So maybe you’ve hit the $1M mark in your interior design business, but instead of feeling like a CEO, you feel more like a firefighter armed with fabric bolts instead of a hose. Scaling might seem like a pipe dream when the day-to-day is so chaotic, but with a few minor changes, you can make it work. Because scaling up isn’t about doing more of what you’re doing now. Rather, it’s about doing things differently―doing things better.
To reach the next level in your business, the leader needs to stop being a bottleneck and start building a machine that runs on its own without constant maintenance.
Step 1: Audit the Team
To properly scale, you need the right kind of people on your team. If you’re worried about firing someone that you’d rather keep, don’t fret. Just because someone has room for improvement doesn’t mean you need to drop them immediately. It’s often better to hire for a cultural fit and a willingness to learn, as skills can be taught. If you have people with the proper mindset, then you’ve already done the hardest part.
The difficult decisions come when you identify employees who are not a good fit. The red flags you’re looking for are employees whose work you always have to check (you’re essentially doing their job for them) or who require constant hand-holding on tasks they should know how to do.
The main mindset shift that needs to happen is moving from a culture of asking permission to a culture of proactive action. This is a two-way street, however. You need to empower your employees to make decisions on their own with the right knowledge and tools, but you also need to avoid micromanaging. Build the trust, and then show that you mean it.
Step 2: Find Your Sweet Spot
Rather than having your hands in every aspect of a project, it’s important to step away and trust the team that you’ve now built. This will help your business become a machine that can run without you bottlenecking it, and it will still let you enjoy the creative work that you do.
Start the project strong by setting the creative and strategic vision. You’re still the person who decides the overall look and goals of the design project, so in this stage, you’re creating a blueprint for your team to work off of. Next, it’s time to be hands off. Let your skilled team handle the busy work involved in the middle 80%. This includes procuring materials and pieces, organizing contractors, and client communication. The processes involved should be documented and repeatable, so unless something truly unexpected happened, the project should flow naturally.
When the project is completed, it’s time to give your stamp of approval. Come back into the project with no preconceived notions and apply a final layer of polish. You have an eye for this―that’s why people come to you―but your greatest value comes in these finishing touches. Only you can identify those tiny things that make all the difference.
Focusing on the critical beginning and end of a project puts you in your zone of genius. The zone of genius is where you take advantage of your innate abilities. And for a designer, that involves making things beautiful. What it doesn’t involve is picking out each and every item, fielding late-night phone calls from clients, and scheduling when certain tasks will be done.
Step 3: Solidify the Backend Systems
Your business can’t run smoothly without your involvement unless you create good systems. If every project feels like reinventing the wheel, your backend is probably a mess. Basic tasks like procurement or client intake should be as standardized as possible. This means the process will be smoother overall, but it also means employees won’t need to interrupt you with the same questions over and over again.
Another system to nail down is your pricing and discount structure. If you’re wishy-washy on your pricing and base it on vibes, or you pass on your trade discounts to your clients, you’re likely leaving a lot of money on the table. By setting rates and sticking to them, you spend less time negotiating and less time worrying about the next paycheck.
While it’s a bit more out of your control, you can also systematize your project pipeline. With a detailed marketing plan and a strategy for getting client referrals, you can move from not knowing where your next client is coming from to having a consistent attraction model.
Your Legacy Starts with Your Next Move
Most designers want to scale. They have no interest in staying stagnant. But you can’t take on more projects before you’re ready, or you’ll face burnout. Scaling is about financial freedom and time freedom, not just more revenue. So don’t reinvent the wheel. Create systems that let your firm run more smoothly so you can scale without chaos. If you need help getting these steps right, book a Discovery Call with Pearl Collective and see if we’re a good fit for your firm.