For this issue’s supplier profile, we interviewed Paul Sessel, owner of Creative Displays Inc., located in Overland Park, Kan.

How do you describe Creative Displays?

We are a direct importer of commercial-grade Christmas lighting and we sell products across the United States and Canada.

How did Creative Displays get started?

We were started in 1959. Originally, we installed Christmas lighting on commercial properties in the greater Kansas City area, and also sold products to municipalities, property managers and the like. I am the third owner of the company and I purchased it back in 1994. I sold off the installation side of the business to an employee in 2003. That same year, I started importing lights directly from China, and the company has morphed into one of the leading direct importing companies in the Midwest over the last eight years.

Can you give us an overview of your products and services?

We sell most anything to do with commercial-grade Christmas lighting, including products from light strings to replacement bulbs featuring the latest technology in full-wave LED lighting. We are also a manufacturer’s representative for the G-P Display Company. We make large outdoor Christmas displays that you would find in drive-through parks and pole-mounted displays for downtown communities across the United States.

Tell us about working with film and TV producers.

We don’t have any experience with working in front of the camera, but we have worked with “Extreme Makeover Home Edition,” donating lights for homes that they make over. Our lights will be featured in two movies to be released later this year, “New Years Eve” and “The Twilight Zone.”

Has the economy changed the way you operate?

Absolutely. It is harder borrowing money to finance inventory purchases. Business has not declined, thankfully. We are also keeping a much tighter reign on expenses.

What about Creative Displays sets it apart from competitors?

It’s all about service to our customers. We offer same-day shipping, and we stand behind our products. We believe in “Make it right.”

Are there any new products and/or services on the horizon?

Nothing really crazy. Of course, the trend is still going in the direction of LED lighting. We are seeing “action,” such as the dripping icicle products we sell as the biggest “new thing” out there on the commercial side. For the residential side the big thing is animation. If you go to YouTube and pull up Christmas displays, you see a lot of the homeowners with the dancing lights on there houses.

What do you see for the future of Creative Displays?

The future is “bright!”

www.creativedisplays.com