Describe yourself in a 5 words. Curious. Energetic. Creative. Friendly. Focused
What inspires you? My imagination inspires me. From abstract thinking, creative solutions, ideas, and inspirations present themselves, and the possibility of surprising myself inspires me.
I’m good at… Listening
I’m bad at… Accounting
What are the highlights of your career thus far? Creating the website InteiriorDesignPro.org has provided the most good for the most people so far, so this is something that I consider worthwhile to highlight. Helping interior design professionals promote their services to reach new clients in this down economy means a lot to me. Our family business in Los Angeles, Contempo Floor Coverings, relies on the patronage of design professionals. Sustaining an online platform that helps stimulate business for the entire design industry in a meaningful way is something I will continue to develop and grow. The website includes over 1,500 design professionals from over 30 countries and has connected its members with hundreds of new design projects (and growing).
What are your goals for the next 5 years? I am focused on tuning InteriorDesignPro.org to better serve design professionals and the industry at large. There are many websites that enable designers to share their work via a profile of some kind; our team is already breaking through that model to provide more comprehensive online solutions specifically tailored to serve the design community.
What do you enjoy most about working in the interior design industry? First, I love design. I love colors, textures, functionality, architecture, and art. InteriorDesignPro.org has allowed me to experience all of these great elements of design, while also presenting me with an opportunity to provide something for the talented individuals who are truly the backbone of the industry.
How did the name InteriorDesignPro.org come about? Before selecting the name, we had a purpose we wanted the website to fulfill; a rich resource to enhance relationships within the interior design industry, including professionals, organizations, vendors and the community at large. Considering who the website was mainly going to serve, we thought that InteriorDesignPro was the most appropriate name.
How did you develop the concept for InteriorDesignPro.org? Can you explain how InteriorDesignPro.org was started and what your role as Co-founder entails? When developing the website for our family business, Contempo Floor Coverings, I had included a special section showcasing the design professionals who frequented Contempo. They were allowed to upload photos and link to their website. This section of the site was reserved exclusively for designers who had actually worked with Contempo.
But after hundreds of designers from around the country saw Contempo’s designer directory and requested to be listed, it was clear that I needed to create an exclusive website to serve the needs to of the design community. Since then, InteriorDesignPro.org has been my total focus.
What has been the most exciting collaboration you’ve worked on so far? In all honesty, getting to interact with designers from around world is the most exciting part of InteriorDesignPro.org. The professionals are eager to share their work with me, we exchange ideas about how to improve the website, and I have created some great friendships and business contacts through these interactions. What excites me is that InteriorDesignPro.org is receiving positive feedback from the design community, and the possibility to reach and collaborate with more people is very exciting to me.
Are there any areas that are particularly difficult or challenging? The InteriorDesignPro team is not very big; essentially there are 6 of us right now. What is sometimes challenging is switching gears and wearing different hats. I am highly involved in all aspects of the business including our creative, marketing, site usability, navigation, customer service, implementing new website features, and more. I really have to thank the whole team for caring so much about the work they do and creating such an enjoyable work environment.
What do you believe sets you and InteriorDesignPro.org apart from your competitors? What are you working on at the moment? I would never give our family recipes away.
Do you have any words of wisdom that you would like to pass on? Do not shy away from what you are passionate about. Creating something beautiful takes time. Stay focus, stay positive, and surround yourself with people who inspire you to deliver your best.
What is the best piece of advice you have been given? Be kind.
What do you feel are the most important trends / changes happening in the industry that you feel designers should be aware of? Based on conversations that I have had with dozens of design professionals, all I can recommend is to deliver the best work you can, digitally document completed projects, and make sure to represent your work online. The benefits of this will not be noticeable 5 weeks from now, but it will be a tremendous asset to your business 5 years from now.
What is your most treasured possession? The experiences and memories I have had with my childhood friends who I am still very close with today.
What is your must-have item for next season? More hours in the day.
Most inspirational person you have met? It took me 29 years to realize it, but my father. He let me make all the mistakes I needed to succeed.
Your favourite location? Anywhere with crisp, cool weather.
In a nutshell, your philosophy is… Make people smile.
