Design Biz Survival Guide

Today we welcome Jamie Van Cuyk, Owner and Lead Strategist of "Growing Your Team," a consulting firm specializing in mastering the art of hiring. In this episode, Jamie shares her process of identifying candidates, developing an effective interview, and evaluating personality and fit. We also discuss the state of the employment market, what the new hybrid workplace looks like, and the factors cont...

Today we welcome Garrison Hullinger, founder and principal designer of Garrison Hullinger Interior Design. The Portland-based firm has been recognized as one of the 100 fastest-growing businesses in Oregon and SW Washington, but the design journey for Garrison has been one of patience, self-discovery, and reinvention. In this episode, we discuss the development and growth of his design career and...

No two paths are the same. Someone may know what they want, go to design school, and land a job out of college. Another person could try other careers before deciding to learn more about interior design. Regardless of the level of education or the length of time it takes to get there, both could very well reach the same conclusion. Today we welcome Heidi Callier to the podcast. In this episode, we...

Today we welcome Michelle Dirkse – owner and Creative Director of her namesake interior design studio. The Seattle, Washington-based design business is celebrating their 10-year anniversary, and Michelle is pulling back the curtain to reveal some valuable lessons learned along the way.  In this episode, we discuss allowing yourself time and grace to learn from experience, tips on growing and leadi...

You are not alone if you feel disorganized in your business and finances. It's common for interior designers to attempt to be CPAs for their business which usually results in added stress and anxiety and accomplishes nothing. If you're working remotely, having a structure in place to keep projects organized and on track and hiring people such as a CPA to manage your finances will do wonders for yo...

Interior designers have a lot of documents to keep track of, from emails, invoices, shopping receipts, pictures, and more. A lot of the time, they are saved in multiple locations on a computer and phone or in physical folders. Files are lost, which adds stress to our lives, whether we realize it or not. Today we welcome Alex Brzozowski of Be Organizing, a digital organizing service designed to hel...

If you frequently work on job sites where there is a general contractor, a floor guy, a plumber, and more, there can be communication errors and other variables that slow down the project. As the interior designer, you already have a lot of say over the project. Why not make the process more streamlined and become a licensed contractor yourself? Today we welcome Candy Barton, principal designer of...

Today we welcome Katie McFarlan of Dakota Design Co., an operations consulting and support service business for interior designers and event planners. In this episode, Katie shares her top three tips to protect your creative business from times of economic uncertainty. Our conversation dives deep into ways to control your expenses, diversify your streams of revenue, and market smarter at a time wh...

Today, we welcome Kate Lester, owner of KL Interiors and Kate Lester Home in southern California, to the podcast. In this episode, Kate keeps it super real and shares her design journey and the many realizations she had along the way. From the moment she committed to a career in design, she also committed to creating a profitable and effective business model. Kate shares her top tips for setting a...

Today we welcome John McClain, Creative Director and CEO of John McClain Interior Design, based in Los Angeles, CA, and Orlando, FL. In this episode, John shares the pivotal moment in his design career that prompted him to implement formal processes and an extensive client agreement into his business model to protect his profits and his sanity. John also shares how that experience helped him devel...

Today we welcome Ashley Clark to the podcast - owner and principal designer of SKOUT Interior Design . In this episode Ashley shares how when "life happened" in 2020 for her, she leaned on the dedication of her team and the strength of her business model to allow her to focus her attention on family. Ashley also shares how the experience redefined her perspective on work life balance, setting clie...

Today we welcome Kate Saunders - owner of The Designers Collab , a resource for busy interior design professionals who are looking to scale their business without increasing their overhead. In this episode Kate shares how her 20 years of experience in design and construction, fueled by curiosity, led her to a place of supporting the design community by directing her talents an skillset toward the...

Today we welcome interior designer, author, and business coach Melissa Galt to the podcast. In this episode Melissa shares her design journey from the classroom to creative entrepreneur and the ah-ha moment that converted her life of chaos into a balanced, profitable design business. We also discuss Melissa's perspective on "Attracting Affluent Clients" and what prompted her to write her book of t...

Today we welcome Diana Paulson of LINEA Photo to the podcast. The Michigan based photographer with roots in California specializes in residential and commercial interior photography. In this episode Diana shares how she discovered her passion for interiors, pursued a formal education in design, and worked in hospitality until a move to Michigan changed everything. A pivot into interior photography...

Today we welcome Killy Scheer, founder of Scheer & Co - a high end residential and commercial boutique interior design firm based in Austin, TX. In this epode Killy shares her career path which led to the launch of her design business in 2013. In doing so,  Killy discovered an entirely new and challenging side of the business of design which included things like team building, delegating, employee...

Today we welcome author and business coach Nancy Ganzekaufer to the podcast. Nancy provides guidance, leadership, and inspiration to business owners helping them build the life and business they have always wanted. In this episode we dive into her book "Respond with Confidence - The Business Owner's Blueprint for Handling Difficult Situations" and we discuss some key takeaways like analyzing your...

Today we welcome Damari Gold, owner of The Gold Standard Accounting and Tax Firm based in Huntington Beach, California. Damari and her team are not your typical accounting firm and in this episode Damari shares how being a first generation American and business owner influenced her commitment to inform and empower clients of all levels and backgrounds to make more confident financial decisions for...

In this special Las Vegas Market re-cap episode we checked in with three of our "must see" showrooms to see what's new to market this Summer. First we sit down with Ken Bassman of Bassman and Blaine and he shares how their team of outside sale representatives support  multiple showrooms at market and how they help make the designer's market experience more organized and efficient. Next we connect...

Today we welcome Shaun Crha of Wrensted Interiors and Rebecca Plumb of Studio Plumb to the podcast. What started out as an Instagram friendship quickly blossomed into a designer bestie situation and the launch of their own podcast "Hot Young Designers Club" . In this episode we chat about our mutual goals of producing a podcast for the design community and how the experience has helped shape our o...

Today we welcome Joshua Smith, owner and principal designer of Joshua Smith Inc ., a Vermont based design firm specializing in full service residential interior design with an emphasis on bringing greater joy and meaning to daily living. In this episode Joshua shares how his "love of home" and years of listening to clients as a real estate professional triggered his creative passion and prompted h...

Today we welcome producer, author, and storyteller Jude Charles to the podcast. Over the past 15 years Jude has produced documentaries and stories for Google, Steve Harvey, and dozens of visionary CEOs. Jude is the author of Dramatic Demonstration - a roadmap that teaches you how to dig deep to find compelling stories that no one else knows, and then leverage those stories to grow your business. I...

Today we welcome co-owner and principal designer of Thomas Guy Interiors , Lance Thomas. In this episode Lance shares how his HGTV debut rekindled his love for interior design and prompted the development of his Louisiana based design firm. We also discuss how the firm's simple yet effective pricing structure allows them to work on large projects with a small team by eliminating so much of the unn...

Today we welcome Julie Katcherian, owner and founder of KATCH Design Collective based in Costa Mesa, CA. In this episode we discuss biophilia - the human inclination to connect with nature - and how it influences our design decisions as well our clients response to the built environment. Julie shares how so many of our design decisions like material selections, room layouts, and furniture placemen...

Welcome everyone to our 4 year anniversary episode and you know what that means… podcast takeover! This has become a really fun tradition here at Design Biz Survival Guide and I am especially excited to announce this year's guest host… the queen of design business podcasts, Luann Nigara.  With over 700 episodes of her own podcast "A Well Designed Business" under her belt, Luann knows her way aroun...

Today we welcome Samantha Gallacher, co-founder of Miami based interior design firm IG Workshop and founder of bespoke rug company Art + Loom . In this episode Samantha shares how her background in textile and rug design complimented her interior design approach and later contributed to an expansion of her business and her network of industry allies. We also discuss the reality of the "trial and e...