Welcome to today's show! We are very happy to introduce you to Catherine Hersacher, the founder of Bespoke Fine Interiors in Aiken, South Carolina. On the show today Catherine talks to us about how she translates and brings her worldly exposure and background to the small-horse community of Aiken. Running an interior design firm in a small, tight-knit community has some very specific challenges, but there are pro's to it as well. On today's show, Catherine also talks a bit about her consultation process. She is able to achieve a design for any project that is cogent with her client's tastes and context. Listen in today to find out more about working as an interior designer in a smaller market.
Catherine, originally from Massachusetts, founded Bespoke Fine Interiors in Aiken South Carolina in 2012, with fourteen years of design experience behind her. She previously worked for some of the top firms in the country, in the high-end residential and ultra-exclusive hospitality sectors of the design industry. Catherine gained invaluable knowledge in the luxury residential design field while working in Palm Beach, Florida. Then, moving to the Northeast, Catherine joined an exclusive hospitality design firm as an interior designer and specifications manager. Many of the projects were five-star and boutique properties, including hotels, clubhouses, residential towers and conference centers. These projects were often located all around the globe. Catherine was part of the Asia team and was frequently sent to present and conduct site visits in China and Hong Kong. Listen in to find out what Catherine has to share on the show today.
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Welcome! Today we're really excited to have Chaney Widmer, the founder of Mix and Match Design Company, back with us- and she is also the sponsor of today's show! (She was previously in episode #260.) We were really impressed when we first met Chaney because she was so well-spoken, so poised, and so directed and focused about her business. We were also really impressed with the way that Chaney's whole business is completely E-design and that she doesn't do any client-facing in-the-house work at all. Listen in today to find out more about Chaney's niche.
Mix & Match Design Company was founded by Chaney Widmer in 2015 with the goal of making interior design services accessible and affordable for everyone. By harnessing the power of technology and using innovative online tools, Mix & Match has been able to help folks create homes that they love in a fun and efficient way - all online through "e-design" -while maintaining a personal touch. She wants to take the intimidation out of interior design - whether you are starting from scratch on a brand new home or redesigning a room that's ready for an update, she's ready to help!
Over the past several years, Mix & Match has grown into a multi-faceted business that serves not only clients but other interior design businesses as well. On the client side, Chaney offers one-on-one e-design packages, and also shares inspiring and educational design content to a broad audience through twice-weekly blog posts and on social media. In February 2018, she expanded into the "B-to-B" world and released an online course for designers (or aspiring ones!) who want to launch their own online interior design businesses. This self-paced course is released a few times a year and provides a "quick start" guide to getting an e-design business up and running. Enabling others to pursue their goal of starting a design business is a passion of Chaney's, and she's very excited to help them succeed! Mix & Match Design Company is based in the great city of Philadelphia and serves clients locally and nationally.
At the end of the last show with Chaney, we mentioned that she was in the process of coming up with a course for her interior design colleagues who are interested in learning about how to run a profitable and effective E-design business. She has subsequently come up with that course. It's called How To Launch An E-design Business, and it will launch on the 4th of June 2018. Today we will be talking to Chaney about exactly what is in her course and she will also explain how it works. Listen in to find out what Chaney has to share with you today.
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To get your free download of The start-up checklist for an E-design business go to E Design Biz Checklist
You can find Chaney's course How To Launch An E-design Business at: E Design Course
To get onto Chaney's email list go to the course landing-page at E Design Course.
Download The Skills Assessment!
Welcome to today's episode of Design Biz Live! As many of you know, this means that I have Judith Neary and Corey Klassen with me and that we're going to have an in-depth discussion about the intricacies of running your interior design business. Listen in to find out more!
On the show today we are going to be talking about the important personality traits that you need to master in order to be really successful as an interior designer. Judith gives a fabulous description of what is and what isn't a successful interior designer and Corey discusses the specific questionnaire that he sends out to his clients before their first consultation, along with his specific eleven step 'What I will do and what I won't do' document that he attaches and goes over with them when they sign the contract. Listen in today to find out what it takes to create a smooth and easy process for your clients.
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Welcome to another Power Talk Friday! We have Claire Jefford back on the show with us today (she was previously on #237) and we will be talking to her about how to create products, courses, and the kinds of things that designers can sell to consumers on their websites. She will explain what this looks like, how to do it, why you should be doing it, and also, some steps that you can follow in the process. LuAnn really enjoys talking to Claire and she loves having her on the show because it means that it's going to be a seriously good one, so listen in today to find out what Claire has to share with you.
Claire started her interior decorating business in 2011 and her firm specializes in 3D design as well as custom residential projects. Claire has a very keen eye for detail and she particularly loves to mix patterns and fabrics. Her company was named one of the top thirty interior design firms in Ontario in 2017 and she is very proud to be the highest reviewed design professional in the greater Toronto area on Howzz, with more than ninety reviews! Claire, not one to shy away from social media, has been creating videos on Facebook since 2013 and she started her own Youtube channel in January 2016. She also has a second business, where she coaches and helps other designers to run their interior design businesses. With her no-nonsense approach, she shares marketing ideas, proven processes and social media strategies, to help others in the field to build confidence in the way that they work. Claire also runs a free Facebook group called Interior Design Business Strategies, which is an amazing community focusing on the business of design. Listen in now to find out more.
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Claire was also in episode #237: Claire Jefford - How to Get More Clients with Video Content
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Claire on Instagram: @ClaireJeffordDesigns
Claire's website: Claire Jefford
Claire on Youtube
Welcome to today's episode! I have Steven G, of Interiors By Steven G, with me today and we will be talking about how and why Steven G came to the decision to leave the first interior design firm that he partnered with and how he launched his own company, based on the lessons (or the negatives, as he calls them) that he learned there. He will also discuss how he established his company and reputation with the luxury property developers in the South Florida region. Today's show is a fantastic example of gambling on yourself and of calculating the risk vs your return on investment, so please listen in carefully to what Steven has to share with you today.
Interiors By Steven G is one of South Florida's most outstanding interior design firms. Steven leads a team of more than eighty professionals, which include licensed interior designers who are fluent in seven languages, interior design renderers, a full Autocad department, design assistants, an in-house marketing and PR department, as well as a full warehouse team with their own fleet of trucks. Their locations include a one-hundred-thousand square foot corporate office and showroom and the NOW by Steven G Showroom. These are both located in Broward County. Listen in to find out more.
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Welcome to Power Talk Friday! Last Friday we started a great conversation with Ashley Hotham-Cox, the editor-in-chief of Home Design & Decor in Charlotte, about how to pitch yourself and how to get press. Today we are really happy to continue the conversation with Amy Flurry. Amy has appeared once before on the show, on episode #108 and she's really a smart lady, so if you haven't met her yet, you are really in for a treat! Listen in now to find out more!
Amy has two decades of editorial experience, conceiving ideas for stories, producing shoots, and writing copy for magazines and online publications. These include Country Living, In Style, Refinery 29, Conde Nast Traveller, Better Homes and Gardens, and Lucky Magazine. Amy authored Recipe For Press- Pitch Your Story and Create A Buzz, (which we spoke about in episode #108) after being inspired by her career in publishing. She has now written her second book, Recipe For Press- Designer Edition. This book is filled to the brim with tools for interior designers, architects, landscape planners, and product designers who need to take advantage of any new media opportunities which are available. Amy applies her collective expertise- from trend direction to product and brand development, working with companies to expand their marketing strategies and to connect businesses to the interior design trade. Listen in to find out what she has to share with you on today's show.
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And Amy Flurry appeared before on episode #108
To order your copy of Amy's book go to Recipe For Press.
Go to Luann Nigara, to the 'live events' tab, to find the RSVP link for the opening night, at Lefroy Brooks, of the ICFF at the AND Building on 22nd May. The first 25 people will receive a free book from LuAnn!
To figure out all the things that you can do with MyDoma Studio go to My Doma Studio.
To get onto LuAnn's email list text the word designbiz to 444 999, or go to her website www.luannnigara.com and go to the events page.
Welcome to today's episode! On the show today we are going to be having an in-depth conversation with Deborah Von Donop, an interior designer, and well-known blogger. We will be talking to Deborah about monetizing your blog and also about how and why it is really important to create a content-rich blog, in order to drive readers and design enthusiasts to your website for the opportunity to monetize through affiliate links and sponsored content. Listen in to find out more about networking as your biggest resource for growth.
Deborah is the principal of DVD Interiors in Connecticut and she is the editor and founder of the national blog DVD Interior Design. Deborah also guests blogs for a number of other sites, including Westchester Magazine, I blog Magazine, Blissfully Domestic.Com and more. She writes weekly posts about design resources, highlights from industry events and also interior design topics which are aimed to educate and inspire her readers. Deborah's experience includes a BFA in Interior Architecture from Cal State University in Long Beach, a CCIDQ certification, an NCIDQ certification and a LEED GA credential. All of this combines really well to bring an in-depth knowledge to all of her projects. Listen in now to find out what Deborah has to share about upping your game in social media.
Note- This show with Deborah pairs very nicely with the upcoming show featuring Claire Jefford, which will air next week. It follows up on today's show with how to create your own content to sell through your website and blog, so be on the lookout for that!
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To contact Deborah, or to get her Visibility Package go to DvD Interior Design
Book mentioned on the show: Jab Jab Jab Right Hook by Gary Vaynerchuck.
To get all the details about the Kips Bay show-house go to Kips Bay show-house
Welcome to today's episode! We are really happy to have Ashley Hotham Cox with us and she's going to be a really hot topic on the show today! Ashley comes with a significant level of experience. She used to be with Traditional Home and now she is the newly appointed editor-in-chief of Home Design & Decor. Listen in today to find out what Ashley has to share about promoting your design work through features in interior design magazines.
Ashley is a long-time Charlotte local- with a twist. As a North Carolina native, she graduated from the University of South Carolina with a bachelor of arts degree in fashion and a master's degree in journalism before earning her experience as a writer at Charlotte, Charlotte Wedding, and Charlotte Home & Garden magazines, and also as an editor at Traditional Home in New York. She is also a designer, having earned her certificate in interior design from the Parsons School of Design. Ashley returned home in 2016 to join the team of Home Design & Decor. Listen in now to find out more about how to pitch successfully, to be featured in design publications.
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@AshleyHCox
@Clt_homedesigndecor
@tri_homedesigndecor
Welcome to today's show! We are really happy to have Jo Buckerfield with us today. She is the designer and project manager for the UK based design firm Your Space Living and her husband, Mike Buckerfield, is their studio manager. Mike has been Jo's champion in getting her onto the podcast and it's been no easy task because it's just not her thing to go out and be interviewed! Mike emailed LuAnn a few months back, saying that he'd been listening to the show and that he loves it! He explained that having Jo on the show would really bring it so much value because she is truly an amazing designer in the UK, so listen in to find out what she has to share on the show today.
When the home design company that Jo had been working for as a furniture designer for many years went out of business unexpectedly in 2012, she wanted to ensure that the clients who had been left with unfinished projects still got their dream homes. That was when Your Space Living was born. Working tirelessly and out-of-pocket for six months, Jo and Mike completed every one of the abandoned projects, and so they laid the foundations for the successful company that they are still running today! Jo's design expertise, creativity, and vision allow them to go beyond the standard and create beautiful spaces that meet the needs of modern-day families. Listen in now to find out more.
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