Tailored to the Tenant

Blake Clotia customizes interiors for businesses and homes.

There’s a good chance you’ve seen the work of Tony Blake Jr. and his company, Blake Clotia, though you might not have realized it at the time. There are touches of the company’s work throughout local businesses, from the sleek bar at Oeno to the interior design at New Leaf to a modern-looking pulpit at the chapel in St. Joseph Medical Center. Although the average person might not recognize Blake Clotia’s work, the company has become a common name among Wichita business owners. “We’re known but not known,” says Blake, the business’ 35-year-old founder.

It’s hard to categorize Blake Clotia. It isn’t just interior design. It’s far more than custom furniture. It’s commercial, care-good and residential work. It’s part art and entirely practical. “We do the whole motif—it’s a tenant-finish operation,” says Blake.

When Extreme Home Makeover visited Kansas, Blake Clotia worked alongside the show’s host, Ty Pennington, to complete a special project, an auto repair shop in the garage for the family’s father. When restaurateur Melad Stephan was deciding who would design the interior of Sabor, his latest Old Town culinary endeavor, he turned to Blake Clotia. And when art lovers stroll through Wichita during Final Fridays, Blake Clotia often hosts art exhibits alongside Fisch Haus and other art studios.

Not bad for a guy who never took a class in design. In fact, Blake majored in sports administration while playing golf for Wichita State University. After graduating, he moved to Oakland and took an internship with the Oakland Raiders. He spent mornings teeing it up with the likes of Pro Bowl receiver Tim Brown and defensive star Chester McGlockton. Two years later, he moved to Florida to follow his dream of playing professional golf. He fared well in mini tournaments but grew weary of the constant traveling. There came a point when he had to make a decision between golf and settling down. “If my golf career had taken off right away, that works,” he says. “But I was ready to settle down.”

Blake moved back to Wichita in 2001 and married his long-time girlfriend, Cara. He began working with his father, Tony Blake of Tony Blake Total Design. He learned to weld, sand and manage a business. Blake also studied his father’s logos and came to appreciate the beauty of simple, clean designs. “There doesn’t need to be a lot going on to make a design great,” he says. In 2002, he attended his first furniture show in Chicago, and Tony Blake Total Design won Best of Show.

Blake decided to take the next step by opening his own business in 2005. He purchased Clotia Wood & Metal Works, a custom cabinetry business and warehouse located in the Commerce Street Art District. He overhauled the business by bringing designer Alexis Bennett on board, working alongside Phillip Baumer and expanding the company’s vision. “We sort of evolved from manufacturing to design,” he says. “Now clients ask, ‘What can you do?’ and I always tell them, ‘You name it—the sky’s the limit.’”

Today, the company tackles everything from floor plans to layouts, furniture to interior design. After talking to a client about their vision, Blake works alongside Bennett and Baumer to create a 3-D rendering of the project. The company’s seven craftsmen then make the vision a reality by creating custom furniture, basic cabinetry and metalwork inside their 15,000-square-foot shop. While Blake Clotia’s services run the gamut, the business truly excels at custom projects. Sometimes the result is a bench that looks like something out of Independence Day. Other times, it’s a sleek desk with wave-shaped legs. “Everything we do has an artistic feel,” says Blake. “We want to be on the forefront of new trends, but not too trendy. We’re carving our own niche.”