Trade Tales

By Business of Home, Kaitlin Petersen

What's Trade Tales about?

Business of Home's editor in chief Kaitlin Petersen talks to interior designers about nurturing creativity, finding a firm’s financial footing, setting goals and discovering their own version of success as a result.

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Trade Tales episodes:

04.10.2024
Want to build your brand authority quickly? How Michael Hilal looked abroad
Michael Hilal on why he’s not afraid to hire a team with more experience than himself, why he’s rethinking his approach to media after a whirlwind of early press attention, and the fine line between inspiration and copycats in the...
03.27.2024
Why Georgia Zikas prizes people over process
Georgia Zikas on why her whole team is involved in the hiring process; how she manages offices across two cities, and why she hired a CFO to keep her firm’s goals in sight.
03.13.2024
Christine Lin on putting client experience first
Christine Lin on the process of finding projects that are more closely aligned with her firm’s aesthetic, why she would never equate her business with a retail store to defend a product markup, and how she established professional development paths...
02.28.2024
How Wesley Moon said goodbye to hustle culture
Wesley Moon on the realization that expanding his team was the key to boosting revenue, why understanding his employees’ strengths and weaknesses guides his approach to building a team; and the changes he made as he reckoned with the fact...
02.14.2024
How Amy Storm shifted her team structure in pursuit of healthy growth
Amy Storm on why she decided to forgo remodels and focus solely on new construction, and how she locks in a project’s FF&E budget before ever breaking ground.
01.31.2024
How Antonio DeLoatch earns clients' trust with real talk about their finances
Antonio DeLoatch on uprooting his firm and starting over in New York, the showhouse that changed everything for his business, and how he earns his clients’ trust with his frank money talk.
01.17.2024
How Amy Sklar overcame the fear of charging for her services [Rebroadcast]
After nearly a decade at the helm of her own design firm, Amy Sklar came to a realization: if she wasn’t profiting from her business, it was simply a hobby. The epiphany led to a transformation in the way she...
01.04.2024
Why Clara Jung is cultivating personal freedom and employee growth [Rebroadcast]
When Clara Jung left her first career in law, she gave herself one year to get her design business off the ground, all on her own. Today, she’s infusing her firm with that same small and scrappy ethos, and attracting...
12.20.2023
Marieanne Khoury-Vogt spent two decades building an entire town. Here's what she learned
Marieanne Khoury-Vogt on her experiences developing a town that sustains its residents over a lifetime and how she strengthens relationships within her firm, her community and the industry at large.
12.06.2023
How Caren Rideau found new opportunities within a design niche
Caren Rideau on using social media to attract clients and employees, the benefits of being a kitchen specialist in an industry filled with full service designers, and how combining design with her other passions has allowed an entirely new brand...
11.22.2023
Why Matthew Tenzin’s firm includes a holistic design consultancy
Matthew Tenzin on why the industry needs to pay attention to the health impact of design decisions and why what he calls “affluent consciousness” is so important in his client relationships.
11.08.2023
Why Blair Moore brought receiving in-house
Blair Moore on why her quest for excellence required launching her own receiving operation, how she’s striving to reduce waste in the design process and why maximizing profit isn’t her firm’s biggest focus.
10.25.2023
How philanthropy transformed Amy Kartheiser’s firm
Amy Kartheiser on the policy that helps her firm cultivate stellar client relationships, how she’s protecting her business in case of an industry slowdown.
10.11.2023
How Leslie Murchie Cascino defines success on her own terms
Leslie Murchie Cascino on why she’s now offering consulting services for small-scale projects, and how she escaped burnout by focusing only on the projects she found most fulfilling.
09.27.2023
Why Zoe Feldman doesn't believe in complete transparency
Zoe Feldman on the surprising piece of advice that prompted her to rethink her firm’s team size, and why she insists that clients don’t really want full transparency.
09.13.2023
“Trust the process” is right there in Courtney McCleod’s onboarding letter
Courtney McLeod on the nightmare client that overran her firm's processes in the early days of her design career, and how she learned to secure her clients' trust in order to unlock greater creative freedom.
08.30.2023
Miranda Cullen found a way to turn a profit on time billing. Now, she’s ready to franchise
Littleton, Colorado–based designer Miranda Cullen on creating a new kind of business model that converts small projects into big profits—in a system that benefits employees at every level of the firm.
08.16.2023
Dane Austin on leading his firm with love
Boston-based interior designer Dane Austin on constructing his firm around a client-centered approach.
08.02.2023
Why Regan Baker hired three former clients
San Francisco-based interior designer Regan Baker on the clients-turned-employees who each helped shape her firm's structure today.
07.19.2023
Kevin Isbell on finding success with a small firm [Rebroadcast]
As a young designer, Kevin Isbell reveled in the on-the-job portion of his design education, which he spent working for established firms and top designers. Now, he’s treating his current role of design principal the same way—and learning what leadership...
07.05.2023
How Noz Nozawa learned to invest in herself [Rebroadcast]
When San Francisco–based designer Noz Nozawa pivoted from a marketing career to running her own design firm, she intentionally kept her business lean. Now, she's spending to grow.
06.21.2023
Why Bria Hammel wants designers to embrace their sales side
Bria Hammel always envisioned herself as a design principal, though that day seemed far off during one of her very first gigs as a retail designer. In the end, the position proved to be a masterclass in salesmanship that’s carried...
06.07.2023
Katie Vance on the secret to synching up a design/build firm
When she joined an architecture firm as its sole designer, Katie Vance’s focus was on creating a place for interiors within the studio. Before long, the practice began eyeing a transition into a design/build studio—and suddenly, the new question became:...
05.24.2023
Ahmad AbouZanat on the power of treating clients like guests
Ahmad AbouZanat faced rejection and false starts on his road to design, but when his firm finally took off, it was clear that the future spelled success. Then, his business lost its safety net—and it was up to the designer...
05.10.2023
Kelly Collier-Clark on paring down her offerings to give her business room to grow
Shortly after Kelly Collier-Clark launched her design firm, she began expanding her services in all directions. Before long, she realized that she’d lost sight of her firm’s identity—and paring down her offerings would provide the path to find her way...
04.26.2023
How Katie Monkhouse rescued herself from burnout
Katie Monkhouse was never much of a planner. Then, her steadily growing firm began to seriously pick up the pace—and she realized it would take an all-star team to bring the business to new heights.
04.12.2023
Christine Vroom finally started prioritizing her own health—and her business transformed
During her swift rise to success, designer Christine Vroom appeared to be operating on all cylinders—inside, she was fast approaching a crisis point. The road to recovery not only transformed her personal health, but opened up a new world of...
03.29.2023
Byron Risdon on the luxury of slowing down
During the early days of his career, Byron Risdon was a one-man show. As his firm navigates the road to growth, he’s taking on new team members and a new office space—and all the while, learning that stepping back from...
03.15.2023
Why Sarah Goesling isn’t comfortable with being comfortable
Sarah Goesling has never been afraid of approaching things the hard way; she finds it’s often the surest route to success. From becoming a GC to launching a branding studio, she’s built a career around tackling tough challenges, with the...
03.01.2023
How Pure Salt’s cofounders turned a signature look into a successful brand
As college roommates, Aly Morford and Leigh Lincoln never guessed their fast friendship would one day become a business partnership. After launching their design firm, they discovered another shared ambition: the desire to turn their budding business into a brand...
02.15.2023
Why Jenny Wolf isn’t afraid of ambitious employees
After a mid-career pivot, Jenny Wolf successfully built the design team of her dreams. Then, another dream came into view, prompting her to shift her priorities in order to make it happen.
02.01.2023
How Studio Heimat went from a twosome to a team
Eva Bradley and Alicia Cheung Lichtenstein had the perfect partnership. They had quit their jobs at a lauded firm to build a design business together, and quickly fell into a synchronous two-person design process. When it came time to grow...
01.18.2023
Nina Magon on letting go to grow [Rebroadcast]
Even before embarking on a career in design, Nina Magon always had an entrepreneurial streak. Now, at the helm of her own firm, that streak has only gotten stronger—today, she’s crafting everything from her office culture to her firm’s finances...
01.04.2023
Erin Gates on finding your voice [Rebroadcast]
Erin Gates got in at the ground floor of the design blogging boom. When her career took off during a major period of growth for the industry, she managed to hold onto her voice—now she’s using it to share a...
12.21.2022
Why clients are the essential piece in Rachel Halvorson’s creative work
At the ripe age of 26, Rachel Halvorson saw her just-launched design firm shoot to success. When the inquiries started to flood in, she quickly realized she’d have to claim her own time—before it ran out.
12.07.2022
Why leveling up means longevity for Delia Kenza
Finding clients, getting published and even making it onto television—those aspects of a career in design came fairly easily to Delia Kenza. The real challenge came when she let go of her firm’s safety net, choosing instead to take ownership...
11.23.2022
The pandemic almost shut down Meg Lonergan’s business—here’s how she revived it
Meg Lonergan faced a sudden crisis during the pandemic: in a matter of six weeks, she let go of all of her firm’s team members. To bring her business back from the brink, she took a hard look at her...
11.09.2022
Two decades in, Michael Cox's firm is still a work in progress. He likes it that way
As Michael Cox rounds out 20 years at the helm of design firm Foley & Cox, he’s reexamining the business’s biggest successes and stumbling blocks over the years—and even acknowledging when one of those hurdles is himself.
10.26.2022
How Shaun Crha found his boundaries
Shaun Crha was navigating a burst of new business when a family crisis thrust him into the role of caretaker. The experience forced him to slow down, find a new way of structuring his firm—and taught him that sometimes letting...
10.12.2022
How overcoming imposter syndrome transformed Lucy O’Brien’s business
Lucy O’Brien spent the earliest days of her career saying yes to every project that came her way. It wasn’t until she laid down a new set of ground rules for potential clients that the firm she dreamed of finally...
09.28.2022
How Amy Sklar overcame the fear of charging for her services
After nearly a decade at the helm of her own design firm, Amy Sklar came to a realization: if she wasn’t profiting from her business, it was simply a hobby. The epiphany led to a transformation in the way she...
09.14.2022
Authenticity is everything. Just ask Ashley Ross
Ashley Ross built her brand on radical authenticity—an approach that became all the more pressing recently, when she decided to reveal a secret about her business journey. Now, she’s sharing why she decided to lay it all out there.
08.31.2022
Why Rydhima Brar always asks clients 'the cocktail question'
For years, visa restrictions delayed Kuwait-born designer Rydhima Brar from chasing her creative dreams. When the opportunity finally arose, she found she could bring her story to life through design—now, she’s helping clients do the same.
08.17.2022
Nina Magon on letting go to grow
Even before embarking on a career in design, Nina Magon always had an entrepreneurial streak. Now, at the helm of her own firm, that streak has only gotten stronger—today, she’s crafting everything from her office culture to her firm’s finances...
08.03.2022
Why Clara Jung is cultivating personal freedom and employee growth
When Clara Jung left her first career in law, she gave herself one year to get her design business off the ground, all on her own. Today, she’s infusing her firm with that same small and scrappy ethos, and attracting...
07.20.2022
Why Lauren Caron decided to ‘Marie Kondo’ her clients
Lauren Caron’s first design business was all-encompassing—a collective that took on a variety of projects and all manner of clients. As it turned out, the key to doing her best work meant fine-tuning all aspects of her firm—from her clientele...
07.06.2022
Gala Magriñá filters her design business through a holistic lens
Gala Magriñá has a track record of transforming all kinds of spaces—events, retail, commercial and residential alike. After a spiritual shift in her own life, she’s decided to go deeper, uncovering the crucial role health and wellbeing can play in...
06.22.2022
Kevin Isbell on finding success with a small firm
As a young designer, Kevin Isbell reveled in the on-the-job portion of his design education, which he spent working for established firms and top designers. Now, he’s treating his current role of design principal the same way—and learning what leadership...
06.08.2022
Alvin Wayne on making social media the bedrock of his business
For years, Alvin Wayne’s career was caught in a tug-of-war between interiors and luxury retail—until the pandemic hit, spurring a realization that prompted him to dive headfirst into design. Following that major decision, his firm’s route to success suddenly became...
05.25.2022
Why Tina Ramchandani wants a “soul connection” with her clients
Tina Ramchandani has made a career out of trusting her intuition. Following a gut feeling is what led her to a path in design—now, it’s how she gets to the bottom of what clients really want out of their spaces.

What's Trade Tales about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Trade Tales episodes:

Want to build your brand authority quickly? How Michael Hilal looked abroad

Why Georgia Zikas prizes people over process

Christine Lin on putting client experience first

How Wesley Moon said goodbye to hustle culture

How Amy Storm shifted her team structure in pursuit of healthy growth

How Antonio DeLoatch earns clients' trust with real talk about their finances

How Amy Sklar overcame the fear of charging for her services [Rebroadcast]

Why Clara Jung is cultivating personal freedom and employee growth [Rebroadcast]

Marieanne Khoury-Vogt spent two decades building an entire town. Here's what she learned

How Caren Rideau found new opportunities within a design niche

Why Matthew Tenzin’s firm includes a holistic design consultancy

Why Blair Moore brought receiving in-house

How philanthropy transformed Amy Kartheiser’s firm

How Leslie Murchie Cascino defines success on her own terms

Why Zoe Feldman doesn't believe in complete transparency

“Trust the process” is right there in Courtney McCleod’s onboarding letter

Miranda Cullen found a way to turn a profit on time billing. Now, she’s ready to franchise

Dane Austin on leading his firm with love

Why Regan Baker hired three former clients

Kevin Isbell on finding success with a small firm [Rebroadcast]

How Noz Nozawa learned to invest in herself [Rebroadcast]

Why Bria Hammel wants designers to embrace their sales side

Katie Vance on the secret to synching up a design/build firm

Ahmad AbouZanat on the power of treating clients like guests

Kelly Collier-Clark on paring down her offerings to give her business room to grow

How Katie Monkhouse rescued herself from burnout

Christine Vroom finally started prioritizing her own health—and her business transformed

Byron Risdon on the luxury of slowing down

Why Sarah Goesling isn’t comfortable with being comfortable

How Pure Salt’s cofounders turned a signature look into a successful brand

Why Jenny Wolf isn’t afraid of ambitious employees

How Studio Heimat went from a twosome to a team

Nina Magon on letting go to grow [Rebroadcast]

Erin Gates on finding your voice [Rebroadcast]

Why clients are the essential piece in Rachel Halvorson’s creative work

Why leveling up means longevity for Delia Kenza

The pandemic almost shut down Meg Lonergan’s business—here’s how she revived it

Two decades in, Michael Cox's firm is still a work in progress. He likes it that way

How Shaun Crha found his boundaries

How overcoming imposter syndrome transformed Lucy O’Brien’s business

How Amy Sklar overcame the fear of charging for her services

Authenticity is everything. Just ask Ashley Ross

Why Rydhima Brar always asks clients 'the cocktail question'

Nina Magon on letting go to grow

Why Clara Jung is cultivating personal freedom and employee growth

Why Lauren Caron decided to ‘Marie Kondo’ her clients

Gala Magriñá filters her design business through a holistic lens

Kevin Isbell on finding success with a small firm

Alvin Wayne on making social media the bedrock of his business

Why Tina Ramchandani wants a “soul connection” with her clients