Welcome to today's episode! We have Misty Maxey, the Bachelor Pad Designer, on the show with us today. Misty has decided to fully niche her business into designing strictly for bachelors. After spending some time doing hobby designing, she finally made the decision to get serious and look for the help she needed to learn the difference between a hobby and a business. On the show today, she explains how she knew that she had to reach out to coaches and other accomplished designers, in order to be successful. Misty really understands that by pushing through fear and doing things that scare you, you level up and make things happen. She really has her eyes wide open, and her website, (Misty Maxey) with its clear and authentic copy, describes very distinctly what she does, how she does it, and who she does it for. Listen in today, to hear what Misty has to share about the really intentional way she set up her business.
Misty Maxey has always loved interior design. With two artistic parents, her creative path was written in the stars. Always seeking to grow in her knowledge and understanding of the interior design field, she regularly sought out the experience from successful designers.
With knowledge and life experiences forming her understanding of the importance of interior design, she opened her business with the goal of inspiring bachelors to live their best life ever by co-creating their home that reflects who they are and to become.
As a survivor of domestic violence, Misty regularly gives back by providing complimentary design services to survivors and their families. This restores dignity and gives back to her community. Tune in now, for more!
Show highlights:
Links:
Website: Misty Maxey
Instagram: Misty Maxey Designs
Pinterest: Misty Maxey
Twitter: Misty Maxey
Books mentioned:
Do the Work: Overcome Resistance and Get Out of Your Own Way by Steven Pressfield
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield
Today on the show I have yet another fabulous business coach who specializes in our industry! Michele Williams is with me! Michele is the founder of Scarlet Thread and Consulting in Atlanta, Georgia. Today we will learn about Michele’s background which includes the financial software industry as well as a business in soft window treatment fabricator. She also has a BS in business administration, a diploma in Christian life coaching and she is one of the few certified profit first coaches in the United States. Michele was also the communication director and editor in chief of the Drapery and Designs Professional Magazine from 2009 to 2012. She is a member of The Design Collective in Atlanta, the Designers Work Club Council and the Window Covering Association of America. After talking to Michele I realized that there are so many things I could talk with her about but after we talk about her background a little bit we are going to pull apart work scheduling and chunking our day to have more productivity.
Show Notes:
Resources:
Website: Scarlet Thread Consulting
Facebook: Scarlet Thread Consulting
Instagram: Scarlet Thread
LinkedIn: Michele Williams
Twitter: Michele Williams
Financial Health Checklist PDF: Scarlet Thread Consulting
Previous shows mentioned:
#104 Kate the Socialite
#94 Debi Pinelli (A& J Interiors)
#69, #93 Stacey Brown Randall
#128 Grace McNamara
#125, #317 Nicole Heymer
#141 Jim Riviello
Links:
Welcome to today's show! We're talking to Tiffannie White today, the creator of The Nappy Bohemian, located in Oakland, California. Tiffannie is a blogger, an interior stylist, and an e-designer and she also has a full-time position as a design consultant at Fireclay Tile. After spending many years as a career sales professional, The Nappy Bohemian was born in 2017 because Tiffannie wanted to merge her architecture education, her love for tile and ceramics, and her desire to showcase the real black experience in the world of interior design. Tune in today, to hear about Tiffannie's business, what she's doing, and the lessons she's learned from running her business.
Tiffannie's job with Fireclay Tile has allowed her an inside look on the world of artisan makers, and it has also connected her with terrific designers in her East Coast territory. In today's episode, she describes how much she loves her job, she talks openly about the lessons and challenges she experienced in her first year in business, and she shares her goals for the year to come. Listen in now, to find out more.
Show highlights:
Links:
Previous shows mentioned:
Welcome to Power Talk Friday! We are really thrilled to have Jean Brownhill, founder, and CEO of Sweeten, on the show with us today. Jean, who has almost 500 000 followers on Instagram, is onto something that you, as designers, really need to know about. She has a designer trade VIP program where she connects interior designers with the really well-screened, well-vetted general contractors that her company has worked with over the years. Right now, Sweeten has thousands of these contractors on their books. This means that whatever kind of project an interior designer brings to them, they can match it. Listen in today, to find out all about Jean's really awesome designer trade VIP program and how it can really benefit you, as a designer.
After earning an Architecture degree at The Cooper Union, Jean spent a decade in design and construction, including in Global Architecture at Coach, where she won the Chairman’s Award for designing web platforms to streamline retail construction worldwide. After a challenging renovation of her own home, she saw the need for a free service to match people to vetted general contractors, providing support throughout the process. So Sweeten was launched in 2011. The concept earned Jean a prestigious Loeb Fellowship from Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. Tune in to find out what Jean has to share about the really unique platform that she's created.
Show highlights:
Bio:
Jean Brownhill, Founder, and CEO of Sweeten
After earning an Architecture degree at The Cooper Union, Jean Brownhill spent a decade in design and construction, including in Global Architecture at Coach, where she won the Chairman’s Award for designing web platforms to streamline retail construction worldwide. After a challenging renovation of her own home, she saw the need for a free service to match people to vetted general contractors, providing support throughout the process.
Sweeten (as in “home, sweet home”) launched in 2011; the concept earned Jean a prestigious Loeb Fellowship from Harvard University's Graduate School of Design.
Today, Sweeten has more than $1B of construction projects in the pipeline. The service has been called a “Renovation Game-Changer,” with Jean hailed as “The Contractor Whisperer” by New York Magazine as well as one of Inc. Magazine’s “Most Innovative Women Founders in America.” Sweeten brings trust, technology, and transparency to the $340B+ residential renovation industry, allowing consumers to renovate fearlessly. The company expanded to commercial projects—restaurants, retail, offices, etc.—in 2017.
Just as Sweeten sets new standards for contractors, Jean is taking on traditional barriers for diversity and women in tech. She's a female founder disrupting a male-dominated industry. She’s co-founder of the African American Student Union (AASU) at Harvard's Graduate School of Design, an organization supporting African Americans in architecture, real estate, and urban planning. She’s a member of the 2018 Class of Henry Crown Fellows at the Aspen Institute. And she’s one of few black female entrepreneurs to raise $1M+ in venture capital, as featured in Vanity Fair.
For more info, please contact Randi MacColl at randi@sweeten.com or 212-671-1713.
Links:
Design Trade VIP Program: Sweeten Architects Designers
Instagram: @sweeten_home
Facebook: @theSweeten
Pinterest: Sweeten
Twitter: @sweeten home
Welcome! Today we have Melissa Hryszko, the award-winning design brain behind Veranda Estate Homes Inc., join us on the show. For the past eighteen years, Melissa and her husband, Rob, have owned and operated one of Calgary's most successful and versatile luxury home building companies. Today, Melissa shares some of her best tips for growing her firm's Instagram following to an incredible 80 000 followers, and she also explains that she and Rob are crystal clear about who they will work with, and about the kinds of projects that they will do and will not do. Listen in today, to find out what it takes to consistently build between seven and ten custom homes per year, from the ground up.
Melissa's formal education is in graphic design and advertising and yet it's really clear that she belongs in the world of interior design. She brings a meticulous level of detail to each and every project that Veranda is involved in, and she does all her designs by hand. Melissa also tackles each project on an individual basis to ensure that each one is unique and representing the Veranda brand. Tune in today to find out more.
Show highlights:
Links and resources:
Melissa's Podcast: Modern Design Minds with her co-host Amy Kearns (from the Boston area).
Facebook: Veranda Estate Homes
Modern Design Minds on Instagram: modern design minds
Buildertrend: Builder Trend
Previous guests mentioned in this episode:
Judith Neary - Design Biz Live #170, #264, #326, #399, #410
Additional episodes about building your IG:
More episodes about doing full design and build:
Circle Design Studio with husband and wife team John and Theresa Dorlini #380
Welcome to Power Talk Friday! We are really delighted to introduce you to Amanda Berlin today. Amanda is a communications consultant specifically for entrepreneurs. She teaches visibility strategy, to help people to be seen and appreciated for their uniqueness. She tells us that what she does daily, in her PR niche, is much the same as every one of us, as entrepreneurs, has to do when marketing our businesses. It's about creating a story around a business or a product that really connects it with an audience. On the show today, she and LuAnn talk about the kinds of pitches that designers need to write, the types of media that are the right fit for designers, and how to create relationships with writers and reporters to get yourself and your projects featured more easily and more often. Tune in today, to find out how to be seen and appreciated!
Amanda studied journalism at George Washington University. She interned at CNN, wrote for a local paper, and spent a decade writing media pitches for companies like Disney, Dove, Brawny, Baskin Robbins, Colgate, and Campbell’s. The pitches Amanda wrote resulted in appearances on almost every level of local television outlet in the country and on every national cable and network morning show at one time or another. Amanda has been featured on Carol Cox's Speaking Your Brand and she also has a podcast, The Empowered Publicity Podcast. Listen in today, to hear what Amanda has to share!
Show highlights:
Bio:
I’m a New Yorker by way of New Jersey with stints in Washington, DC and Madrid, Spain.
I’m told my Jersey often shows through, whatever that means. I’m a mama of an only. I’m obsessed with my family as well as finding the exact right word to complete my thought in every conversation (it can get annoying). And peanut butter. I’m also obsessed with peanut butter.
I was born to make sure we are all heard and seen and appreciated for our unique genius.
I about died when I got a poem published in my high school literary magazine.
I studied journalism at The George Washington University, interned at CNN, wrote for a local paper, and then came back to New York City.
For a decade, I wrote media pitches for companies like Disney, Dove, Brawny, Baskin Robbins, Colgate, and Campbell’s. Clients would come to me with a spokesperson and some message points and I’d package it up and create a story that would get pitched to news outlets across the country. The pitches I wrote resulted in appearances on nearly every local television outlet in the country and every national cable and network morning show at one time or another.
My day-to-day in this niche of PR is exactly what every last entrepreneur is tasked with doing when marketing their business. Take a spokesperson (themselves) and a message (their business or product) and create a story that connects with an audience.
Amanda Berlin was referred to LuAnn by Amber De La Garza #385.
Shows that correlate with this one:
Amy Flurry #108 and #323
Links:
Amanda's website: Amanda Berlin
Amanda's podcast: Amanda Berlin
Find Amanda on Facebook: Amanda Berlin Coaching
Follow Amanda on Twitter: Amanda Berlin
Valerie Fund Designer Showhouse April 23- May 19, 2019
Previous guests participating in the showhouse:
WindowWorks is supporting several designers in the Valerie Fund Showhouse by providing window treatments for their rooms.
Kips Bay Showhouse May 2- May 30, 2019
Previous guest participating in Kips Bay:
Links to LuAnn's books:
Book 1: Luann Nigara
Book 2: Luann Nigara
Welcome to today's episode! We are delighted to have the one and only Tobi Fairley join us today! Tobi is a progressive-thinking entrepreneur, known for her interior design and she is focused on helping her clients design their homes, their businesses, and their lives through her full-service interior design company and her consulting firm. Tobi has a special interest in promoting wellness and balance for entrepreneurs, CEO's, and creatives. She also has a podcast, called The Design You Podcast, which was launched in April 2018. (LuAnn was her guest on episode #37). Today, Tobi talks to LuAnn about tuning in to what you really like to do and how you really want your business to be, making more money, and getting to grips with digital services in the ever-changing online world. Tune in for more!
Tobi has been a trusted coach for interior designers and creatives, through her live events, business courses, and online programs for over ten years. More than ten years ago, when Tobi launched her blog, she was at the forefront of the design blog movement. Her blog is currently read in more than 125 countries across the globe. In 2017, Tobi was a columnist for Traditional Home magazine with a feature in each issue chronicling her own home renovation and reveal. Her award-winning interior design, product design, and ideas have been featured on television and in worldwide publications including House Beautiful, Veranda, Traditional Home, Huffington Post, HGTV, The Wall Street Journal, Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, Real Simple, Coastal Living, Southern Cottages, Creative Live, the Chicago Tribune, and MSNBC. Listen in today, to find out from Tobi how to create a business that is right for you.
Show highlights:
Bio:
Traditional Home predicts “Tobi will be like Cher or Oprah, one of those women for whom one name says it all.”
Tobi Fairley is known for her bold use of color in interior design, but she’s also one of the nation’s most progressive-thinking entrepreneurs. Tobi is passionate about her full-service interior design company and her consulting firm which are focused on helping clients design their homes, their businesses and their lives, with a special interest in promoting wellness and balance for entrepreneurs, CEO’s and creatives.
Tobi established her firm more than 19 years ago and her projects have spanned the nation and beyond. Her award-winning interior design, product design and ideas have been featured on television and in publications worldwide including House Beautiful, Veranda, Traditional Home, Huffington Post, HGTV, The Wall Street Journal, Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens, Real Simple, Coastal Living, Southern Cottages, Creative Live, the Chicago Tribune, and MSNBC. In 2017, Tobi was a columnist for Traditional Home magazine with a feature in each issue chronicling her own home renovation and reveal.
Tobi’s design goal is to create interiors that will assist her clients in reaching their big, personal, and entrepreneurial dreams, while supporting their health and wellness. She designs functional homes and beautiful environments that will foster personal growth, balance, and connection for all who use them.
Tobi was on the forefront of the design blog movement when she launched her blog over 10 years ago, and it’s currently read in more than 125 countries worldwide. She has been a trusted coach for over 10 years for interior designers and creatives through her live events, design and business courses, and online programs.
Among Tobi’s latest ventures is Design You, a monthly coaching program, where interior designers and creatives can get all of Tobi’s best course content, along with live coaching from Tobi in the areas of business, health and wellness, and mindset for a monthly or yearly subscription. In April 2018 Tobi launched her new podcast, The Design You Podcast, where she helps Interior Designers and Creatives say no to busy and say yes to more health, wealth and joy. In her podcast episodes, Tobi shares best business practices, her personal journey as a working mom and her beliefs about personal development for creating your best life, business and home.
For the last 3 years, Tobi has had great success in product design with her licensed collections from Soicher Marin (art), Duralee (fabrics), CR Laine (upholstered furniture), Woodbridge Furniture (case goods and outdoor furniture), New River Artisans (rugs), and recently signed a license with C2 Paint which will debut late 2018.
Links:
LuAnn's Book:
A Well-Designed Business, The Power Talk Friday Experts
Kay Whitaker is a Co-Author in the book and her episodes on digital marketing are: #259, #274
Previous shows mentioned:
Tobi's website and social media:
Facebook: Tobi Fairley Interior Design
Instagram: Tobi Fairley/
Twitter: Tobi Fairley
Welcome to Power Talk Friday! Today's show is about working with a professional Virtual Assistant, who works specifically in the field of interior design. Sarah Durnez is the founder of Loft Design in Walla Walla Washington, and she joins us today. For Sarah, it really doesn't matter where she is, or where you are for that matter because she works remotely to help designers, like you, with their design businesses. She's worked with designers all over the US and she's only ever met one of them once, in the flesh. Sarah's specialty is providing designers with drawings and renderings. Most of her clients have been with her since she started her business, which really says a lot about Sarah and her work, right? Listen in today, to find out more about Sarah and the high-quality Virtual Design Assistant services that she gives her clients.
Sarah graduated from MIU with a BFA in Interior Design. At school, she gravitated to honing her rendering skills and creating the best presentations. Competing to showcase design boards during Miami's Art Basil each year, really drove home the importance that the way that a project is presented is just as important as the design of the project. Sarah has been working remotely with designers for over six years, providing them with detailed construction documents, renderings, and presentation materials to sell their designs. With Sarah handling the technical side of a project, her designers have more time to focus on other aspects of design, grow their business, and be out of the office to spend more time with their families. Tune in for more!
Show highlights:
Links:
Press Kit
Password: tacos
Website: Loft Design
Instagram: SarahatLoftDesign
Facebook: SarahatLoftDesign
Pinterest: SarahatLoftDesign
Previous shows mentioned in this episode:
Revelwoods #329
Madeleine MacRae #283 and #315
Episodes that go with this one:
On VA’s
Welcome! Today we have Mr. Inkredible on the show with us. Don Ricardo Massenburg, Jr, known for his use of bright and bold patterns and colors in home decor, is the principal of Design Inkredible in Durham, North Carolina. Don believes that interior design should be and could be attainable by everyone, even though it's considered a luxury service. In today's episode, he talks to us about his design business and about his work in early childhood education. He also explains how he runs his design firm in conjunction with his full-time position in the education field. Listen in to find out more.
For a long time, it has been Don's dream to do something that he loves so much that it doesn't feel like he's working. Interior design has been his answer to this. Don's firm has grown so fast and has become so successful that it's hard to believe that technically, it's his side-hustle. He really understands what it takes to maintain a successful interior design business, and he's always adding to his education in interior design. Tune in to find out about Don and how his love for art, music, furniture, and anything bold and creative really fuels his passion for interior design.
Show highlights:
Don's Bio:
Recognized for his use of bright, bold patterns and colors in home décor, Don Ricardo Massenburg Jr. seeks to show that although interior design is considered a luxury service, it can be attainable to everyone. His love for art, music, furniture, and anything bold and creative fuels his passion for interior design. It has been a lasting dream of Ricardo’s to do something that he loves and enjoys so much that it doesn’t feel like he’s working, and Ricardo believes that he has experienced that dream with interior design.
Ricardo received a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from North Carolina Central University and started his first interior design venture while he served as a teacher. Some of his earliest and favorite projects were children’s spaces where he enjoyed pulling bright, vibrant colors together, along with fun patterns. Ricardo continues to work in the field of education by day and acknowledges the value of the transferable skills gained through his experiences.
The growth of DESiGN iNKREDiBLE LLC has been so exciting and through his, work Ricardo has developed other gifts and talents such as sewing, upholstery, and creating abstract art. Ricardo recognizes that although style and a good design eye are important, it takes much more to maintain a successful interior design business and he is currently continuing education in interior design.
For more episodes on how to grow your Instagram following:
#203 and #330 Darla Powell / Wingnut Social
For more episodes on mentorship:
#91 and #177 Sarah Daniele- Mydoma Studio
Links:
Join LuAnn at High Point Market
Facebook Groups:
Mark McDonough:
Darla Powell:
LuAnn: