and doors. The new design retained as many of the original building elements as possible, opening up all the interior space and removing the ceilings to expose the steel beams. The 5x8 walk-in vault houses racks of replacement cushions and serves double duty as a storm shelter in case of severe weather. The old workroom was converted into a service kitchen which now sees lots of action for after hours events for friends of Keep It Casual - and the sign from the original business that occupied the building hangs on the wall as a little nod to the history of this cool space.
And as a nod to the history of the business and the family itself, Keep It Casual redesigned a new brand with a sleeker look targeted more to a high design audience. From the sweet turquoise and lime green original logo, to the new copper and black color scheme, the new logo includes elements reminiscent of the original logo of Patio Place, where the story all began. Many of the outdoor furniture lines Keep It Casual features today are the same lines that were offered at Patio Place, and many of the relationships with the vendors and their representatives began almost 40 years ago.
Keep It Casual Relationships
Our friendly and knowledgeable Team Members are on hand to assist you in making your furniture selections. They can walk you through a large selection of in-stock items, or they can help you customize a selection by selecting styles, finishes, and fabrics that will be perfect for your space. They will then help add the finishing touches with beautiful and high-quality accessories, pillows, throws, rugs, and more.
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White Glove delivery service means your selection will be delivered with care to your home, set and embellished, and ready for your enjoyment by the time the delivery van backs out of the driveway.
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The staff at Keep It Casual don't sell furniture, they build relationships and help you build a space where you and your family will make memories.
