Interior Design is – there’s certain glamour to it all. And, for those who have a natural aptitude towards the arts and design this may indeed be a perfect career choice. The nice thing about this particular career is that it is one that is achievable at any age and at any stage in life.
I recently spoke with Leslie Wood owner of Hadley Court. to learn the ins and outs of getting a design business off the ground. Not long ago she decided to follow her own dream of becoming an interior designer and has seen phenomenal success. I asked her to share some of her secrets with the hopes of sharing them with those of you who hope to travel this path as well.
It’s a career that sees no age limitations
After earning her MBA and working in the corporate world, Leslie, like so many women do, stepped away from her career to raise a family. When her children were grown, Interior design, always a passion, seemed to be a natural fit. She enrolled in design school to earn her degree. While she was doing that she kept active in the design community by attending as many seminars and lectures as possible. Through the courses and the lectures she began to identify her own style – She gravitated towards luxury design. Her clients have an appreciation for the traditional and heirloom quality yet they need family friendly materials are for their lifestyle. This practical luxury has become Leslie’s area of expertise.
Find your focus
Focus is important. It is important to focus on your own style, passions, interests and talents. Educate yourself as much as you can in specific areas. For example, if fine art is your passion, study it as much as possible so that you can start to create your own niche and develop your specialty. People will start to seek you out for your specialty. Furthermore, when you’ve honed in on your particular area of expertise, you will have the opportunity to work with other designers who may have specialties in other areas, thus cultivating new and hopefully lasting working relationships. A great way to get your foot in the door and to get yourself some visibility is to get an internship with or work for established leaders of the industry. This offers invaluable experience and is another great hands-on approach to learning. If you do this, it would be wise to work with a designer whose style is similar to yours.
Getting started : The finances
You really don’t need to have a big budget to start your own company. Connections, in this case are more important. It is critical that you connect with established leaders and authority figures. As you do this you will grow your own network base and as this happens you will begin to attract your own client-base. By taking the necessary steps of learning, interning and partnering your network will grow organically.
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