Trade Tales

Amy Sklar’s early career was a full-circle journey that took her from design to show business and back again. When she finally landed at the helm of her own firm after starting her career within the strict confines of an architecture firm, she thrived on the ability to instate a supportive work culture and take on projects that place a premium on comfort and functionality. The financial side of th...

Following a first career in law, Clara Jung became accustomed to a cutthroat, high pressure work environment. When she left her life as an attorney for a shot at interior design, she decided to do things a little differently. Now, at the helm of Banner Day Interiors, she’s crafting a work culture focused on employee growth and support, while also figuring out how to structure a firm that can run o...

Marieanne Khoury-Vogt spent much of her career absorbed in one big, constantly-unfolding project. As town architect of Alys Beach, Florida, she’s helped create a community where essential needs are within reach and the aesthetics are in alignment. In recent years, she’s also branched out into new projects and services, embarking on an era of exploration and reinvention. In this episode, she shares...

Caren Rideau found that specializing allowed her imagination and expertise to reach new heights. The real challenges came when she turned her attention toward professional growth—for her own business, and for the next generation of designers. In this episode, she shares why using social media to attract clients and employees, the benefits of being a kitchen specialist in an industry filled with fu...

Early in his career, Matthew Tenzin embarked on a spiritual transformation that led him to a rather unlikely early role—as a Buddhist monk. He took the principles he learned with him when he transitioned to a career in design, eventually launching a second arm of his business that blends holistic practices, healthy materials and an approach to interiors that goes far beyond the limits of a home’s...

Blair Moore set out to create designs that last—and found that the industry wasn’t quite ready for her. Her response was to build a firm that forged its own path to quality design: by operating its own warehouse, crafting a line of furnishings and training the next generation so the legacy will live on. This episode was sponsored by Jaipur Living. LINKS Blair Moore Kaitlin Petersen Business of Hom...

When Amy Kartheiser launched a charity project several years ago, her goal was to process pain and foster connection through design. As the initiative unfolded, she watched that objective quickly transform into something much bigger, becoming an essential piece of her business and bringing a new sense of meaning to the firm’s work along the way. This episode was sponsored by Jaipur Living and Moor...

Leslie Murchie Cascino operates as a team of one—but looking at her collaborative design process, you’d never know it. On this episode of the podcast, she explains what being a one-woman show means for her as a mother, and how she avoids getting caught up in other peoples’ definitions of success. This episode was sponsored by Jaipur Living and Moore & Giles . LINKS Leslie Murchie Cascino Kaitlin P...

Zoe Feldman got some surprising advice just as she was starting to feel settled in her business: While she thought she couldn’t afford to hire more employees, she was told that if she wanted to keep delivering a high level of service, she couldn’t afford not to. On this episode of the podcast, she shares why she’s introduced a scaled-down option to her design offerings for clients who just want go...

Courtney McLeod's early encounter with a take-charge client left her project in ruins—and almost derailed her firm’s growth. The story of her rebound is a masterclass in taking steps to secure your clients’ trust before it’s too late. On this episode of the podcast, she shares how her first showhouse experience provided her business with an unexpected lifeline, why she always asks clients to defin...

Miranda Cullen felt like she cracked the code to no longer leaving money on the table when she created a new business model that could make a profit on time billing alone, which meant that her firm wouldn’t have to turn away inquiries for small jobs. Then, she realized the concept had that potential to expand far beyond her firm. On this episode of the podcast, she shares how separating from her b...

At a certain point in his firm's journey, Dane Austin decided to abandon the pressure for perfection and instead tell clients the truth about the design process—the good, the bad and the ugly. By restructuring his business around a radically transparent approach, he’s transformed the design process for his clients, his employees and finally, himself.  This episode was sponsored by Universal Furnit...

Regan Baker has a unique claim to fame: she’s hired three of her former clients as employees. On this episode of the podcast, she explains why they all wanted to work for her once their projects wrapped, and how they each brought invaluable insights from other industries that turbocharged the business’s growth. She also shared what it feels like to step away from the work you love in order to expa...

For years, Kevin Isbell was the right-hand man for top interior designers from coast to coast. Eventually, it came time to take what he’d learned and embark on a new journey at the helm of his own firm—a sink-or-swim moment that revealed just how daunting the route to design leader can be. In this episode, he shares how he found his footing as design principal and enlisted a support system to help...

When Noz Nozawa left her 9-to-5 marketing job to start her design business, she took a major gamble with her career. It was in that precarious state that the San Francisco designer grabbed hold of what she could control, namely by tightening her purse strings. The firm’s slow, incremental growth worked to a point—until suddenly, Nozawa switched gears. In this episode of the podcast, she tells host...

In the earliest days of Bria Hammel’s design business, landing a partnership with a construction firm offered her what every fresh designer dreams of: the chance to build a business with the certainty of a steady stream of projects coming down the pipeline. Of course, the firm eventually reached a point where letting go of that safety net was the only way to vet and choose a more specific clientel...

Katie Vance kicked off the current phase of her career a decade ago, as the sole interior designer at an architecture firm. Since then, a lot has changed—largely thanks to Vance’s efforts to oversee the practice’s transformation into a thriving design-build studio. In this episode, she explains how that shift fostered an affinity for risk-taking that carries through to this day. This episode was s...

Ahmad AbouZanat’s early design gigs took him from Beirut to Houston and back again, before he finally settled in New York to launch his own firm. When a series of setbacks knocked his business off track, he almost folded the venture. Instead, he decided to double time his operational efforts and find new ways to put his firm on the map. This episode was sponsored by The Savannah College of Art and...

Kelly Collier-Clark scaled up her business quickly, tackling full service projects, e-design, real estate services and podcasting in short order, all while juggling a full-time job. Then the pace began to pick up—and suddenly, her business began to feel like a many-headed monster. As she reckoned with how to move forward, she realized she would have to reconsider the reason she launched her busine...

Katie Monkhouse’s firm was moving along at a rapid pace—taking on new employees, new clients and new real estate before she even had a chance to envision its future. To keep the situation from spinning out of control, she enlisted the help of a business coach and soon came to a realization: in order to move her firm forward, she’d have to look inward first. This episode was sponsored by The Shade...

Christine Vroom embarked on her design career at the ripe age of 16, and stuck with it through job detours and personal struggles alike. After recovering from a mental health crisis, she took on her biggest challenge yet: building a healthier design process— without sacrificing her firm’s upward climb. This episode was sponsored by The Shade Store and Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams . LINKS Christine...

Byron Risdon has always known how to rise to the occasion—whether it was landing his first design job with no prior experience, or launching his business in a week’s time to take on his first solo project. Now, as he grows his firm, he’s letting go of the guilt that comes with no longer working overtime, and is instead learning to embrace the art of slowing down. This episode was sponsored by Univ...

When Sarah Goesling entered the design industry, she was intent on learning it all: from plumbing to project management, no aspect of the job was too challenging to take on. After launching her own firm in 2019, she maintained the same ethos. In this episode, she shares why she’s unwilling to settle into a comfortable routine with her business, how she’s creating a company culture that fosters gro...

Pure Salt designers Aly Morford and Leigh Lincoln were always on the same page when it came to interiors. In building out their portfolio and executing early designs, it was smooth sailing. When it came time to confront the bigger decisions necessary to building their business, they started to hit their first roadblocks—overcoming them would not only make their partnership stronger, but unlock new...

Jenny Wolf spent nearly a decade at her dream job before realizing her true passion was for design—so, she decided to go back to square one and start a new career. Then, years after launching her own firm, she felt the calling to pivot once again. This time, she would have to get strategic about structuring her existing business in order to make way for something new. This episode is sponsored by...