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A Well-Designed Business® | Interior Design Business Podcast

In today's world being a talented interior designer isn't enough to ensure that you have a profitable and successful interior design business. Design school doesn't always teach you the critical business skills to be sure your interior design business be everything you imagined it would be! A Well Designed Business is here to fill in the gaps and give you real live business skills from some of the top interior designers. Your host, LuAnn Nigara shares her 35 years of success in the interior design industry, and she finds the most successful guests to share their interior design business best practices.
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A Well-Designed Business® | Interior Design Business Podcast
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Now displaying: April, 2019
Apr 30, 2019

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:

  • Misty's website is really clear and specific about what she does.
  • Tapping into the metrosexual market in Portland.
  • Misty explains why she likes to work with bachelors.
  • The underlying message in Misty's approach to interior design.
  • Guys like to have their outdoor hobbies reflected in their home.
  • Misty honors the way the guys she designs for like to live.
  • Letting her clients know in a really fun way that they will be making an investment.
  • How Misty learned that guys are comfortable talking about money and business.
  • Transparency and communication are the two main things for Misty.
  • What transparency means for Misty.
  • Where Misty sources her products.
  • The retail markup that Misty adds to her products.
  • Misty explains where her money is coming from.
  • The different packages that Misty offers.
  • Misty's way of dealing with damaged deliveries.
  • Misty hired the services of a market research company in Portland.
  • Misty talks about the business coaches she has worked with.
  • The book, The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, really helped Misty push past her fear.

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

Apr 26, 2019

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:

  • What is her background in the financial software industry?
  • When did she decide to start her window treatment business?
  • Did she start with a business plan?
  • How did she start to make her business bigger?
  • What is the Design Collective in Atlanta?
  • What is a round table discussion and how is it helpful?
  • How is the Window Coverings Association helpful to Michele and her business?
  • What are some of things that you can expect Michele to talk about the expo IWCE in Charlotte?
  • Why is it important to listen to different people say the same things?
  • Why is important to be able to chunk your time for productivity?
  • Is it better to be proactive or reactive?
  • How should you plan your calendar?

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:

WCAA

IWCE Vision

Window Fashion Vision

Luann Nigara Book 2

Apr 23, 2019

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:

  • Tiffannie talks about her traumatic experience of taking her daughter to the hospital and how her daughter really loved the decor there. This showed Tiffannie just how important interior design really is in people's lives.
  • Creating a holistic space is really important for Tiffannie.
  • About Tiffannie's personal and unique 'only'.
  • Tiffannie is proud of the lessons she's learned.
  • Tiffannie talks about her first eighteen months in business.
  • Being focused and clear in her vision.
  • All about Tiffannie's e-design packages.
  • Tiffannie's e-design is driven mainly through her Instagram and word-of-mouth.
  • Settling on a name.
  • Going with the flow and trusting.
  • Some of the challenges she's faced.
  • You have to value what you do to have a thriving business.
  • Being careful not to compromise in too many areas when starting out in a business.
  • Work for free only if it's worth your while.
  • Some tips about blogging.
  • Tiffannie's business goals for the next year.

Links:

Instagram: The Nappy Bohemian

The Nappy Bohemian

The Nappy Bohemian

 

Previous shows mentioned:

Albie Buabeng #348

Chaney Widmer #260, #327

Cheryl Janice #41

Sue Firestone #404

Apr 19, 2019

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:

  • Jean explains how Sweeten assists interior designers.
  • Finding the right general contractor to suit the design project.
  • Jean talks about where she started with Sweeten.
  • Jean wanted to figure out how to get high-quality construction and design resources to regular people.
  • How Designers get matched a contractor through Jean's website.
  • What's included in the service that Jean offers.
  • Sweeten has a vetted group of contractors that have all committed to working transparently.
  • The kind of data that they re able to collect as a result of staying with all their projects to completion.
  • They do an original content piece on their blog every single day.
  • Sweeten can hold their contractors accountable based on the fact that their communications, signed contracts, and estimates are all on the Sweeten platform.
  • Sweeten is always working on ways to get everybody on the path to completion.
  • How the contractor's ratings on the Sweeten platform affect the number of projects Sweeten will send their way.
  • The way that the contractors are incentivized to stay with Sweeten and deliver great service.
  • Treading lightly in the process of learning what works best for everybody.
  • Jean shares her contractor vetting process.
  • Jean gives some tips for interior designers to work successfully with contractors.
  • Sweeten charges interior designers no fee at all.
  • Jean offers an awesome incentive of $500 for a referral.

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:

Sweeten

Blog Sweeten

Design Trade VIP Program: Sweeten Architects Designers

Instagram: @sweeten_home

Facebook: @theSweeten

Pinterest: Sweeten

Twitter: @sweeten home

Apr 16, 2019

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:

  • Melissa talks about Veranda's unique business model.
  • Melissa is involved with every single home.
  • How Veranda has the edge.
  • Learning from past mistakes.
  • Working with the best architect.
  • Veranda only works from word-of-mouth advertising.
  • Talking budget with clients.
  • Working out ball-park prices.
  • How Melissa's firm works with the different trades on each project.
  • What it takes for a project to get off the ground.
  • They have only five people on their team!
  • About the weekly site meetings that happen every Tuesday morning.
  • They use a program called Buildertrend to coordinate projects.
  • Melissa shares some good practices for growing your Instagram following.
  • Melissa spends more than two hours per day on Instagram.
  • Instagram is about building relationships.
  • Melissa tells us all about her podcast, Modern Design Minds.

Links and resources:

Melissa's Podcast: Modern Design Minds with her co-host Amy Kearns (from the Boston area).

Amy Lynn Interiors

Veranda Estate Homes

Instagram: Veranda Interior

Facebook: Veranda Estate Homes

Modern Design Minds on Instagram: modern design minds

Buildertrend: Builder Trend

Modern Craftsman Podcast

amylynn_interiors

Visual Comfort

Currey & Co

Wingnut Social Podcast

Modern Design Minds Podcast

Previous guests mentioned in this episode:

Circle Design #380

Judith Neary - Design Biz Live #170, #264, #326, #399, #410

Shea McGee #236, #270

Additional episodes about building your IG:

Amber Lewis #184

Shea McGee #236, 270

Mr. Inkredible# 417

Mark McDonough #110

Darla Powell #203 and #330

More episodes about doing full design and build:

Circle Design Studio with husband and wife team John and Theresa Dorlini #380

Angela Rasmussen of H2H Design+Build #181

Apr 12, 2019

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:

  • Amanda has a really awesome 'about me' page.
  • Starting with goals.
  • Thinking about goals when considering media and visibility.
  • Amanda explains what a PR opportunity looks like.
  • Working out what's most important.
  • Unearthing the evergreen and newsworthy opportunities.
  • The two kinds of pitches that every designer needs to write.
  • Why you need to be really specific about what you have to teach.
  • Different pitches for different kinds of media.
  • Looking at mainstream consumer media.
  • Twitter is an excellent source of information about the media.
  • The Profile Pitch. To get you deeper in with your niche audience.
  • Telling your own story.
  • Why you need to be willing to own your story.
  • Going back to who you were before you became who you are.
  • Pitching for podcasts.
  • Making it as easy as possible for media to say 'yes'.
  • The services that Amanda offers. Go to her website Amanda Berlin

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

Ren Millar #12

Ashley Hotham-Cox #321

Jane Dagney #351

Andrew Joseph #39

Jenny Madden #332

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:

Gail Davis

Tina Ramchandani

Blanche Garcia

Marina Umali

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:

Corey Damen Jenkins

Links to LuAnn's books:

Book 1: Luann Nigara

Book 2: Luann Nigara

Apr 9, 2019

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:

  • Tobi really enjoys learning about personal development and self-help and melding that with interior design.
  • The blessing of growing up with unconditional support.
  • The kind of support that Tobi really loves giving to others.
  • Tobi discusses her philosophy on the use of digital tools for interior designers.
  • Why digital doesn't have to be associated with poor quality.
  • Tobi's take on creating revenue streams.
  • There are so many ways for designers to make really good money and still give value to the consumer.
  • Thinking creatively to create different models to suit different customers.
  • The beauty of creating a design business that is accessible online.
  • Why it gets easier to make money in other ways.
  • Creating different models to solve different problems for clients.
  • A practical strategy for design professionals looking to tap different markets.
  • How designers are creating their own competition.
  • Tobi's suggestion for maximizing your profits with what you already have.
  • Knowing what you can and cannot do successfully on the phone.
  • Using the right language to assist clients with digital products and services.
  • The industry is changing, so you need to figure out how to change and grow with it.
  • You get to decide the services that your business provides.
  • Tuning in to what you like doing, and how you really want your business to be.
  • The importance of being profitable.
  • Thinking outside the box.

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:

Rachel Cannon #306 and #409

Tobi's website and social media:

Tobi Fairley

Facebook: Tobi Fairley Interior Design

Instagram: Tobi Fairley/

Twitter: Tobi Fairley

Youtube

Pinterest

Apr 5, 2019

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:

  • We all strive to be organized in the way we run our business.
  • Sarah started out by just winging it.
  • Sarah explains how she keeps her clients on their toes with their projects.
  • The kind of service and support that Sarah provides for her clients.
  • The quality of Sarah's SketchUp renderings is really remarkable.
  • Sarah discusses the information she requires from designers in order to provide them with high-quality renderings.
  • The kind of responsibility that Sarah takes on.
  • Why some people call Sarah 'The killer of dreams'.
  • How designers really benefit from Sarah's expertise.
  • Sarah will always provide a solution for every issue that she points out.
  • The way that small design firms really benefit from hiring Sarah.
  • Listen to your tradespeople. They really know what they are talking about.
  • Use your own talents for what you're really good at and hiring out for the rest.
  • The excitement that comes with the renderings.
  • When and why designers lean towards watercolor drawings.
  • Taking the time to work through the specific process of your trade.
  • About Sarah's training for designers on SketchUp and Podium.
  • The design industry is a very personal one and hiring a Virtual Assistant is really like having someone on your side.

Links:

Press Kit

Password: tacos

Loft Design

Website: Loft Design

Instagram: SarahatLoftDesign

Facebook: SarahatLoftDesign

Pinterest: SarahatLoftDesign

Mydoma Studio

Previous shows mentioned in this episode:

Darla Powell #330

Elizabeth Scruggs #305

Revelwoods #329

Mydoma Studio #91 and #171

Madeleine MacRae #283 and #315

Episodes that go with this one:

On VA’s

#375 Bonnie Fahy

#149 My Design Assistant

#346 Do Not Let Us Design For You

Apr 2, 2019

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:

  • How Don started his design firm while doing his career in education.
  • How he runs his design business around his full-time job.
  • Don is so passionate about interior design that it doesn't feel like work.
  • How he uses social media to get clients.
  • Posting on social media at peak times for maximum engagement.
  • Don's strategies for attracting followers on social media.
  • Joining Instagram pods, or groups are still effective as a strategy for marketing a business.
  • Don's use of bold and bright colors and patterns.
  • The importance of engaging, on social media.
  • A lot of Don's current clientele comes from luxury new construction.
  • Don's focus is on textiles.
  • Maintaining a following on social media really takes a lot of work.
  • The importance of your first six photos on Instagram.
  • The value of hiring a really good photographer.
  • Converting Instagram admirers into clients.
  • Weeding out the tire-kickers.
  • How to obtain the help of a mentor.
  • How MyDoma Studio has really changed Don's life.
  • Don used to create his own custom designs.

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:

#184 Amber Lewis

#110 Mark McDonough

#203 and #330 Darla Powell / Wingnut Social

For more episodes on mentorship:

#267 Rasheeda Gray

#291 Cheryl Luckett

#296 Ruthie Staalsen

#272 Laura Thurman

#91 and #177 Sarah Daniele- Mydoma Studio

Links:

Design Inkredible

Instagram: Design Inkredible

Facebook: Design Inkredible

Join LuAnn at High Point Market

Facebook Groups:

Mark McDonough:

Interior Design Marketing

Darla Powell:

The Wingnut Social Media Lab

LuAnn:

LuAnn Nigara and Friends

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