The Chaise Lounge Podcast

Welcome! In this week's Chaise Lounge, Nick May chats with fellow Colorado designers, Joe McGuire and Matthew Tenzin, principal designers of Joe McGuire Design in Boulder and Aspen.

Joe and Matt enjoyed rearranging furniture and decorating their rooms at an early age. Joe studied Art History and started his design career in New York right out of college. Matt on the other hand earned a degree in philosophy and became a Buddhist monk. He later met Joe - who was an already-established designer - and pursued design himself to be part of the journey.

Joe McGuire Design puts a strong emphasis on the importance of space. They make it clear that interior design is not just a job. It's an experience; a deep exploration of a person's spirituality and their connection to a space and its contents. Joe and Matt take everything into consideration to ensure that their work plays into a client's well-being and enhances serenity.

Check out Joe and Matt's portfolio on their website joemcguiredesign.com, and be sure to follow them on Instagram @joemcguiredesign!

We practice what we call "holistic design." It's a wellness-focused approach to design that understands wellness in a deeper and wider way than is typically thought of... There's an energetic component to true health and well-being... the energetics of a space are key.

Matt Tenzin

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High Point Market – April 2 – 6, 2022

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If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

Welcome once again to the Chaise Lounge! This week, Nick May invited Heather Weisz and Lisa Hynes, dynamic duo and founders of HW Interiors in Wellington, Florida!

Heather grew up in New York, and moved to Florida when she was 13. While attending the Art Institute of Miami, she married and bought a house in Miami to raise her first child. Lisa, an English major, grew up in Connecticut and eventually moved to Florida as well. Both ladies met while playing tennis and instantly became best friends. Lisa approached Heather for help with furnishing a custom home she was building. They enjoyed working together and decided to make it official by acquiring an office. Heather with her creative talents, and Lisa with her organizational skills, founded their own firm, HW Interiors.

Heather and Lisa share their experiences and challenges building their company as single moms. They managed to establish a balance between work and home life that their children could work with. This no-nonsense attitude carried over to HW Interiors, where they set clear boundaries by educating their clients about realistic expectations. Breaking the news to a client about a low bid to a high price is tough, but it's a necessary step for any designer to take.

Check out HW Interior's elegant work on their website www.hwinteriors.net, and be sure to follow them on Instagram @hw.interiors!

Letting go of being home all the time with the kids or being that controlling presence at home... taking a step back from that and giving control to other people was hard for me... and also letting go of my own expectations of myself.

Lisa Hynes

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

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See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – April 2 – 6, 2022

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Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

Welcome back for a new season of The Chaise Lounge Lounge Podcast! To kick things off, Nick May goes local and invites Andrea Schumacher, a high-end residential designer based in Denver, CO.

Andrea and her family traveled around the world since she was kid. Her childhood in Nigeria greatly inspired her design work today, as evidenced by the vivid and exotic colors of her projects. Having grown all over the place, even going to a different high school every year, she developed an ability to make friends and better understand people. All these experiences influenced how Andrea built her company and team. She focuses on people, culture, and relationships, both for her clients and her team.

Things are looking quite exciting for Andrea Schumacher Interiors. This year, the team grew from 7 designers to 17. They are working on developing product lines of wall covering and textiles. What's more, Andrea recently wrote a book; It's called Vibrant Interiors: Living Large at Home and it features some of her best works, many of which have not been published before!

Be sure to check out Andrea and team's work on their website, www.andreaschumacherinteriors.com, and follow them on Instagram @andreaschumacherinteriors!

I look at longevity... if on your resume you jump around a lot to different jobs, it's not for us... It's so much better to find somebody that you really want, and then train them up and keep them and do whatever it is you can to make them happy.

Andrea Schumacher

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – April 2 - 6, 2022

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

We have reached the end of Season 29 of The Chaise Lounge! This week, Nick May chats with Chad Esslinger in Downers Grove, Illinois!

Chad grew up in Jacksonville, Illinois. As a kid he was into creating things with LEGOs and drawing houses and floor plans. He studied Industrial Design at the University of Illinois and moved to Chicago after graduating. He went through a few décor jobs over the years, even one where he got to travel. The corporate life became unappealing after a while, however. With enough experience under his belt, Chad set out to start his own business, Chad Esslinger Design, in 2010.

Chad is a one-man team. He refers to himself as an "imperfect perfectionist," and recognizes his bad habit of doing too much on his own instead of sharing responsibilities. Despite that, his past experience aided him in establishing systems and processes early on to make the experience smoother for himself and his clients. He also knows to be picky when choosing his clients, enabling a flow of enjoyable projects and serious customers. Most of his projects are kitchen and bathroom renovations, and decorating and furnishing. In the future, he would like to create his own line of furniture and design a restaurant from the ground up.

Go to www.chadesslingerdesign.com to check out Chad's portfolio, and follow him on Instagram @chadesslingerdesign

When people call me it's because they have done a little bit of homework on me... They're not looking to find the lowest-priced designer or the designer that can start next week... I wanna be the right designer for them, and I want them to be the right client for me.

Chad Esslinger

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

Welcome to The Chaise Lounge! This week, Nick May sits down with Charu Gandhi of Elicyon in Kensington, United Kingdom!Charu studied at the Architectural Association in the United Kingdom and worked in several architectural firms. After getting involved with interior designers, she loved the idea of combining the structure of architecture and the creativity of interior design. In 2014 Charu founded her own studio Elicyon, where she and her team blend architecture and interior design to create beautiful projects all around the world.To Charu, architecture is not a one-and-done deal, it's a lifelong apprenticeship. Even with all her experience, she is excited and open to learn something new every day.  She encourages her interior designers to become involved in the architectural elements of their projects and vice-versa. Joining her team means going through a rigorous hiring process, and Charu is not at all afraid to bring in people she considers more skilled than herself. Elicyon strives to create a place of bliss for their clients. Or, as Charu puts it, "bringing to life what [clients] want out of their home."Be sure to follow Elicyon on Instagram @elicyon, and check out their website www.elicyon.com

I'm not at all shy to hire people who are better than me at lots of things... who shine brighter than me... I'm very proud of that, I feel proud that I spotted them.

Charu Gandhi

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business. 

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

Welcome back to The Chaise Lounge! This week, Nick chats with Brigitte Coleman, design director at Pembrooke & Ives in New York City.Brigitte grew up in California, and always knew she wanted to move to New York. She also knew she wanted to be an architect, getting her inspiration from Julia Morgan, the architect behind Hearst Castle. After graduating from Sci Arc in Los Angeles, she moved to New York and worked in hospitality for ICRAVE and Rockwell. Currently she is a design director at Pembrooke & Ives.Brigitte's situation caught us by surprise. She is not owner of a design firm or company, and is not an independent designer. Rather, she leads her own team in one of 6 studios within a larger firm specializing in interior architecture. She gets to pick her team members, and she is very selective, as teambuilding is crucial to her.The idea of working under a large firm may turn most designers away at first, but there are advantages that will be appealing to others. Brigitte focuses only on the design work. Things like accounting, working with clients, all that is handled by the company. So if you want to be a designer but don't like to deal with clients or invoices, you may want to consider an opportunity like this!

I'm very specific on who I hire. Because us - design directors - run our teams differently, we have different management styles, different expectations, so I prefer to handle hiring myself.

Brigitte Coleman

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business. 

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

This week in The Chaise Lounge, Nick May sits down with interior designers Jessica Nelson and Stephanie Lindsay, owners of their own company, Etch Interior Design, in Austin, TX.

Jessica and Stephanie went to design school in Texas and California respectively. Interestingly enough they both initially thought of studying business before becoming designers. After graduating, Steph and her husband moved to Austin where she met Jessica at a design firm, and became the best of friends. Some time later, they left the firm and decided to team up.

The duo's work structure revolves around autonomy; they are very selective when hiring new team members and trust their team to work independently. They also established systems and processes early on to ensure efficiency and provide a good experience to customers. A big contributor to their success - something they encourage other designers to do at any point of their careers - was hiring a business coach. Jessica and Stephanie went from being involved in every single project, to being able to take time off without worrying about work. Etch Interior Design has been in business for 6 years, and soon they will open a second location in Utah.

Be sure to follow Jessica and Stephanie on Instagram @etchdesigngroup and check out their business website www.etchinteriordesign.com

We have a lot of things that we've learned over the years... we're always asking for feedback… we have end-of-project reviews so that we can learn from every project and make each new experience a better one.

Stephanie Lindsey

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

In this week's episode of The Chaise Lounge, Nick May chats with interior designer Scott Sanders from New York City.Scott always knew he wanted to do design, but living in a small town in Ohio he couldn't quite figure out how to do it. His father and grandfather were builders and owned a real-estate company, and Scott was always fascinated by the houses they built. They embraced and cultivated this interest, and Scott eventually went to Parsons School of Design in New York, later landing a job at Ralph Lauren.After a successful two year run, he decided that he wanted to get his own name out there and made plans to exit Ralph Lauren. Not only did they give Scott their blessing, but also encouraged Scott's accounts to go with him. Scott Sanders opened in New York City in the year 2000. He has designed residences in New Jersey, Boston, Florida, California, and many other places across the country. He recently opened a second location in Palm Beach. So if you found yourself pointing out mistakes on floor plans, and critiquing your grandma's decorator at the tender age of 10 - maybe you should forget about doctoring and lawyering, and just chase that design bliss!Be sure to check out Scott's work at his website scottsandersllc.com and follow him on Instagram @scottsandersllc!

I'm always excited about something new and special, If it's something really special, I will go anywhere because that's what drives creativity.

Scott Sanders

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business. 

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

In this week's Chaise Lounge, Nick May chats with David Kaufman, global Digital Director at Architectural Digest!

David has quite the resumé, having worked as an editor for the New York Times, Quartz, New York Post, The Wall Street Journal, and many more. He went into Architectural Digest with an understanding of the real estate world. He has a particular fascination with celebrity culture and gossip, as well as recent interior design trends like personal gardens.

David shares his thoughts on the future of interior design and real estate in a post-Covid world. There is plenty of uncertainty as things continue to transition to the "new normal". Millions of people were forced to work and/or study from home, and many took the opportunity to create a study room, or a Zoom office. Some created extra bedrooms and even gyms.

With everyone going back to their workplace, will they keep those new rooms or will they revert? Those who bought an extra house to escape the chains of the quarantine, will they sell it? As for interior designers and real estate agents, will their backlog correct itself or will it become even more chaotic? One thing's for sure: the real estate market went through a boom in the aftermath of COVID.

If you'd like to learn more about David, you can contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Instagram @kaufmandavidnyc

This is like, the party's last hurrah. Folks are still... trying to accept the fact that, whatever we've gone through over the last year and a half is basically over, and we're gonna have to get back to our lives.

David Kaufman

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!

This week in The Chaise Lounge, Nick May interviews interior designers Janessa and Stephen Gertz, owners of Milieu Interior Design in Chicago, IL. 

Janessa graduated from Harrington Institute of Interior Design, while Stephen graduated from Illinois Institute of Art. By the time the couple met in 2014, they had already each started their own business. After getting engaged, Stephen convinced Janessa to merge their businesses into a single company.

The Gertz's work together in every project. Janessa is stronger in the finances and Stephen brings in his experience as an electrician. The nature of their partnership offers a comfortable experience for their customers (often other married couples), and makes it so that everybody involved feels like their input is valued. This, along with raising a child, does introduce the challenge of making time and finding qualified candidates to build their team.

Many of their recent projects include home-offices and children's bedrooms, as more and more people find themselves working and studying from home. This endeavor was even featured on Architectural Digest Pro!

If you'd like to learn more about Janessa and Stephen Gertz, check out their website www.milieu-interiordesign.com and follow them on Instagram @milieu_interiordesign

We have to be experts on everything. It's not just 'this sofa looks pretty'... You have to understand the construction aspect of it and how it's made, and why it's of quality and why it's worth the investment.

Janessa & Stephen Gertz

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Chaise Lounge Updates

 Coast to Coast Design is back baby! Give it a listen to learn about just how many ways there are to run a design business.

Our Events Page

Resources

See what our sponsors can do for you.

Upcoming Markets

High Point Market – October 16 – 20, 2021

More About Our Sponsors

Wrap Up

If you would like to hear more episodes, please visit us on iTunes, Spotify or your favorite podcasting app! We'd love it if you post a review, you may even hear your review read live on our next podcast. Also, find The Chaise Lounge on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. With that said, keep dreaming big, and keep designing a great design business. See ya!