Market Pros

At market, I'm usually sourcing a variety of items within home decor and furnishings, lighting, rugs, and wall art. My favorite exhibitors at the market include Loloi, Four Hands, Tov Furniture, Jaipur Living, Surya, Sagebrook Home, Visual Comfort, and Stark. These brands are some we've worked with before in client projects and/or sourced for personal projects and their exceptional craftsmanship, innovative designs, and high-quality products always keep me coming back. Whenever I visit their showrooms, I am inspired by their collections, which perfectly blend functionality with aesthetic appeal, making them stand out as top choices for anyone seeking to elevate their living spaces.

Definitely have a plan of action. Make a list of current projects you could be potentially shopping for, items needing to source, and think ahead on what you could potentially need for styling projects, potential projects in the future etc. I also love to research brands planned to be in attendance shown on the market site and check out their social media channels to get a glimpse of what they carry and if it falls in line with my style before spending time of the day to plan a visit and it's not a good fit.

When buying at market, I prioritize versatile and timeless designs that can transition to different styles and withstand changing trends. This approach ensures longevity and reduces the need for frequent replacements, which is particularly important when considering a budget. Additionally, consider the functional practicality of the items to ensure they meet my needs and provide value for the investment.

Start with your own home and family/friends' spaces to build a portfolio. When starting out, it's easy to overthink not having clients but you can be your own first client and go all out to truly show your design style in a variety of places throughout your home using that content to promote what you can do.

It is a hunt! I am always looking for that next great American craftsman, manufacturer -and of course their story.

Products include all I need to create fabulous interiors and exteriors… although admittedly I often breeze by fabric showrooms…

Favorite Exhibitors: Hubbarton Forge, Abner Henry, Capel Rug, Lloyd Flanders, Hancock & Moore, Jessica Charles

Comfortable shoes…

Pace yourself… Get a good nights’ sleep each night

Drink plenty of water

Plan showroom visits by district – High Point is a big Market do not schedule an appoint in IHFC for 10 am and your noon appt in the Steel Building

Quality & American made. As designers we need to show and educate our clients on the value of purchases, that they are making an investment –

Frank Llyod Wright once said - “invest in beauty it will remain with you all the days of your life.”

Quality and longevity of a purchase is also sustainable. If you purchase a good quality sofa that is built in North Carolina or Ohio, it has been subjected to some of the restrictive EPA laws across the globe, the carbon footprint during manufacturing is less than product made overseas. Then consider the smaller carbon footprint needed to deliver the sofa from the work room to your warehouse, heck of a lot less than bringing across an ocean. Think of your investment not only as a piece to make your clients home more beautiful – but also as an act to keep our planet beautiful.

Understanding and not resisting new technology, like AI. I don’t have to love what is coming down the pike but I better understand what it’s capabilities are, and honestly there have already been ways for LDD to use AI that have been enormous time savers. Time is a precious gift - I’ll somewhat embrace AI if it give me a little more time.

Option 1 Designers. We are the mainstay in design. For decades our worth, our value has been challenged by the DYI design movement. These days everyone is a Designer, celebrities, sport figures, chefs and more … and I welcome them with open arms they have brought awareness to our industry. In the end we the Designers are the ones the captain the boat of design.

Option 2 History. What goes around comes around, what was old is new again. As Designers we need to rely on our history and reinvent it. Many of us couldn’t imagine grey ever returning after we spent most of the late 80’s choking on it with Mauve … then in in 2018 we couldn’t get enough of it. Look back … the mainstays have been there all along.

One piece of advice … ‘The view is always better from the high road.

Your reputation is one of your most valuable assets. Be that designer that is always kind & respectful, will admit and own a mistake, is easy to work with, and brings coffee & donuts to the contractors on the jobsite. It will take you miles, if you don’t do this -- your talent will be lost.

Lighting is our favorite thing to look for! We also try to be on the forefront of designs and trends while maintaining a classic style that stands the test of time. When looking for furniture, we look for unique pieces, colors, shapes that blends with our aesthetic.

Take the time to talk to the vendors you love and establish a relationship with them. This helps so much with questions down the line and how to work with trades. I think our best takeaway has been grabbing a business card or company brochure in each showroom and taking a picture of the furniture or items we like with that card in it. There is nothing worse than finding an item you love and not remembering where it is from!

Where our clients' investments are going. We obviously want to expand our resources to include project scopes of all sizes, but we understand that this shift has changed the way we have previously been working. In a post covid world, we are more understanding about delays and damages, but we are as upfront with our clients as possible about this. We want to find resources that will be worth their price tag and pride themselves on customer service as well.

With the industry always changing, we like to be as adaptable as possible for the services we offer; we’re always continuing to change our packages so that they’re desirable to all project scopes. Most recently, we have moved out of our Southern California base to take on projects across the country. It will be a slow roll out but we know that we offer something that isn’t specific to our hometown and want to share that beauty across the US. We are expanding our team to take on these projects while maintaining a boutique studio environment. Additionally, we hope to expand our shop. This is a passion project that has always been something we have loved to source for clients. So adding in items sourced all over the world, especially antique and handcrafted goods, is something we are working toward. Just keep evolving!

It feels like there are so many designers, processes, checklists to implement, websites to update, instagram and social channels to maintain while running a business. It can definitely feel overwhelming, especially with technology (looking at you, AI). But I think the best part of this business is how personal it is and that’s ultimately what people are looking for when they hire us. The whole design and construction process is so customized. That’s why we need cabinet samples, drawings and are still onsite when lighting is installed. It can all look accurate on technical drawings, but the personal touch and professional eye are really the things that will be hard to phase out.

Be honest and say you are new, but reach out to anyone and everyone you can. Networking is a huge part of this business. I know it’s intimidating at first, but connecting with like-minded individuals, especially within the same industry, is a huge way to expand your network and will be helpful along the way. You will learn so much about the people around you that will have you constantly evolve into a better version of yourself and business.

I am looking to see things in person that I have seen online and are not in the NY showroom or maybe don’t have a NY Showroom. I want to sit on them, check the quality, and the finishes. Every season I discover new sources.

Plan ahead, research what you need. Look at the categories for new items.

Most important wear comfortable shoes, make good dinner reservations ahead.

My work is eclectic. I always need good basics, like upholstery, and I try to find things that I can’t find in the vintage stores, be it size, detail, or multiples like chairs. The vintage shopping at High Point is fantastic

I am continuing to work with new clients on the East Coast and West Coast, and I am expanding my product design business into several new categories.

Great lighting. Every room should have lighting at all levels – from the floor, walls, table height, and ceiling. Every room and every task has different needs. High Point has a large array of the best lighting showrooms.

Take a business course. It will help you no matter what part of the business you are in.

I'm always looking for new vendors, new resources, and new relationships to help me create stronger and more unique designs for my clients. My favorite product categories are case goods and textiles (fabrics and wallcoverings)

My top tips for shopping at market are to take the time to develop a high level plan. I always find that working through market systematically helps me create the space and time to find hidden gems. Instead of zigzagging from one building to the next, I plan my days around exploring one area at a time (for example, I'll conquer IHFC and Showplace on one day and then head to Hamilton Wrenn on another day).

In today's economic climate, I try to keep in mind the elements that will be good investments for the long run, and I also pay close attention to the level of service a vendor will provide to me and my clients. Communication is everything, and with the challenges we've seen in supply chain issues, I know that I will likely need to communicate "bad news" to clients despite the vendor's best efforts. So, it's important to me to get a gauge for the relationship the vendor will have with me as an extension of my team.

I'm paying attention to refining our processes internally so that we can deliver the best experience to our clients possible.

I see function over form as a mainstay. It doesn't matter the design style, if something doesn't function well, it's going to be a lower priority for my clients.

I see function over form as a mainstay. It doesn't matter the design style, if something doesn't function well, it's going to be a lower priority for my clients.

1. I’m looking for new voices and new ideas - anyone thinking differently and the nucleus of a trend.
2. Looking for accessories and lighting always because you can’t have enough, as well as great upholstery and antiques.
3. My favorite ANDMORE Exhibitors are always my people at Arteriors, Bakèr/McGuire, New love for Wildwood, Century, Theodore Alexander, Tarrecea, all the outdoor brands too…Gloster etc

Have a shortlist and hit that first to take the pressure off. Then browse - you’ll see so much more without pressure and make new friends too.

I’m always looking for longevity for clients. Things well made with quality.

I believe in diversification. We utilize our sources and contacts to be nimble and take on various projects without internal overhead.

Curated interiors

Get an administrator you can trust so you can focus on the clients and the creative.

I have several objectives when I go to market: Find new cool products and get ideas, Continued Education and Networking.

One of my tips would be to go with someone who has been to market several times if possible. I was lucky and had dear friends help me navigate the market for the first couple of times. It’s like going on a trip. It’s always more fun (and more time-effective) to explore a new destination with natives.

If that’s not an option, then I’d suggest using the vast number of resources that ANDMORE and Highpoint Market have to offer. Explore the Designer Guide first and make a list of exhibitors that interest you and market events that you want to attend. There are so many directories that let you find the events and also filter exhibitors by neighborhood so you can plan out your days and save your feet.

Once you are ready to see the showrooms and products, create an album on your phone, always take a picture of the name of the showroom first, then the products you like and the tags so you will be able to find them later and contact your reps if you need to.

Last but not least, in order to save your battery, the first thing you want to do is to turn Bluetooth and wifi off at the beginning of the day and put your battery on low power mode, even though it is fully charged. I found myself being able to keep it going for the entire day that way. Only turn wifi on if you need to upload anything to social and have it ready to go when you do (pre-write posts in your notes with your hashtags).

Durability and Sustainability – Our clients expect items that are not only sustainably sourced but also will be durable and last the test of time. Lastly, a lot of showrooms offer additional discounts when ordering for your clients at the market. Any business owner will tell you that every little thing makes a difference.

A.I. - it's here to stay.

New fun items for our shop! I’m on the lookout for smaller vendors and makers we haven't seen. And I’ll definitely be checking out all the vintage finds in the antiques center.

Get to antiques early for all the good stuff. Spend a lot of time in Suites at Market Square discovering the new artists, vendors, and makers that are unique and growing their businesses. We have found some of our favorite vendors there. Take a lot of photos and videos – use these when selling design clients on products since they are not seeing them in person.

Buy lower quantities and change up your product often. We have shifted our buying from always keeping stapes in stock in larger quantities to specializing in new unique finds in smaller quantities. Then when they sell out, they are gone – we move on to something new. We are getting more seasonal and focusing our buying on the seasons and holidays which make a major impact in home decor. We are launching new collections in our shop every 8 weeks to really highlight those seasons and the specialty items we are selling to support them.

Continuing to diversify my business and create strong long-term brand partnerships. We now have our retail store, online shop, design business, shipping/receiving business, affiliate linking, brand partnerships, and private label collections to name a few different revenue streams within our business. It's important to me that we capture all the different opportunities so that we are never too reliant on one thing. It also keeps me growing and thinking outside the box, allows me to travel (which I love!) and creates more team members and growth positions within our company. All good things.

Color – more than ever we are using color. It's so fun to incorporate all the different color palettes in our projects based on the location, architecture of the home, client's style, and personalities. All these have an impact on our selections; I've definitely noticed a shift in clients being more open to color than ever. We haven’t done a white kitchen in quite some time which used to be all we did! Ever since the pandemic, I feel like our clients are more open to taking risks and don't care to be like everybody else. They want unique and different which is music to a designer's ears!

Only do what you can do-focus on your superpower – then hire others to do things they are better at than you. This is the key. If you want to grow, you have to delegate and do this. It's the only way. It's risky and scary but worth it. I've always said High Risk = High Reward.