Leon & Lulu Owner Receives ICON Award

A notable Clawson business owner was honored earlier this month in Atlanta for a successful career in the retail industry.

Mary Liz Curtin, owner of the popular eclectic furniture store , received an award at the ICON Honors ceremony before a crowd of about 900 people on July 14.

ICON Honors strives to recognize global innovation in the gift and home furnishings industry each year. The awards ceremony is a collaboration between AmericasMart Atlanta, Gift & Home Trade Association (GHTA) and national media sponsor HFN. Award winners include home and gift retailers, manufacturers, sales agents and service providers. 

Curtin said she was honored to receive the award.

"I so appreciate being recognized for my many years in this business," said Curtin, who has 35 years of experience in the gift and home industries.

Gift industry web site Gifts & Decorative Accessories gave Curtin high praise.

"If "America's Got Talent" ever staged a competition for gifted retailers, Mary Liz Curtin would be the hands-down winner," the web site said in a statement. "A life literally lived in retail, powered by fearless determination and a wicked shopping gene, have propelled Curtin's career achievements into a successful orbit giving Clawson, MI, and thousands of happy customers a shopping experience as unique as her roller-rink store, Leon & Lulu. Expecting the unexpected is her trademark. And her career is a beautiful illustration of how doing things very differently makes all the difference."