If you've got a flair for decorating and love to help others
create the home of their dreams, interior decorating might be a
great business opportunity for you. To learn more about how to
become an interior decorator, read the following article (or
click here to download your step-by-step guide):
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10 Steps to a Fab Job As an Interior
Decorator
Imagine having a career that lets you use your creativity to
make homes and businesses more beautiful and comfortable.
Welcome to the world of interior decorating!
There are few careers that offer so many benefits. As an
interior decorator you will have the satisfaction of making your
vision a reality. You will meet interesting people, and because
many people who hire interior decorators are wealthy, you will
likely spend time in many beautiful homes and businesses. If you
start your own decorating business you can enjoy the freedom of
being your own boss. And perhaps most importantly, your "work"
will be fun, interesting, and rewarding.
As long as you have the desire, you can become an interior
decorator. No special education or experience is necessary to
break into this career and succeed. (Unlike becoming a certified
interior designer which has strict requirements including two to
five years of post-secondary education in interior design.) You
can become an interior decorator immediately.
If interior decorating sounds like the career of your dreams,
here are 10 steps to breaking into this fabulous job, based on
the
FabJob Guide to Become an Interior Decorator:
1. Train your eye
Since you are interested in a career as a interior decorator,
chances are you already have a “good eye” for design. In other
words, when you look at a room you can see what looks good, and
what could be improved. But no matter how naturally talented you
are, you can continually “train your eye" by studying what
people consider to be good design.
Seek out beautifully decorated interiors to look at. You can
find numerous examples of beautiful interiors in design
magazines or in your own community by visiting show homes, open
houses for sale in wealthy neighborhoods, furniture showrooms,
historic homes, art galleries, and offices of professionals such
as interior decorators and corporate lawyers.
2. Educate yourself
Interior decorators are expected to know about the various
elements involved in decorating such as: space planning (how to
arrange furniture and other items within a particular space),
use of color and light, furniture and decorating styles (for
example, Colonial or Southwestern), floorings, wall coverings,
window treatments, and use of accessories such as pillows and
art. You can learn decorating basics through courses, books,
web sites, and even by speaking with retailers of products used
in home decorating (paint, carpet, lighting, hardware stores,
etc.)
3. Practice at home
Most interior decorators get their first decorating experience
working on their own homes. Even if you have just one small room
to experiment with, you can get “hands-on” experience with a
variety of decorating techniques. For example, you can make a
dramatic change to any room, quickly and inexpensively, simply
by rearranging the furniture or painting the walls a new color.
Give it a try! Experiment with techniques you wouldn’t
ordinarily use. Consider this room your “research lab” where you
can try things out before recommending them to a client.
4. Volunteer your services
Your friends and family members may already have asked for your
advice about decorating, but if they haven’t yet asked you to
actually decorate their homes or businesses, why not offer?
Some occasions your family or friends may want to redecorate are
when they experiencing transitions in life, such as: marriage or
co-habitation (help them merge two households into one), moving
into a new home, childbirth (offer to decorate the baby’s room),
hosting a special event such as a wedding or dinner party,
starting a home business (you could decorate their new office),
and selling a home (explain how a well decorated home can
attract buyers).
5. Prepare a portfolio
A portfolio is a collection of samples of your work, plus any
other documents that can help show why someone should hire you.
The most important part of an interior decorator's portfolio is
photographs of interiors you have decorated, so make sure you
take "before” and “after” photos of every space you decorate.
Choose 15-20 photographs of work you are proud of, and arrange
them in a photo album or portfolio case.
Your portfolio can also include letters of recommendation and
"design boards" (poster boards onto which you have pasted
pictures and samples of materials such as fabrics, flooring,
wallpaper, etc.) to show clients what you recommend to decorate
a particular room.
6. Get a job
Even if you plan to start your own interior decorating business,
you can learn about the business and meet potential clients by
starting with a job in the industry. Companies that hire people
with decorating talent include home builders, manufacturers of
furniture and housewares, hotel and restaurant chains, retailers
(furniture stores, home improvement stores, antiques dealers,
housewares stores, etc.), plus interior design and decorating
firms.
To get a job, you will need to prepare a resume that emphasizes
your experience with decorating plus any other skills the
employer is looking for, such as customer service or
organizational ability.
7. Start your own business
Many interior decorators dream of being their own boss. If
that's your goal, you'll need to decide on business matters such
as your company's name and whether to incorporate or not. Free
basic business advice is available from organizations such as
SCORE and the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Many interior decorators choose to work from home when they
start their businesses because it saves on the cost of an office
and, unlike many other types of businesses, you won’t be
expecting clients to come to you – you will usually be going to
their homes or offices.
8. Establish relationships with suppliers
Suppliers are companies that supply the products and services
you need to decorate. They include manufacturers of furniture,
wall coverings, flooring, fabrics, etc. as well as contractors
who do painting, carpentry, installation, etc. When you go
shopping as a professional interior decorator, you are entitled
to “designer discounts” of up to 50% off the regular retail
price which you can pass on to clients.
While some decorators charge an hourly rate or a flat fee,
others charge "cost-plus." For example, if your cost for a
product is 40% percent below the regular retail price, you could
charge the client your cost plus 20%, thereby saving the client
the other 20% they would pay to buy the same item at a retail
store. This opportunity to save money on decorating may convince
clients to hire you.
9. Get clients
Your potential clients could include home builders, new home
buyers, wealthy home owners, professional couples, advertising
agencies, art galleries, bed and breakfasts, boutique stores,
corporate head offices, hotels, law firms, restaurants, spas,
and many other types of businesses.
One way to market your services is by networking with
professionals who can refer business to you, such as real estate
agents, architects, antiques dealers, art dealers, home
renovators, and owners of businesses that sell home furnishings.
Other marketing techniques include putting up a web page with
photos of interiors you have decorated and getting publicity in
the homes section of your local newspaper.
10. Grow as a professional
Successful interior decorators continue to learn new decorating
techniques. Once you have started a business you can continue to
develop your skills by attending trade shows, reading decorating
magazines and books, and joining professional associations. You
can also impress clients and have an advantage over your
competition by becoming certified as a professional interior
decorator.
Based on the
FabJob Guide to Become an Interior Decorator by Tag Goulet
and Catherine Goulet. The complete guide gives detailed advice
on how you can get paid to decorate homes and businesses, be
hired for a job in the decorating industry, or start your own
interior decorating business. Visit
Fab Job
for information.
How do you get started?
1. Learn more about getting educated, setting up your marketing
plan and gaining new clients.
Click here for your
interior decorating guide.
2. Attract Clients: For a successful
life interior decorating business, you need a way to have your potential
clients to learn about you, your business and your services. A
great way to reach your target customers is by setting up your
own website. It's easy to do with the
Internet Based
Family website builder...and you can try it free
for 10 days.
