The truth is that the woodshop where we make our cases would literally grind to a halt if it wasn’t for our production manager, Sean Michael Kelly. To sum up what he does is a difficult task because he wears so many hats -- and even Sean says he doesn’t really know what he does here at Grove. But here’s a try: Sean does his best to make Grove a fun and upbeat environment to work in. He guides everyday production, works in line, continually develops production processes, and does specialty design work with both products and packaging. He’s also one of Grove’s original members who started as an intern two and half years ago! Sean likes to think that he has literally touched every single case that has been made at Grove.

Sean grew up in the Southwest Hills of Portland with his parents and two younger siblings.  He attended the University of Oregon and graduated in 2010 with a BFA in Product Design.  

During his time at Grove Sean got married to the love of his life Priscilla, bought a house, and they now live just outside of Portland with their beastly man-dog Oli who is believed to be a reincarnation of a Civil War era soldier name Oliver.



Sean breathes and thinks design. More than anything else, he’s interested in how we interact with each other and the world around us. He’s made beautiful streamlined furniture, an interactive communication device using light, and is currently working on an engaging teaching tool for children with Autism. He grew up with a carpenter father and an architect grandfather who both influenced and inspired him to do this type of work from a young age.    

To see some of Sean’s work you can visit his website here. Sean is the one who found the coveted shop wheelchair in which each and every one of us eats our lunch together. Thank you, Sean!

Written by Mike Schultz. He is an oil painter from Ithaca, New York.  When he is not working for Grove, he’s painting and drawing to his heart’s content.  You can see his work on his blog and his website.