Rima is an American interior designer and businesswoman.  She is the Executive Chairman and Chief Innovation Officer of her own brands (Irony Home in the Middle East & Asia, and Joy by Rima in the USA).  Both brands have a classic and modern design sensitivity.

 

Rima started her career in 1980, in Kuwait, as a secretary for Hilton Hotels.  She hoped to pursue acting from a young age but her parents encouraged to seek a more stable profession.  While working this position she met her husband Marc Dardenne.  Shortly after getting married, she moved to Benin, and volunteered in the Peace Corp Offices for West Africa.  While following her husband in his hotel career they lived in West Africa, Germany, Bali, Jakarta, Philippines, Singapore, Bali, Dubai and Zurich.   During this period, she had two kids (Stephanie 31 and Nicholas 27).

 

In the early years of her marriage she observed that the hotel industry was a bit lackluster in decorating hotels for the holidays.  First she decorated her husband’s hotels to make them warm and festive.  Eventually this led to contracts with other hotel brands in the area. 

 

Rima began designing her own Christmas ornaments in her kitchen in 1994 with her young kids manning the glue guns.  In the early days she sold her Christmas ornament collections to friends, schools and women’s groups.

 

Rima opened her first interior design store in 2002.  She is now celebrating 17 years with Irony Homes.  In 2012, she launched Joy by Rima.