How Virtual Interior Design Is Making Luxury Spaces More Accessible, Scalable, and Client-Driven

Luxury interior design sounds out of reach for a lot of people, but the real gap is often simpler: most homeowners know what they like, they just don’t know how to put it together without wasting money. We sit down with Kristy Salewsky, founder of Crew Collective Design in San Diego, to talk about the practical side of luxury and how virtual interior design has become a streamlined, accessible way to get professional results.

We dig into what online design services look like behind the scenes: a clear contract and scope, an in-depth questionnaire, photos and measurements, Pinterest inspiration that gets translated into a real plan, plus mood boards, layouts, and product selections organized inside a platform like DesignFiles. Kristy also shares how she targets a fast turnaround, why 3D renderings matter for client confidence, and when it makes sense to outsource specialized work like photorealistic visuals.

Money talk is front and center, too. We cover why a budget has to come first, how client education changes everything in a kitchen remodel or bathroom renovation, and how her flat-fee model stays clear with deliverables and timelines. We also compare full-service procurement to a link-based approach where clients handle purchasing and delivery, often using white glove delivery to keep things smooth.

If you’ve been curious about hiring a virtual interior designer, scaling a design studio, or simply avoiding the “I hate it and now I have to redo it” moment, this conversation will help. Subscribe to iDesign Lab, share this with a friend planning a remodel, and leave a review with your biggest design question.

Transcript

Welcome To iDesign Lab

Voice Over 0:00

This is iDesign Lab, a podcast where creativity and curiosity meet style and design. Curator of interiors, furnishings, and lifestyles. Hosted by Tiffany Woolley, an interior designer and a style enthusiast, along with her serial entrepreneur husband Scott. iDesign Lab is your ultimate design podcast, where we explore the rich and vibrant world of design and its constant evolution in style and trend.

SPEAKER_02 0:26

Today on the iDesign Lab, we're joined by Christy Selowski, founder of Crew Collective Design, a San Diego-based boutique studio redefining luxury interior design through an accessible, streamlined approach. Blending her background in corporate strategy and performance with a designer's eye, Christy creates warm, refined, livable spaces for clients across the country, both virtually and full service.

TIffany Woolley 0:56

Welcome to the iDesign Lab podcast. Today we are joined from San Diego. We have Christy Selewski, and she is another high-end interior designer who has a really interesting approach through the virtual life that we all now adapt to on our phones and screens. So I'm really excited that she's here to join us and to hear about her process. But let's start by welcoming Christy. And we want to hear a little bit about you to our audience expressing.

Scott Woolley 1:27

Yeah, tell us a little about yourself.

SPEAKER_03 1:30

Yeah, thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to be here. Um, it's a great honor. And um I love that we're able to do this. I'm in San Diego, and you're over on the East Coast in Florida, and we're able to have this interaction and reach out to clients. So it's it's fantastic. Um, a little bit about me. I have not always been in the interior design world, but I've always had an eye for design and and creativity. So I was a dancer and kind of like a visual artist through movement for a lot of my life. And I also kind of like rearranged my room several times and helped out with friends and family. And I really do feel like I always had this creative side, but I never really had it in my work. I for 20, 25 years, I was in medical sales and marketing. So that's a little bit of my background. And I worked for large corporations, Johnson Johnson and Boston Scientific. And I just got burned out. I got laid off one day and was like, you know what, I've been doing this on the side for friends and family. And after 2020, I realized that, you know, you can build a business and reach clients virtually. And I kind of launched a concept, launched my business, and I'm like, I think this thing's gonna take off. And I think I'm actually kind of good at it. You know, I myself and learned, and that's kind of how I started my business. But personally, I'm originally from the East Coast. I am born and raised in Rochester, Buffalo area, New York. And although I love my family, I just don't love snow. So I live in it is cold there right now. We have clients there.

Scott Woolley 3:07

How did you end up all the way in San Diego from Rochester and Buffalo?

Christy’s Career Pivot And Move

SPEAKER_03 3:12

I know, I know. Um at that time in my life, I moved out here. Um, I was around like 22, 23. So it was right out of college. And I worked for Club Med for a year. I just wasn't ready to like settle down. I still wanted to travel. I studied abroad in London and I really had that itch to like just travel and tour. And somebody told me because I was a dancer and a performer, they're just like, your talent is needed, like on cruise lines or you know, Club Medicine. And I said, no, I don't know what Club Med is. So I was introduced and I went to New York City and did an audition, and I ended up getting a job working for Club Med on a year contract. And that's where I met people all over the world. And I met a bunch of friends from San Diego or from California, and they just said, once we're out of this, you know, we're gonna go live in San Diego. You should fly out here and see how this place is. And I did with one um suitcase and a one-way ticket in February because it was snowing and really blessed and cold. And I just sent out my resume. And, you know, back then I had that hard drive, you know, I have the hard drive of my resume in my uh one pack bag. And I just met this woman that was dumb enough to hire me and I stayed.

TIffany Woolley 4:31

God bless. I mean, that's the one thing I enjoy so much about doing the podcast is everybody's stories are so interesting. And obviously, through so much travel, you must have had so much inspiration.

SPEAKER_03 4:44

Oh, oh yeah. I mean, first of all, I grew up in a really small town. So I really didn't have a lot of travel growing up. I mean, we we we drove up and down the East Coast, and that was definitely my excursions, and that was it was it and East Coast is beautiful. I'm not saying that, but in traveling to Europe and to study over there, um, the architecture, the beauty. Um, you know, I went to Italy on weekends, and then I went to Ireland on weekends, and I went to France, and then I was and then as an adult, I've been back there. And I you I would say as a designer and just as a person, I think you take what you what you love. And something that I'm really drawn to is European architecture now and European styles, and I might choose that in a sort of look that is innately becoming my style because I think I've been there so many times and just really, really admired the beauty.

TIffany Woolley 5:42

Absolutely, and how they marry the old and the new so eloquently.

SPEAKER_03 5:47

Oh beautiful. Yeah.

TIffany Woolley 5:49

It is, it really is inspiring. So as your life evolved in San Diego, you obviously left the corporate world. And when you decided to tackle interior design, how did you land on the niche of this? You know, is it virtual? What's the right way to explain it?

Defining Practical Luxury Design

SPEAKER_03 6:09

Yeah, so I consider myself a practical approach to luxury interior design. When I first launched my business, crew collected design, I did launch as a virtual interior designer. And uh that was three years ago. So I'm entering into my third year and I was getting clients all over the US. I think I um reached clients in about 15 states thus far. So the virtual piece did really take off and it uh was a great rate to reach reach clients. But what I realized was the after pitcher, you don't really get that that finished result pitcher. And I think I was doing locally a disservice to my community by saying I was just virtual, right? Right. So now I I do and can do full service interior design, renovations, um, as well as furnishing and decor. Um, so I kind of consider it like I recognized a gap in the market place where a lot of designers and a lot of my colleagues are a full service interior designer and and that is what they offer. And that's and that's great, but I offer more. So essentially I offer a service level level that meets the client where they are. And some of those clients are just an everyday person that doesn't want the full service or doesn't need it, or truthfully doesn't have the deep pockets to be able to have that service because it really truly is a white glove service and it's a great service. And we offer it. But um a lot of the entry-level clients just don't know how to put a concept together and really don't know where to shop and what looks good together, and that's really what they are paying for you and need. And I have a service for that, and that's my comprehensive virtual interior design package. And I I cater it to the client.

Virtual Design Workflow Step By Step

Scott Woolley 8:03

So tell us a little about virtual interior design. What does that all mean? How does that all work? Trevor Burrus, Jr.

TIffany Woolley 8:09

How does it start? They send you a picture or a room plan or because you don't go and visit the client, let's say they're in North Dakota.

SPEAKER_03 8:17

No, but if they want to pay me to travel there, absolutely I'll go. Right. Yeah. Right. But we we don't need to be there. And I think that if they are, say they hire me for a kitchen or you know, um, a master bedroom or a primary bedroom, we always start off with, I mean, I have a signed contract and um I want to make sure that our our deliverables are what they're looking for, and then I give them a scope of work. So we sign that contract contract, and then from there, the onboarding process is a questionnaire, a pretty, pretty intuitive questionnaire that is very comprehensive. And in that, I really get a good understanding of the space and part of the process is that they have to upload pictures, videos, as well as measurements. And sometimes it's their hand, handwritten measurements that I put into a floor plan or a cat drawing. Um, or if they're doing a remodel, it tends to be like an asvil that I use at that point. So I really have everything that I need to at least give the client a conceptual.

Scott Woolley 9:25

Do you find everyone to be like easy to work with and giving you all this information?

TIffany Woolley 9:32

Thus far, yes. I'm sure they want the support, they want the reassurance of this service.

SPEAKER_03 9:40

Yeah, because I also offer or I also do request payment up front, you know. So uh usually or at the very minimal, I offer a 50%, you know, payment. So they already paid for the most part. So it's really up to them to give me what they need. There is a little bit of upfront work, but it is talking about their project. And in it is, is really, I always make sure that they have a Pinterest board and that they have inspiration for me. Um, so that's always the the start of the process. I always launch with um a call, a virtual call, just to make sure that we're on the same page and possibly talk through that concept and also look through their their Pinterest pictures because their board might be all over the place. Right. It doesn't have that clear direction. But I I go through each picture or majority of picture, and I'm like, what did you see in this picture that you like? And what I see is something that they are not sharing. They're like, what I see here that I like, Christy, is the white uh countertops. And I was like, oh wow, what I'm seeing is oak cabinetry. You know what I mean?

Scott Woolley 10:52

So so you know, we're so so their Pinterest board is is is basically all of the different things that they've seen that they like that they'd like to incorporate into their home.

TIffany Woolley 11:04

And she has to disign them.

Scott Woolley 11:06

Right. Exactly.

TIffany Woolley 11:07

And I'm okay with that.

Scott Woolley 11:09

Are your calls Zoom calls or is it just a regular telephone call typically?

SPEAKER_03 11:15

Um I have an online design platform that I that I like, that I I keep all my communication and my mood boards, and if I do procurement, everything is in my design platform. So I I try to really stay off text once I start working with with clients and email. So all communications in one place. Um my my I do virtual calls initially when I mean I'll I'll first talk it, let me turn that off. I I first will talk to a client on the cell phone and then I will have a virtual call to kind of like start launch the process. And then when I'm doing my first presentation of the concepts and mood boards and selections and my kind of like my direction for the design, I do that in a virtual call and we go over everything and go over the process of do you like this and then how my online design platform works so they understand the functionality of it. And then um, we're kind of communicating very, very clearly from there. It is a very um, the process is very tight and um gets from point A to point B very, very quickly.

TIffany Woolley 12:27

What is your time process turnaround from you know the initial onboarding of the client and the signed contract and the Pinterest board, what time frame do you need internally to do?

SPEAKER_03 12:40

I think that's a um a very good question. And I get that a lot from clients. I usually try to have my design from it within a month's within a month's time. So within 30 days and finished within that time. So if by the time I usually sign their contract, I know that I have room for them in my monthly allotment, right? So um usually within a week after that, I will have either a floor plan or a concept, you know, something to present within a week. And then once I get that approved, I can move into the mood board um stage and starting selections pretty, pretty quickly within like two, two and a half weeks. And then I try to really get them to move through those selections. Sometimes some clients are like, yes, yes, yes, yes, or I don't like this. And they kind of like know what they want, and then we cultivate it or curate it to their like. So I would say I really do try within a month process to get them from concept to even like a rendering, but within a month.

TIffany Woolley 13:50

So I'm I have seen online a lot of your renderings, but if we go back, is there when you said you keep everything in one space, is it an application or is it which did you create this software or yep, it's a it's a software and there's a bunch of them out there.

SPEAKER_03 14:09

Right. But the one that I love is design files. Okay. And it is very user-friendly. I get a I get a lot of reviews. I mean, I'm I'm a five-star review business so far, and I pride myself in that. And a lot of people comment about how easy it was to work with me and how easy my online design platform was to like see what they liked. And that's really amazing.

Scott Woolley 14:33

Is most of your work remodels or just like redecorating?

SPEAKER_03 14:40

I started in in the business with with decorating, because that's really where my eye was in the beginning. And I enjoyed it, and I still do that. A lot. I still do. But my husband is a is a contractor. He's a commercial contractor, and I just was a I I really kind of learned a lot through through working with him. And I realized that I was getting leads for kitchens and bathrooms, let's say, and I just was saying no, I wasn't taking on those business businesses because I I felt like or that business because I just felt like I didn't have all my ducks in a row quite, quite yet. Right. Um but if let's just say it's a virtual client. I mean, I found resources that I can, you know, do materials coordination at a national level where they could go locally and pick it up. I mean, really. I just didn't have that when I launched, and I I just felt like I wasn't, I was doing the client a disservice. So I had to kind of get my ducks in a row and build that. And yeah, I mean, I that's where I can I can really kind of get them products there locally.

TIffany Woolley 15:51

So are you taking like the samples yourself and curating it so you see it, and then you're just having them go locally and see it themselves as well. So you both are touching feeling.

Budgets Fees And Clear Deliverables

SPEAKER_03 16:03

Exactly. Yeah, I'm just I'm just not there for those meetings, or if I if I am, I'm I'm virtual. So I will have the samples come to me, yeah, and then I will curate from that, and then I will also ship samples to the client personally, like a little package for that. Right, right. And then or go to the store that I'm um sending them to that they can get some really good pricing locally. And I work with the local rep to like kind of position it to them.

TIffany Woolley 16:32

So do you budget when you say that even with pricing, it brought my mind to budget. Are you providing a budget or are they providing you a budget in the beginning?

SPEAKER_03 16:43

I always have to start with a budget from the client. That is one of my questions in my in my questionnaire, uh, because it that kind of scopes the work of where I'm going. So vendors use clients. Exactly. Is this client like a low to mid? Is this a mid to high? Is this a premium client? Um, and that goes back to my my my uh entry point. Like I like to say that my business is an entry point for a lot of people. And if they're like, you know what, this bathroom uh remodel for material selection, you know, is is 15,000, you know, which is a relatively tight budget, I know where I have to go. Right. You know, in the members that I have to go, in the cabinet lines that I have to go to, and I have to present that to the client and say, Right, you know, I'm not even gonna present you this because this is out of this is out of budget, but here's where you're at. Right. And you know, here's another option if you decide you have more in the budget, but that's your choice. Um, but where I'm still gonna find you good solid, you know, because you can get a subway tile, let's say, for that's$90, if you want one. That's you know, 20.

Scott Woolley 17:54

You know what I mean?

TIffany Woolley 17:55

Totally.

Scott Woolley 17:56

Do you do you find clients being reluctant to give you a budget? Because we've we've had a number of podcasts just about that and budgeting and so forth, because a lot of people feel like I don't know, they're gonna be able to do that. Whoever says the number for the other thing. Yeah, they don't want to say what their budget is, but we've we've talked a lot about the fact how important it is for people to really express and and explain what their budget is to their interior designer. Oh, yeah. Because about how help helpful that can be.

SPEAKER_03 18:26

Oh, extremely helpful. But I mean, I think too, if if I put myself in their shoes and if I was a consumer, you're always gonna probably lowball the budget, right? Because you know, if I'm even even if I'm um presenting what I do for the client, I never say, what's your budget for an interior designer? Because they have no, they have no idea. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_05 18:49

Right.

SPEAKER_03 18:49

Um I have to kind of scale scope it as this is this is the main range of what you would spend for a full service interior designer or my full service, you know, support for this type of project. This is the range where you're gonna be paying in in the industry or within San Diego or wherever you're at. Um, are you comfortable with that? And you know, if not, then the we're gonna be and in this service level. You know, that's kind of so I even talked very, very early on about financials. Um, and a lot of it comes down to education. I mean, this it's they don't know. Like they don't know. They don't know. And we even with a$15,000 budget, I'm like the majority of that is going to be in cabinetry, you know? Right. So and these are, you know, this is average what you're gonna spend for this type of product.

TIffany Woolley 19:43

So it's a little bit educational. So you price your fees for the project. Is it based on the contents? Is it based on the budget or based on the hours or all of the above?

SPEAKER_03 19:56

Yeah, and that is such, I mean, this is such a you could have like 10 zillion podcasts on this topic. And it's every it's such a big topic. And I um network with a lot of designers and we always go back and forth on this. I think there's designers that do hourly, and that's it, they just think it's you know the easiest approach for me and my business model what works for me. And I think that is the most approachable way where a client knows what they're getting out of that investment with me because it is an investment. It is right. I think when when they start doing full service and it's hourly, they don't know how much that's exactly gonna be. And it's it's in it's in it's invariable. So with me, I'm a flat rate of based off of the project and the scope. Is I typically have a number, but it's if it changes, like if they don't want a rendering or I don't need to be in CAD or something like that, I can adjust and swing on a scale. But um, it is a flat rate for a clear deliverables listed in my contract of what they will receive and on a timeline. Uh anything after that, whether it's, you know, on-site visits, uh calls, resourcing, um, change of scope or whatever, it goes into my hourly rate.

TIffany Woolley 21:22

So it's funny because, you know, talking with you and I've been in the business for longer, but I've watched the industry evolve so much. Like where people like you who have a strong creative background and, you know, a lot of drive and passion for design, it's just been such a fascinating time to watch the opportunity for everyday people to want to tackle this. Because for so long, interior design was only for the wealthy or for super customers. That's the way it was perceived. Was the way it was perceived, correct. So everybody always comes into the mindset, well, a design, why do I need a designer? Do you ever feel like you're having to sell yourself or your services? Or when they come to you, they're pretty ready.

SPEAKER_03 22:15

Yeah. Um, I think when they come to me, they're they're usually ready. However, if they can't if they can invest what I'm offering at my lowest service level, then they really should not be working with a designer. Right. Period. I mean, uh that's that's how I've designed my my business and my approach. So and I'm okay with with saying goodbye to that client and hope that they they you know, you can find great stuff at home goods if you know how to put it together. So it's like go goods for shopping at home goods, you know.

Scott Woolley 22:52

But that's the key thing that you just said, if they know how to put it together. Right.

TIffany Woolley 22:55

And I always say that like technically you can't design a whole house out of home goods. I mean you you can if it's like a small, but like it's texture, it's layer. And as you said, you know, in one of our previous, you know, conversations this morning was you know, you start with just the room, but as you grow into the whole experience of interior design, it really is in the architectural, in the structure, and in all those components combined. So it definitely begins to overlap.

SPEAKER_03 23:29

You're you're so you're so correct, Tiffany. And I always start my my calls with them, you know, what's your biggest pain point? And their biggest pain point, and I hear this over and over again 90% of the time, I don't want to make a mistake. Right. I I know what I want, I don't know how to put it together.

TIffany Woolley 23:50

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 23:50

Um, you know, I painted my whole house, I hate it. So literally just need some advice. They need that, I mean, that's really what it comes down to. So if if they're telling me what the I mean, it's a small investment for for making a big impact that you're gonna be happy with and then having to do it twice. Yeah, you don't have to do it twice, and you'll get to from point A to point B quickly. And I share the benefits of it. And like if it's a virtual thing, then they get everything in a clean little package of what to buy, what sizes, you know, within your budget, and how to how to implement it. It's they're like, oh wow, that's great, you know, versus maybe like with a full service um you know thing, they really have to, they really have to believe in the investment and not want to lift a finger, right? And and trust a professional to do it.

TIffany Woolley 24:49

So going back to the virtual um, you know, option, is that still something that you see a lot of need for as you've evolved, you know, into the San Diego area? Or do you, you know, is that virtual part still because that's actually something we've considered and, you know, grappled with because we do have clients from out of state, you know, as well. I mean, it's definitely doable. Um, but I'm wondering if you see the need as your services evolve more in your home base.

SPEAKER_03 25:25

I think that'll be something that we'll see how my business grows and what it grows into. Right now I'm doing a lot of remodeling and I'm enjoying it. I mentioned earlier that I'm building a custom home right now. So, and my husband's a contractor. So I'm really getting involved in the remodeling industry and working with contractors and really aligning and partnering there. So I see my business really taking off locally in more remodeling kitchens and baths. And just I've done a couple new builds, but it's still something that is relatively newer in, you know, in my service levels. But I would say um right now, it it's really, it's such an easy approach and it's a quick streamlined process the way that I have it, that I think you're a a little bit shooting yourself in the foot if you say that you can't take on that client. I think what's difficult for people to understand is when they have launched their business in a full service approach, that it's hard for them to go to this approach, you know, because they're thinking more about their um portfolio or they're thinking about their finished look. And it's really not about that. It's it's about the client at that point. And I might get a rendering out of it. And but it's it kind of, I don't know if I want to say this like verbally, I kind of say this to you guys one on, you know, one-on-one, that it's quick, easy money. Right.

Voice Over 26:58

And I've had a piece of my business.

TIffany Woolley 27:00

Yeah, I actually had an interior design friend who in 2020 was only doing high-end work and was, you know, giving, you know, putting her nose up at a lot of opportunity along the way. And then 2020 comes and sh, you know, the end the world kind of stopped, and high-end things, you know, she was struggling. I should say before 2020, she was struggling. And, you know, where the opportunity was. And I said, you you would be so surprised just not to say no to those renovation jobs. And one thing I learned in my career in the beginning by only doing those high-end projects was those high-end projects were two to three years in the making. So there's a lot of time in between that you could take on a lot of, you know, smaller projects that had a lot of fulfillment and a lot of, you know, you know, great income. But when you say, you know, also to a point, it was it's interesting that I still struggle because I treat each job the same. My process, I don't know how to do it any other way. Yeah.

Scott Woolley 28:12

Well, I also think Tiffany would have a very difficult time with a virtual project. She's done a few, but I think part of the problem that she has is that she can't touch and feel it. She can't go, she's not there at the installation and when everything's being put in. She wants to be part of that process and see the client's face and the excitement of it. And and I and so my question to you on that is how does that work for you when or in many cases not?

SPEAKER_03 28:42

I think um, Tiffany, I think you and I could have a conversation about how to implement this. Yeah. Because I do think that you can also, at the at the level that you've been working, you know, you can offer that into your package. Like I will come out and fly for installation or tile installation or you know, delivery day and install walkthroughs or what have you. Absolutely. You know, you can you can shift your business in in that. And if and if a client really truly wants you and your services and loves maybe a little bit of what you do, then they will hire you. Um you know, so I think I think that is something there. But how I manage it is, I mean, I I do I do communicate with a client afterwards. I ask them to send me pictures and I always ask them to tell me how it how everything has been going. And um, you know, it's it's a little bit of a different approach. You have to kind of give off that control, it you gotta let go of that control. Right. That's really what it comes down to. Right. It comes down to giving the client what they need that they would never have received on their own. Right. And that's such a mindset.

TIffany Woolley 29:57

I'm so impressed by that. Yeah. It's it's definitely like there's and this is what's been so interesting for me in the last 20 years is watching the business, you know, the actual industry grow and evolve to this level.

SPEAKER_03 30:14

Yeah. And I don't, you know, I don't really know that a lot of designers have this aspect mastered of it. Yeah. I really don't think they do. Um, I get a lot of questions from from designers. How do you do your business? How do you do it? Like, what do you do? You know, and it's like, um it's just it's just the business mindset of the person and and how they've launched and how they're used to doing their business, right? So for me, I feel like um it is an approach that works and it's a different client. That's what it comes down to. It's a different client. Okay. And you'll know the client when you're talking to them. And and and initially, as a full service interior designer, you might be like, this is not my client, but it, but it is a client. If you have a minimum and a minimum to work with you for your ability and what you're gonna give them, that is an investment in and of itself, and they have to pay that. And if they can't, then that client's not worth it, right? But that there are clients that are willing to drop money for for the service and the need. And they're like, oh yeah, I can execute on a plan. I can, I can buy what you're telling me to buy. That's what I need. I need somebody to curate it and I can execute it. It's like great. And the feedback has been has been great. So I honestly think it's just most full service interior designers might be like, no, okay, they're not uh ready to you know do the full service, then they're not my client. And that's okay. Um whereas somebody like me, I realize, okay, they're not a full service interior design client, but they are this. And if they're can't afford that, then okay, good luck. And it's worth your time.

Scott Woolley 31:57

When you launched your business, did you h hire a company, you know, an SCO company or someone to help you do an outreach on the internet to get you exposure and to get you clients, or is that something you learned yourself and handled yourself?

SPEAKER_03 32:11

I've been doing this myself. And I was not, I'm a solopreneur, I'm I'm a new entrepreneur. I have always had a I guess a knack for I mean, I as a sales rep and as a business developer, I've always had known how to manage my business and hit my number and things like that. So I have that ability. Um but I think in my business, no. I mean, I I started from scratch, I built my name, I started just attaching pictures on Instagram, finding out how I mean I'm just Chad GPT is my friend on how to grow a business.

Scott Woolley 32:49

That's one of your employees.

SPEAKER_03 32:52

Uh yeah. Her name is Yolanda, actually. I have a neighbor. So she's she's one of my one of my buddies. She's like my, you know, assistant. But no, I didn't. My my I mean, my website from scratch. I mean, I definitely need some support, but um I now recently this month started with an SEO company. So we'll see how how that has has worked. But I'm on certain profiles, you know, um, so that kind of gives me a little bit of reach. But if you aren't finding me on Google, I don't know how people in in the nation are. I mean, I have I did a job in Oklahoma, I did a job in Kentucky. And when they call me, I'm like, how did you find me? And they're like, I searched virtual interior designer. And I'm just like, wow, okay, it's nice to know that somebody out there has my name somewhere. You know what I mean?

TIffany Woolley 33:44

I just so fascinating. So fascinating.

Scott Woolley 33:50

So one area that we haven't talked about that's really important from our business, but especially from a virtual standpoint, you're doing layouts, you're putting mood boards together, 3D, photorealistic. Are you doing that to show a client what they're getting, what it's going to look like, what in the end.

SPEAKER_03 34:11

Yes. Um, I'm sorry, was your was your question, am I doing that?

TIffany Woolley 34:14

Yes. Which I know she you are doing three-dimensional drawings.

SPEAKER_03 34:20

Yes, yes. And and I added that into my package. I'll always remove it if the client is tight on investment money of working with me, but selfishly, I do want a 3D render for myself and my portfolio at the very minimal because I don't get that beautiful picture of my styled curated room. Um, so I do at least a 3D render. And clients really do like that. Um, I sell it well, and I also feel um I use I use a program that allows me to do a video as well. And that's it just is super unique. And I think that ties into the virtual package really nicely. Um, and it just gives me something, something, you know, for my portfolio and to present. And clients by that point are just so elated where, you know, they're like, wow, I don't know how you can do that. Like how you can take my space. You haven't you haven't been here to measure. I'm like, yeah, like this is this is it's the the nature of technology. It is the nature of technology.

TIffany Woolley 35:25

So are you doing those drawings yourself? Render? The drawings.

SPEAKER_03 35:30

I personally, I don't know that I want this to be live either, but um, I do outsource my rendering.

TIffany Woolley 35:36

Okay, so the renderings are outsourced because I was wondering because they're so time consuming.

Scott Woolley 35:42

Well, it's it's a skill and it's a skill and a craft in itself.

SPEAKER_03 35:46

It is, and it's also um another platform that I have to learn. And I think for me to scale the way that I want to, I I wanted to spend my time doing things that I know I could do and do quickly.

Voice Over 35:59

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 36:00

And I just trust other people, you know, to do it. And I have a good list of people that I, you know, I just outsource that. And I think that's what you have to do.

TIffany Woolley 36:10

What's your communication process with the with your collaborator who you do work with for renderings? Do you actually send them photos of the furniture? Obviously, the drawing of the space, ceiling heights, details, etc. Are you giving them fabric choices, wallpaper? Are you giving them all these details?

SPEAKER_03 36:31

Or so I'm newer to um the full service approach, so I haven't quite done that yet. But for my virtual design packages, I send them the floor plan and then um the measurements so they have they know how to kind of build the room. Yeah. And then I have my mood board with my selections. And um that's that's essentially so my layout shows where everything's gonna be, and then my my mood board and all the selections, and I tell them the paint color and and that. So like if I have drapes, they it's a link to the drapes. I got it. So some virtual can tend to be a little bit more um, it's more retail project driven, yes. Yeah, versus I'm I'm building something, you know, with materials and and things like that. Um so that that tends to be a little bit of an easier approach.

TIffany Woolley 37:28

Yes. It's definitely good for timing and I understand the fast turnaround, you know, using retail links and everything.

SPEAKER_03 37:38

But if if it would be a full service and you're, you know, you're doing a drape, the size, uh you give them a size and then and then say, here's the material, and usually a link to the material um or a picture is something that they need to kind of create it. And you just kind of say to the client that, like, you know, this isn't meant to be like completely bookmarked, right? Like it's it's meant to be conceptual and this is meant to kind of show you how the look comes together. Um so that's and it it seems to be a pretty, a pretty quick process. Like I usually get my renderings within like a couple days period after sending them what what I need.

TIffany Woolley 38:20

That's amazing. We do them in-house, and it and I'm so you know, amazed by the technology and really like Scott was saying, the skill set of renders, because you know, we have one that's been working with us for a while who's truly a talent. And it, you know, it it definitely comes from lighting and just the way they can actually create pieces that aren't available. And then we've had some that are just, okay, this isn't the right, this isn't the right because I'm still in that hands-on example.

Scott Woolley 38:58

They're a little bit slower than what we're looking for.

SPEAKER_03 39:02

Sure. Yeah. Um, I think people that are really um skilled in it, honestly, they're they can just hammer it out super quick and without a doubt. I mean, I'm just amazed by how quick they they can do it. I mean, I've I've gone to locally, um, like I can go out, I have this technology, and this also fits my virtual feel, is that I can scan a room and uh kind of do measurements and then also cross-reference that with hand measurements from like a contractor or something. But I go out and I scan a room and then I bring that in so it can go into CAD, it can go into a you know floor plan platform, and it's just it's such a time saver. And then I just kind of cross-reference the handwritten measurements, but I brought a drafter, a local drafter, out with me. So while I was scanning and I started doing like the handwritten measurements, like she was already like basically like had it written up, like already in her drawn up in her platform after while I was there. And I was like, wait a second, you you just did that? Like that would have taken me. It's it's a it's a skill set that I just don't really want to do.

Scott Woolley 40:12

Was she using one of those new devices? I don't know if you've seen like Instagram and TikTok. They have ads for them where it's just like a where you can walk around with it, a room or outside, and it automatically measures it and then puts it into cat or whatever.

SPEAKER_03 40:27

Yeah, that that's what I was that's what I was using. Yeah, there's a there's a couple platforms out there that that do that. Um so she she had something I think similar as well that that is just gets it uploaded and then you do it again, like the measurements, and it becomes such a quicker process. She's like, I would I'd be taking, you know, four hours to measure this house to do to do this. Exactly. Um, you know, so it's it it does really um cut off on time and technology has gotten so good in that. But to to what I was saying is like they just do it so quickly that it's like, okay, you know, I'm gonna stick to what I love doing quickly to kind of scale that way.

Scott Woolley 41:09

Right.

TIffany Woolley 41:09

I know. And you're you're saying the word scale. I mean that's one thing that Scott and I, with Scott coming on board, was the the desire to scale. If like, okay, we're gonna do this and hopefully, you know, build a scalable business and bring the kids on board eventually, or you know, however, God willing, that all that falls into place. I do believe that, you know, you being newer to the field, you know, it's like you're getting such a great learning curve on all these technical opportunities that for me, I'm so stuck in a creative process that I'm not taking advantage of.

SPEAKER_03 41:49

You know, to be honest, to be fair, to be to be fair, Tiffany, I I hear this from a lot of designers. I work with some designers that want to present themselves in the virtual space, but they can't conceptualize it, right? Like, like you, maybe so to speak, because you're so used to doing it a certain way, and that's a way that I'm I'm learning into. So somebody like me would learn significantly from you and your process, but I have a skill set and a business model that you could add to scale to your business without a doubt. And it isn't something that you want to learn. So I have had this conversation with probably a handful of designers, and they're starting to, this is part of my growth model for this year, is that I will I have and will work for designers either as their as their outsourcing virtual partner. Right. Um I will go in and work with their mood boards and I will do everything and communicate with the client. And, you know, it's a little bit of just setting up the correct setup. I mean, if or they can refer out to me. But I think some of them want to get paid off of my service, but I basically act as an extension of their business.

Inspiration Sourcing And Industry Support

TIffany Woolley 43:12

Which is really amazing. I mean, that's another whole opportunity level for sure. We should talk one off if you'd like. Absolutely. Absolutely. So let's go back a little bit to the creative process. So when you were, you know, making this your future, what is your go-to inspiration and your sourcing and like where do you get your passion and drive and you know, industry and all those good things?

SPEAKER_03 43:42

Yeah. Um, I mean, we always love a good, a good Pinterest. I think you can get so much on social media right now. Yes. Um I I think reps are also a really good resource. We ought to be so incredibly helpful on. Um, you know, maybe finding the right product or you know, getting um just just another design eye on a on a project. And they can also ask as act as like a little sourcing partner for you. Um, so I think reps are an incredible resource as well. So Pinterest, I mean, Instagram has gotten to be agreed. I really do think that TikTok and Instagram, I'm on all these platforms that people get on there and they're like, I'm doing a kitchen remodel, I don't know what to do. And then they go, kitchen remodel. And then it's like like a ton of things that they could, but that's also a rabbit hole too. But um we can see very quickly and eliminate that rabbit hole, and I can get really some good inspiration. I I love, I follow a lot of designers that I might like emulate and I see their work, and I'm not afraid to shout out and be like, that's gorgeous, right? You know, yeah, and take that approach and be like, wow, like I don't want to copy that approach, but like with the use of color there and like that textile with that together, and you know, that really this that speaks to me as a designer. Um I've noticed that a lot about other designers too.

TIffany Woolley 45:15

Yeah, and I've noticed that about the industry lately too through social media. It is a very supportive industry. I feel like that people are very complimentary, people do shout out. I feel like it's, you know, more of like a sisterhood versus a competition.

SPEAKER_03 45:34

Yeah, yeah. Myself and two other designers here locally, we started this design huddle every month. And it's it's designed to really like, we want to learn, we want to grow from each other, we want to really elevate the industry as a whole. Um, and that's maybe my entrepreneurial background too. But um, you know, selfishly, I do want to network with designers. I do want to learn, but I think it's important that we also elevate the industry because me coming in as a virtual designer, I am not trying to like, you know, demolish the industry and come in at a low price point. I'm just I'm helping, I think, the industry grow slightly. It's a good perspective, yeah. And and just and just evolve. And I think I can also learn from the full service interior designers too. So we kind of just we did, like, I mean, last last meeting, we we kind of talked about price point and we're all in the same market. And it's like, okay, how do how do you how does your model work? Like how how do you bill? And it's like, if we're not kind of all aligned as a if a client is going to be shopping, our industry looks a little bit mismoshed if we aren't aligned with kind of how we're doing things a little bit.

TIffany Woolley 46:51

And how do you see like the action in the industry retail versus like say manufacturers that like to deal directly to the trade? Do you have any thoughts on where that all falls in? Um repeat that question, I'm sorry. Aaron Ross Powell So like you know, with retail items like say versus like a restoration hardware, a pottery barn versus, you know, to the trade sources. What what's the question about that though? No, just in your comp in like your design huddles, like do you see people in the industry preferring one way or another?

SPEAKER_03 47:32

I see in the industry, um they do trade. They definitely have trade products, and I can get trade products. I I link trade trade products directly where the client can buy directly. I don't I don't procure for them, okay, but I get like a small commission, right? And that's kind of moves into my virtual model as well. Okay. Um I prefer not to procure. So I I found that they do procurement, but they also will do uh retail items in there. Amazon, Target, right?

TIffany Woolley 48:06

I feel like you kind of have to to be a turnkey service.

SPEAKER_03 48:11

Absolutely. And to be honest with you, I mean, what we we've also gotten into that you don't want to like itemize everything because then they're not gonna want to spend, you know,$180 or$200 on a lamp, but like, you know, you can mix in certain things to hit budget. And there are great products out there. Without a doubt. So yeah, I would say that they they mix in products. And honestly, as I've I'd seen some of the designers that I emulate, that's also kind of how they they do it as well. And they'll they'll blog very openly about how this bathroom room model, the client didn't have, you know, a high budget, but you know what? She used porcelain and she did a floor tile that was very inexpensive, but was super like you know, European, um, just felt very, I don't even know. It was like European cottage, yeah, modern organic. It was just like so cool. And I just think that it just depends on where you source, honestly.

TIffany Woolley 49:15

So and when you say you don't do the procurement, so your virtual system has links and the client handles all of that, the delivery date, the follow-up, the payment. Because that's so much of like what our infrastructure is these days. I mean, we had three people out on installations and deliveries this morning, which is very time consuming that I guess you don't worry about it.

SPEAKER_03 49:42

Yeah, with my virtual packages, correct. No, and that was that was initially how I launched. Again, so so different than so smart, you know, other processes. I launched because I'm not there, and I launched um just with the ease of I'm gonna give you everything you need, but you buy it at your own timeline. Yeah. You know, and you're not gonna be able to do that.

Scott Woolley 50:10

But you're doing the selections for them. You're picking everything. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 50:14

So you absolutely, I'm doing the colors, I'm giving them paint selections. Um, you know, I I'm I'm everything they need, but I also give them edits. Like they they assist in that. You know, I might give them options and then they pick the one that they like the best, and I might shift other materials around. Because of that choice, yes.

Scott Woolley 50:37

Are you doing choice but it's what they like. Are you doing flooring and wallpaper? Those types, those items also?

SPEAKER_03 50:45

Yeah, I'll do I'll do engineered hardwood, carpet, wallpaper, you know, uh uh anything the design actually calls for. If it's a trade item, they I linked the trade item and I don't make as much. Um, I mean, again, I probably don't want that like going out to anybody else besides you and I, but I don't make, I don't make the markup, right? I make a percentage of a commission, if you will. It might be 10% or something.

TIffany Woolley 51:13

But you also aren't having to deal with the hassle. So there is there's gain in that.

SPEAKER_03 51:19

And I really sell the value of white glove delivery with my clients. Like when they're if they're buying, let's say, restoration hardware, do that white glove delivery, you know. Um, it's basically gonna be what an installer would do. Um, they're gonna come in, they're gonna set it up to our floor plan that we've identified, and you direct them. That's where it goes, clean up your stuff and go. I mean, that's essentially so basically I I sell the fact that I'm giving you everything of a full service interior designer is doing. I'm not there to set it up for you. Um, I'm happy to have a styling call with you, you know. Um, but it's it's a lot of their stuff in there too, right? So you have to work around. Yeah, I'm like, I'm not seeing that, but okay, we'll work with that, you know. Um, so I'm I'm I I offer that to them, but they're oftentimes super happy and they're like, oh, or you know, look at our living room, how it looks right now. And I'm like, oh, that's great, but what the frick is that? You know, like you know, but they're happy at the end of the day.

Scott Woolley 52:25

And that's truly that's important that they're happy.

SPEAKER_03 52:29

That's important. And my reviews mean mean everything to me. So I think, you know, I as I evolve, will I be able to do fully what you do? Um, yes, and I can do that. It just I think um I'm still working through that in entire process. And it's something that I probably won't enjoy, the procurement piece and the returns and the hassles are definitely an appealie's heel to a lot of my colleagues. For sure. That do full service interior design. And when they hear what I do, they're like, oh my gosh, that seems like so much more enjoyable.

SPEAKER_05 53:05

And I'm like, I don't really have the stress.

TIffany Woolley 53:07

I don't have the stress, which is such a blessing. And you get all the fun part, which is you know the design, correct?

SPEAKER_03 53:16

Which is what people really need, is someone helping them design it, put it together, and I'm really just going to the heart of what people need and I'm and just just delivering to that, honestly. I mean, I would love those high-end clients, and I think I'm starting to get there, but it's I'm okay with because I have 90% of what you hear is not like, I want you to do everything for me. I don't want to lift a finger. It's more so those clients that are like, I'm willing to pay for your service so I don't mess up. Right.

Scott Woolley 53:52

Right.

SPEAKER_03 53:52

Right. Right. And I think that I can do the rest myself. I can I can implement this. I can tell people where to deliver things and unload it and leave. Like I can do that.

TIffany Woolley 54:02

And I there is a niche for that. I feel like, you know, there is a world where because we do have, you know, technology at our fingertips, people do think it's easier, but they definitely need the guidance. And that's an entry, you know, a level that I feel like is so important. Especially with like even down down here in South Florida, which I would think is in San Diego too, there's a lot of, you know, the Toll Brother communities. There's a lot of communities that aren't super custom where you want to be able to personalize your space and you know, really curate something special versus falling into just the the traps of everything that's easy.

SPEAKER_03 54:48

Yeah. Yeah. A little bit of what I do too is, you know, educating them on how things can kind of come together, right? Like, you know, that client that isn't fully custom just wants to understand how to mix things together. And like they they're getting really good education from me. Whereas if somebody is maybe doing a full service project, they're they're making a lot of the decisions for them, you know, and kind of just it's it's coming together. I don't know.

TIffany Woolley 55:17

It it's just, I don't know where I'm going with that, but well, it is just a really it's a really cool niche. And I'm so happy that we were able to dive into that a little bit because I do think that your career is gonna take off and you're gonna have a lot of local clients. But I would say keep your hand in this virtual side for sure.

SPEAKER_03 55:40

I think so. Yeah, I I really think so. Just because like that's how I built my business, that's how I've built my brand. And, you know, I think that if that client comes around and and they want a full service, they're still gonna get a really, really great value with me because I still might not, I don't know, do the full on procurement piece and just send them like links to things that they can buy that might be Amber Lewis that I didn't totally like, you know, find fabric and put on that, you know. But it is it is a designer piece that they wouldn't have access to if they weren't working with me.

TIffany Woolley 56:22

Agreed. So and that is the curation that an interior designer does bring to the table, those layers that are special.

SPEAKER_03 56:32

Exactly. Yeah, exactly.

TIffany Woolley 56:35

Well, thank you so much for joining us on the iDesign Lab today. Can you tell our audience where they can find you? All your details.

Scott Woolley 56:44

Yeah, what's your website and Instagram? Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 56:48

So my business name is Crew Collective Design. I am the owner, founder, and um principal designer. So my name is Christy Salouski. And I am, oh gosh, I'm all over social media. I'm on Instagram, Crew Collective Design. Everything is Crew Collective Design. So CREW Collective Design. And on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, my website is Crew Collective Design. I can help you anywhere in the United States. I mean, I'll take other countries, but no, let's just stay with the United States for now. I'm good with 50 states.

Scott Woolley 57:25

Um what is crew how what how did you come about crew collective? Is there a uh a reason behind that?

SPEAKER_03 57:32

It's a good question. My my husband's business, and he's a builder, is crew builders. Oh, that's fantastic. And I am crew collective design. So there could be an opportunity in the future for us to collaborate on something.

unknown 57:47

Yeah.

TIffany Woolley 57:49

That's I see that all happening. And so God bless on your way there. But like I said, don't give up this really interesting niche that I think really keeps you on the pulse. And if anything, it keeps the joy and all and the time and the scalability of the awesome. Awesome. Thank you very much. Thank you. Well, thank you so much. Thank you for listening to iDesign Lab today.

Voice Over 58:17

iDesign Lab's podcast is an SW group production in association with the five star and TW Interiors. To learn more about iDesign Lab or TW Interiors, please visit TWinteriors.com.