SDG Employee Spotlight – Suzie Lopes

Suzie Lopes is one of the first people you see when you enter our office, she is so warm and welcoming. Having her part of the team has rounded us out beautifully. With only 3 ladies in the group, we learn to joke and laugh like the rest of the guys. We really enjoy our culture here at Shorelines Design Group and Suzie is a big contributor to this.

Suzie Lopes has been with SDG for over a year now and the value she has brought has been tremendous. Originally hired as administrative support which she has excelled in, her true talent really is digital marketing. Within her first year she has rebuilt our website, added more quality photos to our portfolios, managed our marketing tools and fine-tuned our presence on the web. She has also implemented and managed new project lists, plan pickup station, scheduled new clients, found software cost savings, and so much more.

I often joke that we are Suzie’s side hustle (because we really are). She is a full-time photographer in the evenings and weekends. Her portrait photos are amazing! She has stretched her skills to even take on architectural photos of our work. As Suzie’s manager I am so grateful for all her talents and really feel she is a gift to SDG. I’m honored to announce Suzie Lopes as our spotlight employee for the month of July. Thank you for everything you do for us!

In Suzie’s Words

Here’s a little about me. I was born and raised in Connecticut and moved to sunny Florida in 2017. I’m a wife and mom to an amazing son who makes me proud each and every day. When I’m not working you can find me reading a book, going to concerts or driving around with the top off my JEEP.

I spent the bulk of my career working at a large insurance company back in Connecticut. 28 years at the same company isn’t something you see too often any longer. I learned a lot and am grateful to have been able to try different fields while there. I’ve worked at a couple places since moving. First at the Hyatt in Clearwater where I spent a couple years until Covid hit and they had to downsize staff. I then joined the team at South University in Tampa. I loved working with the students and staff but was drained from the commute and long hours. And that brings me to how I joined the SDG team.

When we moved to Florida, I found myself looking for a purpose and something just for me! I stumbled across a video of a husband-and-wife photography team that was offering a free hour class. I was the mom that took photos at all the soccer games my son played in. I loved sharing them with the other moms and making memories for the boys. I took prom photos for my niece and fell in love with working with seniors but didn’t do anything further with it. So, when I saw this class pop up, I thought why not.

My husband encouraged me to continue with the courses and I became an AJ trifecta student. Soaking up all the knowledge I could from them and a few other photographers I found online. And that’s when Suzie Lopes Photography was born. I started a new business at the age of 49. It was hard. I didn’t have any contacts here in Florida since we had just moved. So, I hustled. I shot a lot for free to get my name out there. I signed up for local styled shoots to get content and off I went. Bookings started to come in and though I’m still relatively new to the field I have worked with some amazing families, seniors, business owners and brides and grooms. My dream is to work solely with high school seniors. I have had a senior spokesmodel team for three years now and love every second of it. Seeing them blossom throughout their senior year makes me so happy.

Working full time in Tampa and building your own business at the same time is exhausting. I was burnt out. Coming home every day and eating dinner only to head back into the office and working another 4-5 hours on the business didn’t leave room for much more. So my husband and I talked it out and we decided that working a full-time job was not feasible any longer. I started looking for a part time job where I could still have a steady income but leave me with a couple of days to concentrate on my photography would be the best fit for my sanity.

I was so lucky to find SDG. Not only do I get to work with amazingly talented employees who are like family to each other. I get to use my creative side here as well. I’m so thankful that Lerin, Rich and Tim took the chance on me. I’ve loved taking their website from blah to beautiful. I’ve loved working on improving their online presence through social media. I’ve loved getting to use my photography skills to take photos of the gorgeous homes that they design. Though I’m still learning the ins and outs of architectural photography. I’m proud of what I have been able to capture so far. I look forward to continue to grow and learn so that we can continue to show off the beautiful homes that are being built here in Florida.