The COVID-19 pandemic lockdown has resulted in closed building sites, current projects on pause and a vanishing pipeline of work. Many viable and profitable interior design businesses are facing extinction. Meanwhile, a sometimes-confusing deluge of information on funding and financial support has emerged intended to provide help for small businesses on how they can remain functioning entities until the situation eases. Luke Desmond, CEO of Crisp Accountancy, is our special guest on this episode. Crisp Accountancy specialise in the provision of business advice to SMEs in the construction sector. He talks with us about business survival strategies, giving us some clear direction on the packages of financial support available from the UK Government and advice on how to access them. The Interior Design Business is a Wildwood production. ...
In this episode, recorded in front of a live audience at Decorex 2019, we ask: what makes a happy, healthy home? Back in 1971, an American researcher called Roger Ulrich began tracking the outcomes of patients recovering from routine surgery in a suburban hospital in Pennsylvania. Half of these patients had rooms that overlooked the trees of the adjacent park while the other half had rooms with a panoramic view of a brick wall. To his astonishment, Ulrich discovered that the group of patients looking at the trees, achieved faster recovery rates, spent less time in hospital and needed fewer painkillers than the ones left staring at the wall. Since then further studies have gone on to support these findings. Human beings have an innate connection to nature. If we believe this connection to be important, how should designers approach the design of interior spaces, both public and private, that will improve physical and mental health, and enhance the wellbeing and happiness of their clients? Cinzia Moretti of Moretti Interior Design and Phoebe Oldrey of Smartstyle Interiors, two passionate advocates of well-being, happiness and interior design, join us to offer their take on this increasingly important subject. ...
September is a busy, back to work month. The holidays are a dim and distant memory, the kids are heading off to school and it’s time to gear up for show season - a time that's full of innovations, new ideas and education opportunities. From the 15th until the 23rd September, London is taken over by the London Design Festival. Smart home is an increasingly visible part of the events taking place. So, on this first episode we talk about interior design and technology integration. We welcome two special guests to look at how professioanl designers and integrators collaborate, sometimes collide, but, ultimately, can work better together for the mutual benefit of clients. From the world of interior design, we're joined by Susie Rumbold of Tessuto Interiors, former President of the British Institute of Interior Design, and from award-winning, London integration business, ClearSphere, we have Director, Alistair Ingram. Our home for this episode is the Crestron showroom, located on the second floor of the sourcing mecca for savvy interior designers, the Design Centre in Chelsea Harbour. Later in the show, Phil Pini and Kate Fauset from Crestron are our guests. They will explain the showroom experience, how it works and give their insights into how this facility helps bring home technology to life for the benefit of interior designers and their clients. ...
