Meet Zach Spencer, who brings nearly 30 years of interiorscape industry experience to his role in Operations Management here at Amlings. In this interview, he shares how his creative background shapes his daily work and what happens behind the scenes to bring large-scale commercial installations to life.

Q: How did you get started in this field?

I’ve been with Amlings since 2018, but I’ve been in the interiorscape industry for nearly 30 years. And I’ve also grown up around plants and design. My dad had a small landscaping business when I was younger, I worked at a nursery as a teenager, and creativity ran deep in the family. My grandfather was an old-school graphic designer — drafting tables, T-squares, Exacto knives, thousands of design markers, all of it. My uncle carried that into the digital era and ran his own graphic design company.

I answered an ad for an interiorscape company called Greens by White. I took the job, got involved in the industry, and really enjoyed it. From there, I immersed myself in the business and over time, I moved into operations management and grew with the company that has now become Amlings.

Q: What does your role at Amlings involve today?

Years ago, the design team jokingly called me “the dream crusher” because a big part of my role is bridging the gap between design vision and real-world execution. Our designers come up with beautiful concepts, and my job beyond coordinating the staging & installation details is helping figure out how we make those ideas happen successfully — not just visually, but logistically and sustainably. Largely, that means comprehending, communicating & executing the common goals for our team and the client.

Q: How has your artistic background influenced your work?

Tremendously.

I went to the American Academy of Art and studied fine art and illustration before shifting gears professionally. I still paint occasionally, play music, and stay involved creatively whenever I can.

That creative training certainly influences the work we do in interior landscape design. This industry involves much more than just plant maintenance. There’s composition, spatial awareness and balance. You develop an eye for how everything works together.

Q: We hear you’re in a band — tell us about that.

I currently play guitar in a band called Stiff. Fast paced, hardcore rock and roll — and a lot of yelling at things. LOL.

Meanwhile, my personal music taste is honestly all over the place.

Most of the guys I play with are longtime friends, and staying creative outside of work keeps me energized.

Q: What’s one thing people misunderstand about plants in commercial buildings?

I think many people have little understanding how much happens before a plant ever reaches their lobby. Some clients think we grow all the plants and have full access to any plant imaginable, any time. In reality, there’s this massive supply chain behind the scenes — growers, brokers, shipping logistics, acclimation, availability tracking, containers coming from overseas, receiving teams, installation schedules — and it all truly changes constantly because we’re dealing with live material, grown in live conditions.

There’s also understanding how a plant can go from a tropical, high-humidity climate to a conference room where the lights may only turn on twice a week. Availability and adaptability can be a real fickle dance. In operations we have to pivot on supply and problem solve, and also set up the plants for success. How will they be maintained by our team? What conditions do they need accommodated?

Q: What types of projects stand out to you most?

It’s honestly hard to choose! Holiday installations are always incredible. So many are large-scale and fast paced. You’re building these massive, magical scenes in luxury hotels and commercial spaces on incredibly tight timelines. Months of planning, giant trees, oversized decor, lifts everywhere, teams moving nonstop — and somehow you pull it all together over and over again in a month.

Those projects are instantly gratifying because the transformation is so dramatic.

Commercial lobbies and office spaces with stylized container designs are our “bread & butter,” but some of my favorite projects are the long-term, larger installations where architecture and landscaping were thoughtfully designed together as a focal point. Areas with built-in planters, ideal lighting conditions, and spaces designed ideally for plants to mature naturally over time really make me appreciate our work most.

Q: What do you enjoy most about the work?

At the end of the day, I enjoy making spaces better and making people a little happier.

Q: Have you continued to pass down those creative genes to your kids?

I have three kids, and they’ve all pursued creative paths in different ways. My middle daughter works in costume and apparel design and does work with the Joffrey Ballet.

My oldest daughter has a background in agriculture and horticulture. She works with a large CSA organization coordinating produce, vendors, and food delivery across the Chicago area – while also finding time to manage land that’s been in our family for a century.

My youngest son is an amazing ‘people- person’! He lives and works locally as an insurance agent, enjoying pets and pastimes.

Q: We hear you’re a bit of a legend when it comes to hot peppers.

Ha! We have a small garden at the Amlings office and we planted ghost peppers & Carolina reapers. I was harvesting for the week, plucked one from the vine, casually took a phone call and then absentmindedly put nearly the entire pepper in my mouth.

Ten seconds later, all the cliches happened to me, in quick succession. Sweating buckets. Immediate pain as if someone was giving me gut punches. My mind was racing and crazy paranoia set in, “can I burn my esophagus or my intestines?” I was panicking and pacing around the office. In short, I got served!

Afterwards, I put up WARNING signs in front of the peppers– Listing Scoville units, and “Please proceed with caution.” Ha! I fear one day security footage of this incident will surface somewhere. Haha!

A huge thank you to Zach for taking the time to share his story with us. We deeply appreciate his hard work behind the scenes and the unique creative energy he brings to the Amlings team every single day.

From styling retail walls to transforming full-scale commercial spaces, our designers come from all kinds of creative paths. For one of our Senior Designers and Project Managers, that journey started with fashion—and a single wall of handbags.

We sat down to talk about how she found her way to Amlings, what inspires her work, and the design choices she’s loving (and leaving behind).

Q: How did you get into this field?

I was born and raised in Chicago and went to Dominican University for fashion design and merchandising.

After graduation, I was hired for a Saks Off Fifth store opening. On my first day, they gave me a section of a handbag wall and said “make it look good.” And I loved it. It felt like solving a puzzle—how to make everything look its best and most shoppable.

By the end of that week, I knew I wanted to make it my career.

Q: What was your path from retail to Amlings?

I moved into visual merchandising and eventually worked at Altar’d State, where I had a lot of creative freedom with floor sets and window displays. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to make things look beautiful and see the impact reflected in sales: The “oohs and ahhs” as the customers passed by the windows, was a nice bonus too.

I also spent time as a store manager during COVID, but I missed the creative side. I wanted a balance of business and design and that’s what led me to Amlings.

Now I’m a Senior Designer and Project Manager. I meet with clients, understand their vision, design the space, source materials, and oversee installations—from plants to holiday décor.

Q: Did you always know you wanted to be creative?

Not at all. I didn’t really realize it until late in high school. Senior year, to fill my schedule, my counselor signed me up for an art class and I thought I would hate it. But the opposite happened. Sitting in a quiet room, drawing, music playing—it just clicked. I enjoyed creating and the teacher said I was actually pretty good at it.

Q: How has the role of plants changed in design?

There’s been a big shift in people’s attitudes towards plants, especially since COVID. People had spent more time at home and wanted to bring greenery into their homes.

There’s this idea now that “plants are the new pets”—people really care for them, talk to them, check that theyre healthy.

In commercial spaces, we’re seeing that same shift. Offices need to feel welcoming and more appealing than staying at home to entice people back to the office. Plants help warm up and soften environments that would otherwise feel sterile, and they make people actually want to be there.

Q: How has plant design evolved in commercial spaces?

It used to be very limited—same containers, same plant varieties, very uniform.

Now there are so many more options and so many more vendors. Containers can match the design style of the space—whether that’s boho, urban, or something more modern. Rather than being an afterthought they are incorporated into architect drawings and interior designs, and the overall design of the space.

Q: If you could design a dream installation anywhere, where would it be?

Soho House Chicago, a membership hotel and club for the art community.

I love the idea of designing for a creative community. Each space there has a completely different vibe—it would be fun to push boundaries and create something a little unexpected and weird—because that audience would embrace weird.

Q: What’s the boldest design risk you’ve taken?

A holiday installation at the Chicago Viceroy Hotel in 2024.

The space already had teal, purple, white, and gold. It was bold to begin with and the client wanted something that stood out but also complemented the space. It was around the time the movie Barbie came out, so we leaned into pink—hot pink on white trees and white garland with a touch of pewter.

It was definitely a risk, but people loved it. Guests were taking photos everywhere and it became Instagram famous.

Q: What’s the most overused design trend right now?

Mid-century modern.

It’s been a buzz word since 2023 and we’re finally starting to see a shift away from it to more focus on texture and detail. Finally.

Q: What’s your personal design style at home?

Boho leaning maximalist.

I love bold colors, mixing textures, and styles of art, but also incorporating natural elements into my space to make it feel grounded. My burnt orange suede couch might be my favorite piece of furniture, its comfy and bold and anchors the room.

Also, plants everywhere. Prior to joining Amlings, I knew nothing about plants. So when I landed the job, I figured I should buy at least two and now 5 years later, those two are still alive and joined by many, many others.

Q: Any favorite plant at home?

I rescued a Dracaena Mass Cane (corn plant) from a client that was being replaced—it had grown completely wonky. Two branches with one little head of leaves on each that had grown out rather than up. It is about 3ft tall and about 6ft wide.

It’s now in my kitchen and fits perfectly under the chair rail on an accent wall. It’s probably my favorite plant.

In this Q&A, meet Paige Meliet-Kinane, Amlings Floral Specialist. After a career shift from Wall Street to landscaping in New York City , Paige joined the Amlings team in January 2026 to create custom weekly arrangements for high-end commercial and residential spaces.

Read on to discover her improvisational, jazz-like approach as a floral designer, her pro tips for utilizing bold tropical foliage, and her passionate belief in the mental and physical benefits of surrounding ourselves with living plants.

Q: How did you get your start in floral design?

I hail from Southern Louisiana, and I grew up surrounded by my grandparents’ beautiful gardens. It wasn’t until much later that I realized it could be a career path. I actually have a degree in International Trade and went to work on Wall Street—but I hated it.

In college, I was part of the university’s landscaping team—we were known affectionately as the “dirt girls.” I really loved that job and when I looked through job postings in New York City, I came across an opening in container gardening, which meant maintaining terraces and rooftop spaces. Who knew that was a thing! I landed the job and fell in love with transforming small spaces into something beautiful. And I was really good at it.

From there, it evolved naturally. I started designing outdoor spaces for events, then creating floral arrangements to complement them indoors. It grew organically into a full creative practice.

Q: What does the floral designer role at Amlings look like?

It’s a blast. I joined the team in January 2026. I focus on weekly floral arrangements for clients—primarily high-end commercial spaces, residential buildings, and hotels. We currently serve about 25 weekly clients. Each arrangement is custom. I source flowers based on what looks best that week, then design specifically for each space and budget. No two weeks are the same.

In addition to weekly florals, we rotate orchid, succulent, and plant arrangements every six weeks to keep spaces feeling fresh and dynamic.

Q: Where do you find inspiration for your designs?

My 14 year old son and I were just talking about this last week. He said, “you are good at putting together weird colors. It’s like how I approach a jazz ensemble – it’s random.” My son, the drummer and jazz musician, is right. I like to force color combinations that would seem to clash. It usually starts with one element that catches my eye – a color, texture or shape. It’s improvisational. One standout piece leads, and everything else builds around it.

Q: Any “pro tips” when it comes to floral design in commercial spaces?

Start with bold, beautiful tropical foliage and then use florals to accent. Not the other way around. It’s more visually stunning and tropicals tend to hold up better and are more resistant to heat and drought. And they don’t get bugs or wilt as quickly.

Q: If there were no budget constraints, what would you create?

I’d design something inspired by my Southern Louisiana roots—lush, layered, and a little mysterious. Think Spanish moss, deep greens, and a “secret garden” feel.
One of my favorite places is the Fern Room at the Garfield Park Conservatory—it feels alive, immersive, and magical. That’s the kind of experience I’d want to recreate.

Q: Why do plants and florals matter in a space?

I truly believe being around living plants improves how we feel—physically and mentally. The science is there—plants can reduce stress and even improve air quality. But beyond that, they bring life into a space in a way nothing else can.

Q: What drew you to Amlings specifically?

I was looking for a place that truly values creativity and design. That’s not always easy to find. At Amlings, there’s a real appreciation for artistry—whether it’s floral design or large-scale plantscaping. It feels like a place where creativity is supported and celebrated, and where we get to share that with our clients every day.

Q. Do you do floral design for your home?

Always! My kitchen and dining room table have their own rotations and the rest of my home is a bit of a jungle.

We are incredibly grateful to have Paige on the Amlings team, sharing her unique creative vision and deep passion for artistry with us. Thank you, Paige, for bringing so much life into the spaces we serve in a way nothing else can!