Thursday, October 18, 2012

"No Strings Attached" - Clarification on the benefit of hiring an interior designer



       Today, the stability of American interior design companies is being disintegrated due to the growth and media exposure of all-inclusive home improvement corporations.  Corporations such as:  Home Depot, Lowes, Ikea, Thomasville, Bassett, Ethan Allen, etc.  These BIG companies all have one big thing in common:  “Free” design service.  As I clarified in my past article "Free Design Service... Is it really free?" these services do in fact come at a price.  What price?  The “price” comes in the form of an up-charge on the product that you are obligated to buy from a given company.  That up-charge goes towards a number of things--first and foremost, the salary or commission of the “free” designers.  Here’s a reality check:  nothing is free.  Designers don’t really walk into someone’s store and offer to give away their expert design skills.  No.  They are hired by these companies, and most of the time, earn a commission based on how much they sell the client’s that walk in.  When you enter a showroom and collaborate with a "free designer" for things such as kitchen and bath design and decorating, those “designers” are not supposed to let you walk out the door without writing a check.  They are not supposed to give you copies of floor plans with pricing so that you can go compare with all their competition.  This also applies to companies that offer "Free in-home consultations".  They bring the showroom INTO your home, but the object is exactly the same for the "designer"---get the sale, no matter what.

       In the case of “interior design firms” or independent interior designers, you are not obligated to purchase anything, other than their time spent with you.  There are no strings attached.  You are free to do all the price shopping you desire with the information they have provided you.  Qualified interior designers are not supposed to pressure you into doing one thing or another.  Their job is to guide you in the appropriate direction, and share their design expertise as it applies to your project.  You have the option of hiring a designer to make all the decisions, but most clients choose to be a bit more involved in the design process.  Interior designers do not recommend layouts and materials based on how much money it will make them (at least I don’t).  They recommend things based on what is actually right for you.  If you want to spend only $15,000 on your kitchen remodel instead of $70,000, they will accommodate you, showing you the best way to utilize your budget.  

       In my commission sales experience I absolutely loathed the game of “What is your budget?” with the reply of “Well I don’t really have a budget, because I don’t know what this sort of thing costs”.  I would get this response with every other client I helped.  Everyone has a budget.  It might be two dollars, it might be two million.  It doesn’t matter.  EVERYONE has an amount that they feel comfortable spending on a given project.  Consumers need to ask themselves, what are they comfortable spending, or rather, what are they NOT comfortable spending?  

In the case of hiring an interior designer (which should always come first, before any vendors or contractors get involved), you receive information such as what sort of pricing to expect on different things in your home.  How should you distribute your budget to reach your goal?  You can get clarification on these details without any sort of obligation aside from compensating that designer for their time.  Qualified interior designers are paid to be knowledgeable and well connected in the industry.  As bold as it may sound, interior designers must ALWAYS come first when you are considering starting a project.  They give you unbiased information to help you choose the right path.  There are no strings attached.  You may choose to hire the designer as a project manager to make sure all the correct choices are made, or you may choose to simply consult with them prior to the project.  It makes no difference to the designer, because they are being compensated for their time.  Homeowners need to use that to their advantage.  What is a $150 design consultation against $20,000 in mistakes because they jumped in headfirst?  A very small price to pay.

          Still, the fact remains that large corporations such as Home Depot are taking over the design industry.  Why?  Because they are CHEAP… or at least they seem cheap at first.  Sure, Home Depot and IKEA offer you cheap cabinets and tile, but at what cost?  What do very cheap products all seem to have in common?  Overseas manufacturing!  Ironically, homeowners that are facing financial difficulties are directly involved in sending business overseas by pursuing the cheap methods of home improvement.  Many homeowners walk into showrooms asking one major question:  “Where are these made?”   It is great that Americans are acknowledging the need to support small local businesses, but sadly the majority of citizens do not rank saving American jobs over saving cash to renovate their kitchen.  

Generally speaking, it is true that not everyone can afford to hire an interior designer to consult with them about their home.  However, when a homeowner is considering starting large projects such as kitchen/bath renovations, as millions are, they NEED to make a small investment in consulting with a professional and qualified interior designer.  Not for color advice, not for decorating advice, but for budget and project management!  Whatever you spend on design services can likely be balanced out by the amount of money you SAVE by not making unwise design choices and investments.  

         Next week I will be posting an article clarifying what I mean when I say “unwise investments”.  In the meantime, if you are considering a large home improvement project, be smart and call for a “professional“ design consultation (not a “free” design consultation). Call me to help improve your home and protect your pocketbook today!   925-895-1336

This kitchen is packed with poor investments.  Don't let this happen to you!  Call for a professional "no strings attached" design consultation!  925-895-1336

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