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306: Rachel Cannon: Key Steps for Success in Your Interior Design Business

Welcome to today’s show! It really looks like our guest for today, Rachel Cannon of Rachel Cannon Limited Interiors, is doing some good things down in Baton Rouge Louisiana! What really gets LuAnn going is Rachel’s promise on her website of a structured process and a step-by-step method, when it comes to her design. On today’s show, Rachel talks about the fifteen-step the ten-step processes that she uses with her clients and how she came to develop them. She also discusses the way that she changed her marketing in order to attract the right client. Listen in to find out more.   

The specialty of Rachel Cannon Limited is designing a space where you’ll feel happiest and at peace, that’s both practical and uniquely beautiful, and that also tells the story of who you are. Rachel is known for creating classic, fresh, and smart interiors, with details that are both livable and deluxe. As an experienced and licensed interior designer, she leads a team of creative minds who effortlessly mix subtle color and rich architectural features, weaving in the meaningful details of your life. Listen in today to find out about Rachel’s design processes and how she markets her business.

Show highlights:

  • Rachel discusses her systems and the way that she works with her clients.
  • Rachel’s ideal client profile.
  • How Rachel’s fifteen-step process
  • About Rachel’s Ten-Step New Construction package.
  • What Rachel’s VIP Day and her One Week Room Rescue is all about.
  • Why the process keeps refining.
  • How Rachel changed her marketing to attract the right client.
  • A good way of dealing with difficult clients.
  • The value of having a really good contract with your client.
  • Teaching your clients how to work with you.
  • Rachel’s document of ‘rules’ for her clients-why she uses it and what it has in it.
  • The real cost of interruptions when you’re working.
  • What brought about a turning point for Rachel, regarding the fees she charges.
  • Discovering your real value.
  • Why it’s important to know who your ideal client is.
  • How Rachel’s VIP Day came about.
  • Getting clear on charging the right amount for your services.
  • How Rachel vets her potential clients to see if they’re a fit for her.
  • Why you really need to document everything that happens with your clients.

 Links:

Her website and social: Rachel Cannon Limited Facebook: RCL Interiors Instagram Twitter Linkedin: Rachel Cannon

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305: Elizabeth Scruggs- The Things I Learned From A Well-Designed Business

Welcome to today’s episode of A Well-Designed Business! We are introducing a new feature on the show today, called The Things I Learned From A Well-Designed Business- Listener Shows. This show will be intermingled with our current Power Talk Friday feature and either one or the other will air each Friday.

There have been a number of designers who have emailed LuAnn over the years and shared with her their lists of all the things that they have learned from the podcast and then applied directly to their businesses.  It then occurred to LuAnn that if you, the listener, actually hear your peers explaining the results of taking those actions, it may just give you the extra push that you need to take action on all the information that you have received from the show. That is what has motivated LuAnn to start this new feature for the show so listen in today to find out more!

Our guest for today is Elizabeth Scruggs and she’s the owner of Superior Construction And Design in Tennessee. She is the mid state’s only female general contractor and designer. She’s been in business since 2000. Recognising a love of construction when building her own home at the age of twenty-four, she knew that coupling that knowledge with her interior design skill was a service that few could provide. Elizabeth and SC and D have won numerous awards over the years and she believes that continuing education is vital for success. Elizabeth attends industry trade events and market events each year and she was a member of the Modenus Blog Tour of K-biz in January of 2018. She currently serves on the national board of directors for the Real Estate Staging Association, the board of directors for the Nashville chapter of the Nashville Association of Women in Construction, she’s the vice-president of the virtual chapter of the Interior Design Society and the National Kitchen and Bath Association. Elizabeth’s clients are busy working professionals in the age range of forty-five to fifty-five, looking to upgrade their current home, but lacking the time and desire to oversee it. She finds her sweet spot in handling these full-home renovations from inception to completion. Elizabeth has been a contributing writer for Wilson County’s premier magazine, Wilson Living, for six years and she’s been featured in The Lebanon Democrat, The Wilson Post, and The Mount Juliet Chronicle. Elizabeth resides in Tennessee, just east of Nashville, with her husband of twenty-six years and their twin daughters and young son. Listen in to find out what Elizabeth has to share with you today.

Show highlights:

  • Elizabeth shares about what it was about Brittany and her company that moved her to action.(#149)
  • Elizabeth’s ‘aha moment’ with Gavin Zuchlinski of Acuity Scheduling and how Acuity has really worked for her. (#241)
  • All about Elizabeth’s ‘pick your brain’ thirty-minute phone calls.
  • How Elizabeth has benefited from getting to know about Kate The Socialite. (#104)
  • What Elizabeth has learned about systems from Kimberley Seldon. (#112)
  • Why Elizabeth really loves Nancy Ganzekaufer’s Business In Words so much! (#256)
  • What she learned from The Prepared Performer- Molly Mahoney. (#247)
  • Elizabeth’s awesome takeaway from the Facebook Live Queen- Jessica Brace. (#250)
  • What Kate O’Hara had to teach Elizabeth about Pinterest. (#215)
  • What she took away from the episode with Summer Tannhauser. (#292)
  • How much Elizabeth learned from the episode with Leslie Carothers and Sam Henderson of the Savour Partnership. (#209)
  • The effect that the episode with Adam Japko, of the Design Blogger’s Conference, had on her. (#95)
  • Time chunking with Darci Hether. (#220)
  • Lessons learned from Carla Aston (#242), Fred Berns (#174), and Tabitha Carro (#235).
  • About Elizabeth’s relationship with her good friend and designer bestie Kristi Barnett aka The Decorologist.

Links:

Elizabeth’s website:   Superior Construction and Design    Elizabeth on social: facebook  blog pinterest houzz insta  

You can get your free PDF of The Things I Learned From Elizabeth Scruggs at https://www.luannnigara.com/305

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304: Steve & Jill McKenzie: Multiple Income Streams. Interior Design, Product Lines, Artist & Retail Showroom

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Welcome to today’s show where we feature another husband and wife team, Jill and Steve McKenzie. They are the owners of McKenzie Design Llc and also Steve McKenzie’s, a home décor business which is located in the heart of Atlanta’s west-midtown design district. Steve does the interior designing and runs the product design side of the business, while Jill predominantly oversees the running of the store and does the buying for the business.  Recently, they have also been doing a lot of product design and creation and also the licensing of certain products. Listen in today, to find out how they work together as a team, to run the retail end of their interior design business.

Steve started Steve McKenzie’s in 2012 after his tenure of more than twenty years with Berkshire-Hathaway owned Larson-Juhl, a custom frame manufacturer, and distributor, where he served most recently as the company’s president and CEO. Through practicing as an artist for more than twenty-five years, Steve has developed a unique technique of painting with walnut ink and focusing on organic composition. His studio is located in the upper loft space of Steve McKenzie’s. Jill and Steve have three children and three Springer Spaniels. Listen in today, to find out more about the ethical and service driven way that they run their business.

Show highlights:

  • It all started with Steve’s art- the fabric collection being the genesis of both the store and the design business.
  • The community that has developed as an offshoot of their showroom.
  • How it happened that Steve ended up taking the route he did, creating and selling his own textile line in showrooms across the country.
  • How Steve found the right experts to help him with getting his product line manufactured and launched.
  • Getting really clear about your expectations with mentors and mentees.
  • Some tips for getting your product line known ‘out there’.
  • The Jill works (and hustles) with Steve to get his products out there.
  • The grounding effect of Steve’s corporate background.
  • What went into Steve and Jill’s decision to open their own showroom and retail lifestyle store.
  • The idea of creating a personality around Steve’s fabrics.
  • Jill’s style of marketing their product lines.
  • Jill and Steve’s approach to their lifestyle brand of products.
  • How the design side of their business was born.
  • Evaluating whether or not to start a showroom.
  • How Steve and Jill cope when their opinions differ in their business.
  • Creating healthy boundaries and a good work-life balance.
  • Covering all the hours in the showroom.
  • Jill and Steve’s real commitment to really great customer service.
  • Why the customer is always (Even when they’re not!)

Links:

Website and Social: Steve Mckenzies Mckenzie Interior Design Steve Mckenzies Steve Mckenzie Art Houzz – McKenzie Interior Design/steve mckenzie’s Pinterest – @stevemckenzies Instagram – @stevemckenzies Twitter – @stevemckenzies Facebook – @stevemckenzies

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303: Power Talk Friday – Rebecca Richardson: Hiring New Staff Members for Your Interior Design Firm

Welcome to Power Talk Friday! Rebecca Richards joins us as our guest on the show today and she’s the director of marketing for Charles Cunniffe Architects in Aspen Colorado. Rebecca is also part of the firm’s management committee and one of her responsibilities within that committee is the hiring process for the firm. So today she talks to us about the process that she uses for hiring and she also shares some of the key questions that she asks and some of the things that she looks for when she interviews candidates. Whether you’re a solo interior designer looking to make your first hire or you run mid-size or a larger firm and you’re looking for a direct process to follow when doing your hiring, we relate this to you, so listen in to find out what Rebecca has to share with you on the show today.

Rebecca joined Charles Cunniffe Architects in 2006 and the firm widely increased their market reach while decreasing their marketing expenditure under her leadership as director of marketing. Rececca’s keen eye for design has led to the complete redesign of the company’s marketing materials and their website, and also to the addition of their social media outlets. Her appreciation for design and sustainable business practices has become instrumental in the operations at CCA.

CCA is quite a powerhouse of an architectural firm. They have nineteen people on their staff and they have been named as best places to work for the last four years running. Their Elk Peak Ranch project was named Home Of The Year in November  2017 by Mountain Living Magazine- and it’s truly spectacular! (Check out their website https://www.cunniffe.com or my Instagram feed today, as I will be featuring their work all day.) Listen in now to find out more.

Show highlights:

  • Rebecca describes the structure within CCA and also what the various roles are, within their management committee.
  • Rebecca’s holistic approach to the hiring process.
  • Rebecca goes through her entire hiring process, step by step.
  • Methodically looking at the necessary roles within the office structure, prior to the hiring process.
  • Where CCA advertise for their staff.
  • Why Rebecca likes to respond to every single resume that she receives.
  • Cross-checking the resumes, to get a bigger picture of the person.
  • It can be quite hard to stand out as an entry-level applicant, so Rebecca explains what makes someone really stand out for her.
  • Internships- how they can really make you stand out as a job applicant.
  • The best questions to ask when conducting a phone interview.
  • The importance of finding out what the applicant really wants and expects- in terms of the job and the salary.
  • Rebecca describes her process of the second interview.
  • Why it’s really worth spending the time figuring out exactly where the applicant is at, and if they fit where you need them to be.
  • Why it’s really important to ask for references.
  • Getting the information that you really need when doing a reference check.
  • Knowing when it’s the right time to hire someone.

Links:

CCA website

Skype handle: rebeccalynnhill

Instagram

Facebook

Blog

Twitter

LuAnn on Instagram: @luannnigara

Kravet has launched their new website and they have a new code for you, as a listener of this podcast, to get 10% off any one purchase of Kravet fabric, trimmings, or wallpaper. Go to Kravet and use the code AWDB10 at checkout.

Charles Cunniffe Architects website: Cunniffe

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302: Meadowbank Designs: Buying an Existing Interior Designer Business

Welcome to today’s episode of A Well-Designed Business! We have Laura Buchner and Kirsten McCoy with us on the show and today we are going to be talking to them about how their interior design firm was founded in 1982 by Penny Steele, and how they purchased it from her in 2005 when she retired. Listen in as we pick apart their motivation for buying an existing business from someone else rather than starting their own business from scratch.

Laura and Kirsten are the principals of Meadowbank Designs, which is located in the Philadelphia Pennsylvania area. Meadowbank Designs has completed a wide range of projects throughout the country, for generations of clients, from historic preservation to vacation homes and also additions and renovations. They are best known for residential design which combines traditional motifs with a modern sensibility, and also for providing the highest quality of design excellence and personal service. Listen in today to find out about Laura and Kirsten’s decision to buy their business, and how they went about acquiring it.

Show highlights:

  • Kirsten and Laura discuss their decision to buy the business.
  • The confidence that they felt about their relationships with the existing clients.
  • The really awesome way that Penny, the previous owner of the business, worked to create a great relationship between Laura, Kirsten and the existing clients.
  • What made them decide to buy an existing business, rather than starting up one of their own.
  • The organic process of how they came to decide to buy the business from the previous owner.
  • How the previous owner arrived at the value of the business.
  • The time that it took for the business to be fully paid off and for Kirsten and Laura to begin making a profit.
  • How they worked their finances, in order to get the business paid off as quickly as possible.
  • Using professional systems, in order to run a business the right way.
  • How they overcame the difficulties that they experienced during the recession in 2008.
  • The importance of their constant and clear communication.
  • The number of clients that they typically handle during any given quarter.
  • The roles that Laura and Kirsten each play for their projects.
  • The really mature way that they handle conflict when it comes up.
  • The different, yet complimentary things that Laura and Kirsten each bring to the business.
  • Some things worth considering, when thinking about buying an existing business.

Previous episodes mentioned on the show:

Fred Berns: Episodes #22, #48, #96, #174, #226 and #289

Links:

Meadowbank designs can be found at:

Meadowbank Designs

Facebook: Meadowbank-Designs

Instagram: Meadowbank Designs

Twitter: Meadowbank Designs

Pinterest: Meadowbank Designs

Fred Bern’s website: https://interiordesignbusiness.net

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301: Article.com Launches Trade Program




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Welcome to today’s episode of Power Talk Friday! We are delighted to introduce you to Duncan Blair, the director of marketing for Article, a furniture company out of Vancouver Canada, and the sponsor for today’s show. Article recently approached LuAnn about getting onto the podcast to tell you about their products. LuAnn agreed to this because she thinks that it’s an interesting company with great potential as a resource for you and your interior design projects. Duncan is here today to tell us all about Article, so listen in carefully as we pick it apart to see if it really is a viable option for us, as designers.                     

Article has been in business since 2013. It is an online company and an original, modern furniture brand that engineers remarkably better furniture shopping experiences. It is a dedicated, deadline orientated, people pleasing type of company, with a trade facing program, and they are currently in the midst of an initiative to spread their wings and further develop their trade program, to make it both more efficient and more effective. Listen in now, to find out more.

Show highlights:

  • Duncan explains why he thinks that Article would make a really good alliance company for interior designers.
  • What Article does, to help make the designers who have a hard time ordering furniture from an online location, more comfortable.
  • Article’s really generous return policy- if you don’t like it, you can send it back- seamlessly, with no problem.
  • About Article’s dedicated trade team, to guide you and help you to pre-purchase.
  • Jill and her team at Article are interior designers who really understand.
  • Article has a complete fabric swatch kit, which is available to designers at no cost.
  • Their really reasonable flat rate freight shipping fee, for anywhere in Canada or the USA.
  • Article’s three-tiered shipping model.
  • Article’s really awesome customer service.
  • Duncan explains about their free exchange service.
  • What really sets Article apart from other vendors, in terms of their delivery times.
  • Article really prides itself on its ability to always meet your deadlines.
  • The members of the team at Article are always ready to help you out with questions that are specific to the design industry.
  • All about the furniture at Article and where it is made.
  • About Article’s fair trade policy and their pledge to only having a positive impact on the world.
  • What would be required in order for you to become a trade partner with Article? (Go to welldesigned.article.com)
  • The discounts that are available through their trade program.
  • About the quality and styling of the products which are supplied by Article.
  • Article’s projected income for the next financial year.

Links:

Article on Instagram: @article

Apply for the Article Trade Program: Article Article: Article Linkedin: Article  Houzz: Article  Instagram: Article  Facebook: Article

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300: 300th Episode – Big Happenings!




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A very warm welcome to the three hundredth episode of A Well-Designed Business today- and happy birthday to us! February the 15th was the second birthday of the podcast and we are having our birthday party tonight (21st February) at Lefroy Brooks in New York City. Today is a really big day for the podcast and there’s lots of awesome news too, so listen in now to find out more.

It really takes a lot of effort from many people to get this podcast aired each week and I’m truly grateful to everyone involved! I’m especially grateful to you, my designer friends, who show up and listen in to the show every single week! Listen in today as I share some news and express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has played their part in making this show so successful!

Show highlights:

  • A special mention of thanks to everyone that works so hard to get this show ready and aired!
  • Special thanks to our featured sponsors- Kravet Inc and MyDoma Studio.
  • How we know that Kravet is truly in the business of helping you to run a better business.
  • Why I really love MyDoma Studio so much!
  • A shout out to all our other sponsors.
  • Thanks to all the wonderful guests who have been on the show!
  • A really HUGE thank you to you, my designer friend, who listens to this show every week- It’s because of you that I show up each week!.
  • How my world has expanded tenfold because of my designer friends, who follow me, interact with me on Instagram and Facebook, and give me really valuable feedback.
  • The changes that are happening with the show.
  • Why we will be airing our shows just twice a week, as of next week.
  • We will be adding more video content to the podcast as we go forward.
  • How the Well-Designed Business Fan Club got started.
  • The details about the first meeting of the fan club. You’re welcome to join!
  • How you can really benefit from joining the fan club.
  • About my book- The Making Of A Well-Designed Business. It’s finally out!
  • The biggest lesson that’s in my whole book!

If are just hearing about this and you’d like to join us at our birthday party, there’s still time for you to get in, so go on over to Party.

To get our amazing newsletter every Wednesday, simply text 444 999 and enter the word designbiz.

The first meeting of the Well-Designed Business Fan Club will be on Friday 23rd February at noon (eastern time). To join, email Deborah at hello@vegandesign.org and put LuAnn Fan Club in the subject line.

My book, The Making Of A Well-Designed Business, is available in e-book form and in paperback. The paperback is $14.95 and the e-book is $7.99, but from 21st February until 28th February 2018 the e-book will only be $3.00- in honor of our 300th episode! Go to The Making Of A Well-Designed Business.

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299: Houzz Acquires Ivy- The Red Flags




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The interior design industry was recently rocked with the news that Houzz.com acquired IvyMark for a reported $30 to $40 million dollars. There have been panel discussions on Facebook Live and other podcasters have addressed it on their shows as well. These discussions have covered, among other things, the motivations of both the Ivy team and of Houzz.com, the ramifications of the purchase to the interior designers who are using the IVY platform and the ripples this news is making through our industry.   I agree wholeheartedly that all of these discussions are important and valid and they have been well addressed. But today I want to address the lessons we can learn from this situation and talk about how and why it is so important for us as business owners to understand how Ivy and Houzz might have avoided some of this significant backlash from the design community. It begins and ends with you as a business owner, your conduct, your philosophy and your leadership.

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298: Rich Rogers – Why Interior Designers Should Know About Exterior Shades & Awnings

Welcome to A Well Designed Business! Today we have Rich Rogers as our guest and he is the sales manager for the exterior side of Window Works. Rich is someone who has really been making LuAnn’s life a whole lot easier in many ways and for many years and he is a real asset to the team at Window Works, with his experience in the trade and his knowledge about product lines. On the show today he will be talking about awnings and discussing some awesome solutions to almost impossible situations. Listen in to find out more.

Before coming to work at Window Works Rich was the senior regional manager for K E Dorosoil Awnings Inc., an Italian based company and the primary awning supplier that Window Works have used since 1985. They really provide an enormous range of outdoor shading solutions, with a slightly European, outdoor restaurant feeling. Listen in now to find out about a shady way of offering savvy solutions and making more money in your design business!

Show highlights:

  • Rich’s thoughts on where designers tend to miss the boat with outdoor shading solutions for their clients.
  • Understanding both the products and the solution.
  • Creating amazing awnings for awkward spaces.
  • The lasting quality of the products that Rich works with.
  • The awnings are so awesome that people even take them with when they move house!
  • Creating awareness about quality, unique awnings, and their features.
  • Offering solutions using exterior products.
  • Operating automated products with your smartphone.
  • Automated products are not only functional, they’re really beautiful too.
  • Some high-end options for you to offer your clients.
  • The featured ‘Genius Project’ and how this product line differs from others.
  • The unbelievable size of the awning that was put onto Nomad Pizza in Princeton.
  • Creating shady solutions at the Life Hotel.
  • The benefits of starting out with the Genius range of products.
  • Why you really need not be intimidated by this kind of product.

Link:

The Dorosol website: KE Outdoor Design

The Window Works website: Window Works NJ

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297: Mikel Welch: Interior Design, TV, Self Made Man




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Welcome to another episode of A Well Designed Business! We have Mikel Welch, of Mikel Welch Designs, as our guest on the show and today we pull back the curtain to find out what the lifestyle of a celebrity interior designer is really all about. And guess what? It turns out it’s not at all the way we think it is. It involves a lot of risk-taking situations, unforeseen bumps in the road, sleeping on sofas at other people’s houses and even asking friends for some help. Mikel, who is a really hard worker with a very clear vision for himself, grew up in Southfield Michigan. Today, he works as an on-air personality and design expert for Pickler and Ben TV show and he is also the brand ambassador to Inspire Closets. All this, in addition to running his own interior design projects. On the show today Mikel shares his really remarkable and encouraging success story. Listen in to hear about a turning point with Steve Harvey and other ways that doors keep on opening for Mikel.

Mikel worked as a set designer for the Steve Harvey Show in 2012, where he created lavish green rooms for prominent people, including First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Joan Rivers, Halle Berry and Tyler Perry, just to name a few. In 2012, before joining the Steve Harvey Show, he was on the HGTV Design Star’s season seven, where he finished as a top-four contender. Before that, in 2011, he was behind the camera, as a set designer for Style Network’s hit reality show, Jerseylicious. He has appeared as a design expert on WGN TV, CBS-TV’s The Talk and he has made special guest appearances on behalf of West Elm, CB2 and Pottery Barn. His designs have been featured in The Huffington Post, HGTV Magazine, Essence Magazine, Chicago’s NBC-TV, HGTV’s Shop This Room and The Fabulist on E! Network and Splash Magazine. Mikel was also recently profiled in CS Magazine, Modern Luxury Interiors and Crain’s Chicago Business. It all sounds so exciting and Mikel really sounds like a lucky guy, doesn’t he? Listen in today, as we pick his incredible career apart and find out the truth behind how it all really happened!

Show highlights:

  • What Mikel had in mind, and how things fell into place for him when he made the move to New York from Atlanta.
  • What has happened as a result of Mikel donating his time and services.
  • How Mikel used Craig’s List to start his career as an interior designer.
  • The unglamorous start to his New York life.
  • Creating unbelievable opportunities by working strategically for free.
  • Getting set design experience while building a portfolio.
  • Mikel’s first real experience of a reality show.
  • What he had to go through working on Jerseylicious.
  • Pushing through the fear and just doing it!
  • The benefits of boot-camp with a celebrity coach.
  • The challenges of working on television.
  • The really lucky break with Steve Harvey.
  • Why Steve Harvey liked and helped Mikel.
  • Mikel’s way of working smarter, not harder!
  • An awesome new opportunity at Inspired Closets.
  • Taking the right kind of risks.

Resources: 

A soon as the new Kravet website goes live, you can use the promo code AWDB10, for a 10% discount on any Kravet fabric, trim and wall covering order.