All the corporate marketing and global promotions for The Walt Disney Co., McDonald’s and Hasbro Inc. that Kathleen Seguin did for 17 years somehow led her to becoming a small-business owner in a quaint seaside town in the tiniest state in the USA.
“I have always wanted to do this. It’s been my dream for a very long time,” said Seguin, who opened her Bristol House Bed & Breakfast in May 2011.
“I remember going shopping with my mom when I was in college, and I saw this blue and white china I really liked. I said to my mom, ‘I’m going to buy this and use it in my inn one day,’ ” said Seguin. “I did buy it and I have used it.”
Seguin lived in her house in Bristol for four years while she worked at Hasbro, and intended to buy another property for her B&B. Instead, she did some renovation, added two bathrooms so all three guest rooms have a private bath, and has her private quarters distinctly separate from the visitor space.
So far, none of her guests have had to call her in the middle of the night, but she’s pretty much always available.
“It still doesn’t feel like work,” said Seguin.”It just combines all of my favorite things. I love to cook. I love to entertain. And I love to decorate.”
With all the corporate travel in her previous work, which she enjoyed, she didn’t have time to put down roots and become involved in the local business community. That has changed.
About a year ago, she was appointed to the board of Discover Newport, the regional tourism organization that represents Newport and Bristol counties.
“Kathleen represents the voice of the B&Bs and the small inns. We have more than 250 of those in the nine towns,” said Discover Newport President and CEO Evan Smith.
Seguin has a deep, global perspective on travel and lodging. She grew up in a military family and lived in many places around the United States, including Alabama, Kansas, Maryland, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia.
She got her degree in communications from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and then her corporate work broadened her travels. She worked for a subsidiary of McDonald’s in Atlanta. When that division was bought out, she went to work for Disney in Atlanta. The company sent her to Los Angeles, and travel included Disneyland Paris.
She got to Rhode Island by taking a job at Hasbro as director of global marketing partnerships and promotions. Her travel for Hasbro included trips to England and to Spain.
“I think about it now – going to Spain for Trivial Pursuit. It was fun,” said Seguin.
The travel continued to feed her dream. She stayed in small inns when she could and was keenly observant.
“I had a notebook, and I always took notes of what I liked and what I didn’t like,” said Seguin.
She attended, for short times, the Culinary Institute of America and the Apicius International School of Hospitality in Florence, Italy.
After so many years on the road, she’s enjoying putting down local roots.
