HGTV 'Home Town Kickstart': Ben and Erin Napier's love story and family life
America's sweeping small-town resurgence will get an even wider national focus with HGTV's 'Home Town Kickstart,' which is inspired, powered, and championed by two smash hit shows of the network - 'Home Town' and 'Home Town Takeover', starring Ben and Erin Napier.
When Erin and Ben Napier agreed to shoot an HGTV show, all they wanted to do was bring attention to their hometown of Laurel, Mississippi, which is why the show is called Home Town. By restoring historic homes in their neighborhood, the husband-and-wife duo sought to help the rest of the world fall in love with tiny communities like Laurel. Fans' hearts, however, were won over by a different love story: Erin and Ben's.
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How did Erin and Ben meet?
The couple met while they were students at Jones County Junior College. They met at a yearbook picture session in December 2004 and began dating later that month, with their relationship swiftly developing into something more serious. They eventually went to the University of Mississippi, where they graduated in 2007. Ben and Erin got engaged in September 2007 and tied the knot in November 2008. Following their house renovation, the couple was approached by HGTV, which offered them a show. The restorations in their hometown of Laurel were featured in 'Home Town', which debuted in January 2016.
When did Erin and Ben get married?
On November 22, 2008, the couple married in the Paris Yates Chapel at the University of Mississippi. In 2012, Ben and Erin eased into married life and finished remodeling their Mississippi house. After Erin's ruptured appendix, the reality stars were unsure if they could have children, but their first child, Helen, was born in January 2018. Mae, Ben and Erin's second child, was born in May 2021. They kept their pregnancy news a secret for months, but in January of that year, they hinted at their growing family.
Erin and Ben's journey to being reality TV stars?
Before their restoration efforts encouraged them to change careers, Erin worked as a wedding stationery designer and Ben was a youth preacher. In June 2014, Southern Weddings published images of the couple's home, which drew even more attention to them. Producer Lindsey Weidhorn fell in love with the couple's little town after seeing Erin's images with the hashtag #ILiveInLaurel. They operated a stationery firm at the time, so when Lindsey contacted them about shooting a series in Laurel, they mistook her message for a request for stationery. Instead, she desired to broadcast them on television.
They don't get many days off between their businesses (Laurel Mercantile and Scotsman Co.), a furniture line with Vaughan-Bassett, various projects, and the show. When they do get the opportunity to sleep in and relax, Ben says they generally have a leisurely breakfast with his daughter.
Catch Ben and Erin on 'Home Town Kickstart', which will premiere on Sunday, April 24, 2022, at 8 pm on HGTV.
