LuAnn Nigara

Book 1: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Get The Goodies!

For checklists, resources, and extra goodies from A Well-Designed Business sign up for free here.

Purchase LuAnn’s Books Here:

Audiobook: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Book 2: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts

Book 3: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts Volume 2

Connect with LuAnn Nigara:

LuAnn’s Website

LuAnn’s Blog

Episode 516 : Power Talk Friday: Jude Charles: Video Storytelling for Your Brand

Like Us: Facebook | Tweet Us: Twitter | Follow Us: Instagram | Listen Here: Podcast

Other Shows Mentioned:

Episode 626 : Power Talk Friday: Jude Charles: How to Tell Your Story to Connect with Clients in Interior Design

Episode 718: Power Talk Friday: Jude Charles: The Power of Dramatic Demonstration in Your Business Videos

Episode 724: Power Talk Friday: Jude Charles: Using Video to Close More Interior Design Deals

Episode 1000: 1000th Episode! LuAnn Nigara is Interviewed by Jude Charles!

Episode 542 : Brad Leavitt: AFT Construction: A Builder’s Perspective on the Design Build Process

Episode 560: Brad Leavitt, AFT Construction: The Design Book

Episode 580: Brad Leavitt, AFT Construction: The Two “B” Words: Budget & Builders

Episode 615 : Power Talk Friday: Brad Leavitt: Overcoming Resistance in the Design-Build Process

Episode 649: Power Talk Friday: Brad Leavitt: Understanding Design-Build from the Builder’s Perspective

Episode 878: Throwback Tuesday: Brad Leavitt: A Builder’s Perspective on the Design Build Process

Episode 1130: Jen Davidson: Running an Interior Design Business, or Just Working at One You Happen to Own?

Episode 1059: Rachel Usher: Creating Community and Strength in the Interior Design Industry

Episode 1179: The Business of Interiors Community Summit: The Room That Changes Your Business

RSVP to the 10th Birthday Party

Watch LuAnn’s docuseries produced by Jude Charles

Design Masters

Studio Designer

Mydoma Studio

Sunbrella

07-10-202607-16-2026

1208: Kate Ahl: Your Designs Might Already Be on Pinterest, and You Don’t Even Know It

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1208: Kate Ahl: Your Designs Might Already Be on Pinterest, and You Don’t Even Know It

Today with Kate Ahl:

Today with Kate Ahl, founder of Simple Pin Media and a 12-year Pinterest marketing veteran, we are talking about where Pinterest stands right now in 2026 — and why it might be the smartest marketing move interior designers aren’t making. Kate has managed over a thousand Pinterest accounts, her team has been with her between five and eleven years, and last year she became a verified Pinterest educator working directly with Pinterest itself. She knows this platform at a level most people don’t, and she is here to give it to us straight.

In this conversation, Kate breaks down how Pinterest has evolved, what the intersection of AI and Pinterest actually looks like for designers today, and how to use the platform as a real long-game marketing engine for your firm. If you have written off Pinterest, tried it and quit, or never really understood what it could do for your business — this episode is going to make you rethink all of it.

More About Kate Ahl:
Kate Ahl is the founder and CEO of Simple Pin Media, the largest Pinterest marketing agency serving over a vast client base. With 12 years in the Pinterest space, Kate hosts the #1 podcast in Pinterest marketing with over 3 million downloads and is known for her no-fluff, strategic approach to helping businesses grow through Pinterest. She’s a member of Pinterest’s exclusive educator program and has built her reputation on cutting through the noise to deliver what actually works.

Ah Ha Moments with Kate Ahl:

“Pinterest is not a doom scroll platform. We are not the social media app that you give up in a detox. We are not even social media.” — Kate Ahl

“If it doesn’t finish the sentence you’re typing, it doesn’t know it’s there.” — LuAnn Nigara (on using Pinterest’s search bar to test if your niche has an audience)

Connect with Kate Ahl:

Website

Instagram

Youtube

What’s new with LuAnn Nigara:

Book 1: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Get The Goodies!

For checklists, resources, and extra goodies from A Well-Designed Business sign up for free here.

Purchase LuAnn’s Books Here:

Audiobook: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Book 2: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts

Book 3: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts Volume 2

Connect with LuAnn Nigara:

LuAnn’s Website

LuAnn’s Blog

AWDB #1126: Nicole Heymer: Rethink SEO for ChatGPT and Google AI

Like Us: Facebook | Tweet Us: Twitter | Follow Us: Instagram | Listen Here: Podcast

Other Shows Mentioned:

AWDB #1171: Jenna Gaidusek: AI Ethics for Interior Designers: Protecting Your Clients and Brand

WTFP #344: Kate Ahl: Using Pinterest to Understand Client Style and Strengthen Your Brand

07-07-202607-16-2026

1207: Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston: The Talent Was Already There | Diversity Advocacy Alliance

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1207: Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston: The Talent Was Already There | Diversity Advocacy Alliance

Today with Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston:

Do we still need to be talking about diversity in our industry? Yes. A thousand times yes. It is so incredibly easy for us to operate inside our comfortable, familiar bubbles and assume that if the door is wide open for us, it must be open for everyone else. But when we don’t do the real work, when we overlook the lack of diversity and allow designers of color to face barriers to entry, we are missing out on incredible perspectives and top-tier talent.

My guests today, Ben Johnston, the 2026 Chair of Diversity Advocacy Alliance, and Arianne Bellizaire, an exceptional luxury designer and a foundational DAA committee member, join the show to break down what real, action-oriented advocacy actually looks like. Together, they pull back the curtain on the lack of representation in the design world, sharing a beautiful, real-world example of how their partnership and true alliance opened a massive door that resulted in an important diversity milestone. Ben and Arianne challenge every single business leader to clear their own blind spots, and use their access to ensure that where real talent exists, there is no barrier keeping it from rising.

More About Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston:

Benjamin Johnston sits at the helm of his eponymous design firm and has dedicated his life to artistic pursuits. Ben launched his first design business focused exclusively on interior design, allowing him to follow his passion for bringing extraordinary designs to life. Ben eventually expanded the firm to include architecture, offering clients a holistic approach that invites his prestigious team to manage the creation of luxury homes from start to finish. His passion for form, function, and design coupled with a keen understanding of market needs has resulted in three licensed collections, including a furniture line for Chaddock, a diverse collection of hand-knotted rugs for Madison Lily Rugs, and a textile and wallcovering collection for Fabricut’s contemporary luxury brand, S.Harris. Next year, Ben will debut his collection of fireplace surrounds and tile mosaics with Material Bespoke Stone & Tile. Ben’s book with Rizzoli, entitled, Refined Interiors: Timeless Homes for Modern Living was released in February 2026.

Arianne Bellizaire is the Founder and Creative Director of Arianne Bellizaire Interiors and a recognized voice at the intersection of design, business, and industry influence. Her work spans residential interiors, multifamily development, and experiential showroom design, giving her a unique understanding of how design translates into business value and opportunity.

Before launching Arianne Bellizaire Interiors in 2013, Arianne built a career in corporate marketing and public relations, a foundation that continues to inform how she approaches design, brand partnerships, and strategic consulting. That background gives her a perspective most designers do not have: an understanding of how decisions are made, how value is communicated, and how visibility is built intentionally. She holds degrees in Mass Communications and Political Communication from LSU, and a Certificate of Interior Architecture from UCLA.

Arianne’s work extends beyond interior design into ongoing conversations around business, creativity, and personal growth. She is a frequent contributor on industry panels and media platforms, and co-host of The Hustle Adjacent podcast, where she explores the realities of building a career, navigating growth, and redefining success. Her media profile includes features in Architectural Digest, Forbes, House Beautiful, and she was the lead designer on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition reboot in 2025.

Ah Ha Moments with Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston:

“If you look at many of the designers of color who’ve come to this industry, we come to it later…after we do what we thought we were supposed to do. It’s really difficult to grow up aspiring to be something that you don’t have a picture of.” -Arianne Bellizaire

“All we want is a chance to be at the table, to be considered with the rest of the talent. That’s it…we’re not asking you to give us anything that we didn’t earn.” -Arianne Bellizaire

“We all have to be the change we want to see in this world. and we have to do it with intention and authenticity.” -Ben Johnston

Connect with Arianne Bellizaire & Ben Johnston:

What’s new with LuAnn Nigara:

Book 1: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Get The Goodies!
For checklists, resources, and extra goodies from A Well-Designed Business sign up for free here.

Purchase LuAnn’s Books Here:

Audiobook: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Book 2: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts

Book 3: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts Volume 2

Connect with LuAnn Nigara:

LuAnn’s Website

LuAnn’s Blog

Episode 20 Arianne Bellizaire – Could Your Hobby or Hidden Talent Be Your Marketing Platform?

Like Us: Facebook | Tweet Us: Twitter | Follow Us: Instagram | Listen Here: Podcast

Other Shows Mentioned:
Episode 568 Arianne Bellizaire: “A Reluctant and Accidental Leader in #BLM”

07-03-202607-16-2026

1206: SPONSORED SHOW: Dezign Assist: Kylie Ponton, Corri English, The Hiring Answer for Solo or Scaled Firms

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1206: SPONSORED SHOW: Dezign Assist: Kylie Ponton, Corri English, The Hiring Answer for Solo or Scaled Firms

Today with Dezign Assist: Kylie Ponton, Corri English:

Today with Corri English, founder and principal designer of Music City Interiors, and Kylie Ponton, principal and CEO of Ponton Interiors, we are talking about what it actually looks like to bring qualified virtual support into your design firm at any stage of business.

Corri is eighteen months into building her Nashville-based studio and already navigating the kind of capacity challenges that come with early success. Kylie has fifteen years of experience, a seasoned team, and systems that most designers are still working toward. They could not be more different on paper — and that is exactly the point. Today they pull back the curtain on their real experiences bringing on Dezign Assist VAs, including the wins, the bumps in the road, and what they know now that they wish they had known sooner. This episode is sponsored by Dezign Assist.

More About Kylie Ponton, Corri English:

Corri English:

By the time Corri English was five years old, she was already working. Theater. Commercials. Voice-over. And already noticing — the way a room changes how people move through it, how a set can carry a character’s whole emotional weight, how the details nobody plans for are often the ones that land hardest. Most people see rooms. She was reading them.

Decades later, that instinct drives everything she builds.

Corri is the founder and principal designer of Music City Interiors, a Nashville-based studio focused on custom homes, renovations, and the kind of spaces that feel like they were designed specifically for the people living in them — because they were. Before launching her design career, she spent years in entertainment as an award-winning actress, singer-songwriter, and voice-over artist, accumulating credits that range from Runaway Jury (alongside Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, and John Cusack) to House, CSI: Miami, Luke Cage, and The Bedford Diaries. She also fronted the country-rock band Brokedown Cadillac, whose music landed in Desperate Housewives, The Mentalist, and Disney’s Race to Witch Mountain, among others.

Every role she played, every song she wrote, every performance she gave was really about the same thing: creating the conditions for an emotion.

That’s still what she does. The medium just changed.

Years on film sets left a mark that can’t be unlearned. She started seeing rooms the way cinematographers see frames — as mood, as character, as the place the story either wants to happen or doesn’t. Songwriting taught her something different but just as essential: the rhythm and architecture required to make separate pieces cohere into something that feels inevitable. Both inform how she approaches a home.

Through Music City Interiors, Corri works with homeowners, builders, and architects on large-scale custom builds and renovations — handling everything from spatial planning and architectural detailing to full furnishings, finishes, and decor sourcing. Her aesthetic leans warm, layered, and slightly cinematic — collected rather than curated, elevated without being cold, detailed without being precious. She’s especially drawn to the projects other designers find difficult: the tricky floor plans, the structural constraints, the rooms that almost work. The puzzle isn’t the obstacle. The puzzle is the point.

Her design philosophy is direct: a home should feel autobiographical. Not a reference image someone found on Pinterest, not a composite of what’s trending this quarter — something that belongs unmistakably to the people who live there. More refined, more intentional, more emotionally grounded than they could have gotten to on their own, but never disconnected from who they actually are.

She doesn’t design for the photograph. She designs for the exhale.

Corri lives in Nashville with her husband, Apple Music Country host Ty Bentli, and their three children — in a house that regularly hosts kitchen dance parties, construction-site field trips, blanket forts, and spirited debates about lighting temperatures she almost always wins.

Ah Ha Moments with Kylie Ponton, Corri English:

“I don’t feel like I had time to learn everything the hard way. I just wanted more input, more feedback, more results.” – Kylie

“I felt like I had help but not support.” – Corri

“I really do believe almost any firm on the planet could figure out a way to get their stuff done easier, faster, quicker with less headaches if they have qualified support.” – LuAnn

Connect with Dezign Assist. Corri English, and Kylie Ponton:

What’s new with LuAnn Nigara:

Board Room for Creatives

Book 1: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Get The Goodies!

For checklists, resources, and extra goodies from A Well-Designed Business sign up for free here.

Purchase LuAnn’s Books Here:

Audiobook: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Book 2: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts

Book 3: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts Volume 2

Connect with LuAnn Nigara:

LuAnn’s Website

LuAnn’s Blog

A Well-Designed Business 4th Birthday Party

Like Us: Facebook | Tweet Us: Twitter | Follow Us: Instagram | Listen Here: Podcast

06-30-2026

1205: BEST OF SHOW: Eric Ross: His Process for Selling Accessories and the Reveal Install

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1205: BEST OF SHOW: Eric Ross: His Process for Selling Accessories and the Reveal Install

Welcome to our special bonus show! Today, as promised, we will be sharing our conversation with Eric Ross about his business philosophy, his process for selling accessories, and the way he manages his reveal install day. Eric’s process is unique and very unusual. Be sure to listen in, to hear what he has to share.

Eric has been a professional decorator for more than twenty years. Although his preferred design style is traditional, he listens to his clients, to help them discover what they love, and what they respond to because he believes that everyone’s home should represent who they are on their best day. Tune in today, to get some great advice from Eric!

Show Highlights:

Eric doesn’t deliver a project piecemeal. He only reveals it when it’s ready.
Eric takes risks when making purchases for his clients but they seldom ask to return items.
It is important to look at what you’re trying to achieve, and the value you’re bringing to people, and stick to that.
Know that your job is to make things beautiful and if something gets returned you have still done your job.
Eric loves to wow people at the install.
People who appreciate Eric’s value and want a beautiful home will be willing to pay the price he’s asking.
It’s Eric’s job to design a room to completion. It’s the client’s job to decide on the budget.
The designer needs to learn what makes the client tick.

Links:

Website: Eric Ross Interiors

Facebook: Eric Ross Interiors

Instagram: Eric Ross Interiors

Pinterest: Eric Ross Interiors

Mydoma Studio: A Well Designed Business

06-26-2026

1204: BEST OF SHOW: Eric Ross: Operating His Design Firm Like a Retail Store

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1204: BEST OF SHOW: Eric Ross: Operating His Design Firm Like a Retail Store

Welcome! Today, Eric Ross joins us on the show. Eric is a charming southern gentleman and a well-experienced design professional. He is also a seasoned businessman who has figured out how to run his firm in a unique way that really works for him. In today’s episode, he describes how he runs his private interior design studio like a retail store. He explains that he no longer feels the need to change, apologize or adjust the way he works to conform to a client’s expectations. Eric knows himself well, he understands his passions, and he is very clear about what he will and will not do. Be sure to listen in today, to find about his very interesting business model.

Eric is from Nashville. He has been in love with the traditional living design style since he was a child. He has more than twenty years of design experience and his work has been published in Traditional Home, Southern Style, Southern Lady, The Cottage Journal, as well as in many other publications. Eric’s passion is to fan the flame of traditional decorating with a deeply Southern esthetic. Tune in now, for more!

Show Highlights:

Eric explains what he means when he says that he is running his design firm like a store without a storefront.
What the decorating track of Eric’s business is all about.
Eric’s margins are hefty, just like those in a storefront, and all of his design services are included in that pricing.
The way that Eric educates his clients about his philosophy and the way he works.
Talking about transparency.
People will happily pay Eric for his product rather than his time.
Trust is a key issue.
Eric’s business model allows him to have total control over the whole process.
Eric’s advice is to start small with clients. It makes your business more manageable.
The biggest motivator for Eric is seeing the result of what he has created.
Eric’s qualifying process for his new clients.
Eric explains why he does not do discounts.
The opportunities you’re losing by being overworked.
Eric’s goal is to monetize his passion.
Our industry is too high-touch to make it high volume.
It’s okay to mark up because of the value you add to the project.
You don’t have to explain your “no”.
Eric has a new book out, called Enduring Southern Homes.

Links:

Website: Eric Ross Interiors

Facebook: Eric Ross Interiors

Instagram: Eric Ross Interiors

Pinterest: Eric Ross Interiors

Mydoma Studio: A Well Designed Business

06-23-202607-16-2026

1203: Madelaine Mayer: The Interior Designer Who Spent 20 Years as an Architect Before Choosing Joy

1203 The Interior Designer Who Spent 20 Years As An Architect Before Choosing Joy Thumbnail.png

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1203: Madelaine Mayer: The Interior Designer Who Spent 20 Years as an Architect Before Choosing Joy

Today with Madelaine Mayer:

Today with Madelaine Mayer, licensed architect, certified interior designer, and founder of ADROIT Architecture & Interior Design in New York City, we are getting into what it really means to bet on yourself when everything you have built says you should stay put. Madelaine spent nearly 20 years in commercial and institutional architecture before making the leap to interior design — and the story of how she got there, and what kept her tethered so long, is one a lot of people in this audience are going to recognize.

We talk about the sunk cost trap, the expectations we inherit from the people who love us most, and the permission we withhold from ourselves when our credentials start to feel like an obligation instead of an asset. Madelaine also gets into how that 20-year technical foundation now gives her a genuine competitive edge in the complex, code-heavy world of New York City residential renovation — and what it looks like to build a company culture intentionally, from scratch, when you know exactly what you don’t want it to be.

More About Madelaine Mayer:

Since founding ADROIT Architecture & Interior Design in 2022, Madelaine has earned a reputation for infusing complex New York City residences with boundless joy, innovative problem solving, and ineff able style. Drawing inspiration from her extensive travels, contemporary art, and architectural history, Madelaine wields a keen eye to create deeply personal and practical interiors alongside fun and memorable client experiences.

Madelaine has been featured in numerous publications, including Architectural Digest, House Beautiful, Apartment Therapy, and Real Simple, and was awarded the Apartment Therapy Small/Cool Best Vibe award for her own home in 2023.

With over 20 years of experience in New York City, Madelaine is a licensed architect, certified interior designer, LEED and WELL accredited, and a faculty member at the New York School of Interior Design. She earned her Masters in Architecture from the Georgia Institute of Technology and her Bachelors in Architectural Studies and Art History from Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Ah Ha Moments with Madelaine Mayer:

“There are pressures, internal and external. Sometimes they serve us, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they serve us until they don’t. And then our job is to recognize the gift that they gave us, but then to break free and listen to the inside voice that’s calling you to do the next thing.” — LuAnn Nigara

“Just because something is difficult to achieve, just because something is perceived as elite or having a high barrier to entry, that it therefore has a higher value and it’s better or more appropriate or more applicable. And that’s just not true.” — Madelaine Mayer

“You literally have to decide to be excellent as the boss every day. How do I show up in the inside of my business that no one else sees?” — Madelaine Mayer

Connect with Madelaine Mayer:

Website

Instagram

What’s new with LuAnn Nigara:

Book 1: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Get The Goodies!

For checklists, resources, and extra goodies from A Well-Designed Business sign up for free here.

Purchase LuAnn’s Books Here:

Audiobook: The Making of A Well – Designed Business: Turn Inspiration into Action

Book 2: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts

Book 3: A Well-Designed Business – The Power Talk Friday Experts Volume 2

Connect with LuAnn Nigara:

LuAnn’s Website

LuAnn’s Blog