10/13/2026
Hello everyone,
First of all, I would like to apologize for taking so long to make this post. But I also hope everyone understands that these types of posts are not always the easiest to make, especially when something you've worked so hard for is involved.
Before I continue, I do want to kindly ask that if anyone has any questions, concerns, or needs an update regarding their order, please feel free to inbox me directly rather than leaving a comment on this post. I would sincerely appreciate it. I want to make sure I can address your concerns personally and give each of you the attention your order deserves. Thank you for your understanding.
Before anything else, I want to take a moment to sincerely thank every single person who has supported Elite Designs throughout the years. Whether you've followed our page, liked or shared our posts, purchased something from us, used our services, referred us to a friend or family member, or simply believed in what I was doing, please know that from the bottom of my heart, I truly, truly appreciate every single one of you.
As many of you know, we opened our storefront back in March of this year at 1208 West Pike Boulevard in Weslaco. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, I had to make the very difficult and heartbreaking decision to permanently close our storefront.
This was not an easy decision by any means.
Anyone who has ever owned and operated a small business knows that it comes with its rewards, but it also comes with its fair share of challenges, sacrifices, hardships, long days, sleepless nights, and everything else in between. It's not always as easy as it may appear from the outside looking in.
Yesterday, I tried to take a much needed mental day for myself, just to recollect my thoughts, process everything that has happened, and try to figure out what comes next. But even doing that is difficult when you still have a business to operate, customers depending on you, and obligations that still need to be fulfilled.
This year has been, without a doubt, one of the most difficult years of my life, both personally and professionally.
And with the passing of my older brother back in June after his battle with cancer, things became even more difficult. Watching someone you love slowly deteriorate from such a terrible disease is something I wouldn't wish on anyone. And sometimes, life doesn't give us the opportunity to properly grieve or process what we've been through because everything around us continues moving, whether we're ready or not.
I share that with you not because I'm looking for sympathy, and certainly not because I'm trying to make excuses, but because I think sometimes we forget that behind every business is a real person. Someone who has a family, personal struggles, emotions, responsibilities, and challenges that others may know absolutely nothing about.
And I will be the first to admit that these past several months have taken a toll on me.
One of the things that has bothered me the most has been the number of mistakes I've made with customer orders, the delays, and even moments when I've nearly forgotten about an order altogether. That is something that genuinely frightens me because that is NOT how I've operated my business over the past ten years.
I've always taken tremendous pride in my work, my customers, and the reputation I've worked so hard to build. Am I perfect? Absolutely not. I'm human. I'm not a robot, LOL. I make mistakes just like everyone else. But when those mistakes start happening more frequently than normal, you have to recognize that something isn't right and figure out what needs to change.
And that's exactly where I found myself.
To those customers whose orders have taken longer than expected, and especially those who are still waiting, I want to offer you my sincerest apology.
I know how important your orders are. I know that when you place an order with me, you're trusting me to deliver something you've paid for, something you may need for a special occasion, a school event, a fundraiser, or something meaningful to you and your family.
I understand the frustration, and I understand that an apology doesn't automatically make up for the inconvenience or the time you've spent waiting.
But please believe me when I say that nobody wants your orders completed more than I do.
If I could snap my fingers and have everything completed perfectly and immediately, trust me, I would!
And just because you may not see me posting updates, sharing pictures of completed orders, or responding as quickly as I normally would, please don't assume that I've forgotten about you or that your order has been pushed aside.
I have been actively working to get everything completed, even during the process of closing and moving out of the storefront.
I still have several outstanding orders that I am working on this week, and my immediate priority is to get those completed and into the hands of my customers as quickly as possible.
I have never been the type of business owner to simply blow someone off or disregard their order. That's not who I am, and that's certainly not what I want Elite Designs to be remembered for.
For those who have known me or done business with me over the years, you know how much of myself I've dedicated to this business.
For nearly ten years, Elite Designs has been a huge part of my life.
Ask my family. Ask my friends. Even after business hours, on weekends, holidays, family outings, and sometimes even while on vacation, I was still answering phone calls, responding to messages, taking orders, and trying to make myself available to my customers.
And while I've always done that because I genuinely care about my customers and my business, I've also come to realize that somewhere along the way, I stopped giving myself the time I needed to simply be a person outside of Elite Designs.
Sometimes we get so caught up in trying to take care of everything and everyone around us that we forget to take care of ourselves.
And sometimes it takes reaching a very difficult point in life to finally recognize that something needs to change.
I believe I've reached that point.
I'm not ashamed to admit that mentally and emotionally, these past several months have been overwhelming. I think it takes strength to recognize when you need to make changes rather than continue down a path that simply isn't working anymore.
But I do want to make one thing very clear: Just because the storefront has closed does NOT mean I'm giving up on what I love doing, and it certainly does NOT mean that your outstanding orders will not be completed.
I am not walking away from my customers or my responsibilities.
What I am doing is taking this opportunity to restructure the business and move in a different direction.
I'm currently considering a few new business names and working toward a new business model that will allow me to focus more on certain services while eliminating others. I want to simplify things, concentrate on the work I genuinely enjoy, and create something that makes better sense for where I am in life today.
I believe a new name and a new direction will give me an opportunity to start a fresh chapter, while still carrying with me the knowledge, experience, and relationships I've built over the past decade.
Once I have everything figured out, I'll be sharing the new name, the services I'll continue offering, and what the next chapter will look like.
But before I can fully focus on that new chapter, my first priority is taking care of the customers who are still waiting on me. You trusted me with your orders, and I intend to honor that trust.
I also want to say something that I think is important.
Sometimes, when we see someone closing a business, changing directions, or going through a difficult time, it's easy to assume that they've failed.
But I don't necessarily see it that way.
I see ten years of hard work. Ten years of lessons learned. Ten years of meeting incredible people, building relationships, creating things I'm proud of, and doing something that I truly enjoyed.
I see sacrifices that most people will never know about. I see the long nights, the early mornings, the missed family time, the stress, the laughter, the accomplishments, and yes, even the mistakes.
And while I certainly wish things had turned out differently with the storefront, I cannot allow these past several difficult months to erase everything that I've worked so hard to accomplish over the last ten years.
Elite Designs has been good to me, and more importantly, YOU, my customers, have been good to me.
I don't know exactly what this next chapter has in store for me, but I do know that I want to approach it with a clearer mind, a healthier balance, and the same passion for creating that got me started in the first place.
I also want to remind everyone that we never truly know what someone else may be going through behind closed doors. A little patience, kindness, and understanding can go a long way. That applies not just to small business owners, but to everyone.
And to those who have been patient with me, checked on me, offered words of encouragement, or simply continued to support me through all of this, I cannot thank you enough.
From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU.
Thank you for believing in me.
Thank you for trusting me.
Thank you for allowing me to be part of your special moments, celebrations, businesses, schools, organizations, and families over the past ten years.
Thank you for helping me build Elite Designs into something I could be proud of.
And again, to anyone I may have disappointed with delays, mistakes, or lack of communication during these past several months, I am truly and sincerely sorry. I know I cannot change what has already happened, but I can learn from it, take responsibility, and work toward doing better.
This isn't exactly how I envisioned closing this chapter of Elite Designs, especially after everything I've poured into it over the years.
But sometimes life takes us in directions we never expected, and all we can do is learn, grow, and find the courage to move forward.
So this isn't necessarily goodbye. It's simply the end of one chapter and the beginning of another.
Here's to ten years of Elite Designs, the memories, the lessons, the friendships, and the thousands of opportunities you all have given me.
And hopefully, here's to many more years of doing what I love, just in a different way.
With much love, gratitude, and appreciation,
Russell Peralez
