Style All the Way: Starting an Interior Design Business
Business Overview:
If you have a keen eye for design and enjoy using your creativity to give others a sense of confidence and style, consider starting an interior design business. Even if you’ve never been a professional interior designer, learning how to start an interior design business is not difficult. All you need is a good sense of space, knowledge of design fundamentals, color coordination basics and a drive to succeed. You will also need a strong interior design business plan to get this business idea off the ground. This plan will outline what type of design your business will specialize in (homes, offices, stores, hotels, restaurants, etc.), what your rates will be and how you will market your new business. Although you don’t need any official training to own an interior design business, if you have never been paid for your design services, it would be a good idea to research exactly what it means to be an interior designer. You’ll want to learn as much as you can about colors, lighting, furniture, flooring, window treatments, etc. If you’d be more comfortable just running the business and having others do the design work, you can hire interior designers to work for you. You and your team could be working in beautiful homes, lavish hotels or fine dining establishments in no time. You will need to have a solid marketing plan to accomplish this, however. Ask your first few clients to spread the word among their friends and associates. Take out advertisements in local magazines targeted toward your prospective clients. With a little time and patience you could be the proud owner of the best interior design business in town.
A Day in the Life of an Interior Design Business Owner:
As the owner of an interior design business, you will start your day by checking your schedule to see what jobs are ongoing. You or your design staff will pick up any supplies you need and head over to the job site. You may need to coordinate deliveries with contractors for jobs such as demo, construction or flooring. You will meet with your clients (or speak to them on the phone) to hammer out any last minute decisions that need to be made. You may go shopping with a client so they can select certain design elements like tile or fixtures. You will spend some time marketing your business by putting ads online or in magazines and by calling realtors or others in your line of specialty to see if they can put your business on any referral lists they have. You may also spend time meeting with new clients, listening to their wish list, and presenting your plans to them. Finally, you will check on your finances to ensure everything is in order.
About Your Customers:
Your customers will be individuals or business managers in need of high quality interior design services.
What You Need to Start:
- An eye for good design
- Business plan
- Marketing plan
- Relationships with local interior design showrooms and suppliers
- Vehicle large enough to transport items that you cannot have delivered
- Computer with finance software
The Good:
- If you love design, this business will be fun and easy.
- You get to work with interesting people in lovely locations.
- You don’t have to work in an office 9-5.
- You can charge top dollar for excellent design services.
- You can easily hire on more designers to handle an increasing workload.
The Bad:
- Working with contractors and deadlines can be difficult at times.
- You must be able to think on your feet and solve unforeseen problems very quickly.
Resources:
- International Interior Design Association
- American Society of Interior Designers
- Interior Design Society
- Bureau of Labor Statistics on Interior Designers
- Wikipedia on Interior Design
About The Author
Templateify
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