Parents step in to help design kids' dorms

[WASHINGTON] So much stuff, so little style. The dream dorm room was just not happening.

Five years ago, Karen and Amanda Zuckerman hit the malls and big-box stores to decorate Amanda's freshman dorm at Washington University in St Louis. The offerings were . . . well, underwhelming.

"She wanted something special," Karen Zuckerman says. "She wanted a home away from home that reflected her style."

The mother and daughter cobbled together a cute enough room, then did what any creative, enterprising family would do: they founded Dormify, an online dorm design business based in Rockville, Maryland.

College students will spend US$48 billion this year (an average of US$916 per person) on furniture, electronics, bedding and other supplies, according to the National Retail Federation. Then there are the families who take it to the…