Style Editor Julie A. Palm chats with Ron Henderson About Enjoying “Happy Stress” Creativity — and Why He Keeps 400,000 Photos on His Phone
March 1, 2026
Varaluz founder and creative force Ron Henderson knows what it’s like to have a creative dry spell, but it doesn’t happen often. “It’s akin to writer’s block,” he says. “There are times when the ideas are flying fast and furious, and then there are other times you hit a dry spell — but I don’t tend to have too many of those. Even if life is super challenging, like it has been the last year and a half or two … it was kind of like giving my creativity a dose of steroids. I don’t know why, but when I have the least amount of time to capture an idea that’s generally when they’re popping into your head like crazy.” The challenging time Henderson refers to includes Varaluz filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2024 and Salt Lake City-based residential, commercial, and religious lighting manufacturer Ciana Lighting acquiring Varaluz in spring 2025.
Henderson describes his stress since the Ciana purchase as “happy stress.” He notes that the cash infusion from Ciana allowed Varaluz to introduce more than 300 items at Lightovation in January and has provided additional marketing, accounting and other infrastructure for the luxury lighting producer. The latter has freed Henderson to focus on design, including design trips to Varaluz’s manufacturing facility in the Philippines and elsewhere.
