The Value of Experience

More than twenty years of research and practice are good for something!

So often, when prospective clients first reach out, their main focus is: “How much is it going to cost?” and “How long is it going to take?” Those are important considerations, of course, but they are only two components of what makes a successful design partnership. Understanding a designer’s value—and what you are truly investing in—should rank just as high.

Communicating that value has always been challenging because much of it is intangible and requires a high level of trust. Lately, as we’ve found ourselves defending our value in different ways to different people, I’ve been reflecting more deeply on what that value actually encompasses.

I entered the design world in 2004 as a part-time returning student exploring a new path, and a part-time employee at a to-the-trade showroom (shout out to my favorite boss of all time, Brian. Love you, miss you). From there, I pursued graduate studies in interior design at Pratt Institute while continuing to work in the field, and later held roles at design and architecture firms after earning a Master of Science in Interior Design. I’ve now been in this industry for 22 years.

Over those two decades, I’ve traveled extensively to source products, spent years cultivating relationships with vendors, artisans, and makers, and invested hundreds of thousands of dollars—personally and professionally—in continuing education and development. In all those years, I haven’t taken a neighborhood walk, gone to dinner, visited a hotel, taken a tour, viewed a museum exhibit, or sat in a theater without dissecting or analyzing the design around me—good, bad, or indifferent. I’ve immersed myself in truly exceptional work; not just trends, but enduring design, master craftsmanship, and the movements that have shaped our industry. Consciously or not, I’m always consuming and evaluating design.

That exposure has developed a trained eye and a level of discernment that’s difficult to shortcut. It’s what allows me to understand, almost instinctively, what separates something that is merely attractive from something that is truly well-made and enduring.

This investment of time, money, and focus—along with more than a hundred projects involving sophisticated detailing, coordination, and oversight—allows me to solve complex problems quickly and confidently. Because we charge hourly, when I resolve a major issue in minutes, clients are benefiting from 22 years of accumulated knowledge for a fraction of what it would cost to acquire that expertise themselves (and, realistically, at a fraction of what we probably “should” be charging—but that’s a different conversation).

It means knowing which brands consistently deliver on quality, which materials will stand the test of time, and which details elevate a space from good to extraordinary. As a team, we are not simply “picking” pretty products; we are building, carving, and curating from a deeply informed point of view—supported by longstanding relationships and a refined internal benchmark for excellence.

With experience comes both confidence and efficiency. We can narrow options quickly, guide clients toward the right decisions, and prevent costly missteps because the vetting has been done over decades.

That is value.

Of course, it’s not just me. Our clients and collaborators also work closely with Adam, Audrey, and Christophe, each of whom brings critical expertise and a distinct professional perspective. Together, we function as a highly coordinated team—one that is able to approach challenges from multiple angles, pressure-test decisions internally, and deliver more thoughtful, rigorous outcomes than any one of us could alone.

Just as importantly, the value of what we do doesn’t only show up in the finished project. A beautiful result is the baseline expectation. The real value often lives in the intangibles: how resources are allocated and protected, how expectations are set (and reset) over the course of a long project, the clarity and consistency of communication, and the ability to anticipate questions before they become problems. It’s in how we navigate constraints—budgetary, structural, logistical—without compromising the integrity of the design.

It’s also in how we handle the moments that don’t go according to plan. Delays happen, mistakes happen, as is inevitable in work done entirely by multiple human beings simultaneously and sequentially, and priorities shift. What matters is how those situations are managed: how quickly issues are identified, how transparently they are communicated, and how thoughtfully solutions are developed.

We’re not perfect—far from it. But as a team, we draw on a deep well of shared experience to resolve challenges early, absorb complexity where we can, and guide clients through the process with as little friction as possible.

That’s where relationships become the real resource. Ultimately, what clients are investing in is not just a design outcome but in solid judgment, advocacy, a network of trusted collaborators, and in a team that is deeply committed to stewarding their project from beginning to end.

That kind of value isn’t always easy to quantify, but it is what differentiates between a project that simply gets done and one that is truly done well.