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A Well-Designed Business® | Interior Design  Business Podcast

453: Carolyn Flannery: Impact Your Pipeline With This One Strategy

A Well-Designed Business® | Interior Design Business Podcast

LuAnn Nigara

Design, Business, Arts

4.9810 Ratings

🗓️ 6 August 2019

⏱️ 74 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Welcome to the show! Today, Carolyn Flannery, the principal of Carolyn Rebuffel Designs joins us on the show. Apart from designing interiors, Carolyn also heads up Workroom C, a textile company which offers pillows, drapery, bespoke soft goods, and fabric by the yard. Carolyn built her design business in a rather unusual way and she has a really organized approach to running it. In today's episode, she shares with us how she intentionally focuses on families with children, who understand the value of having family-friendly spaces with durable, multi-functional furnishings which are also beautiful. Listen in today, to hear about Carolyn, her business, and how she markets specifically to her ideal clients, using one strategy that has been keeping her pipeline full for more than 10 years. With over a decade of hospitality experience under her belt, Principal Designer Carolyn Rebuffel Flannery brings a thoughtful approach to each project she completes. At her namesake design firm, established in 2006, Carolyn believes that your home should be a retreat that provides you with a sense of ease and calm. After building a career as an antique store owner, buyer, and merchandiser, Carolyn transitioned to interior design, crafting practical yet beautiful interiors that reflect her clients' unique lifestyles. As a mother of four, Carolyn understands the value of creating family-friendly spaces with durable, multi-functional furnishings. Her work highlights unconventional lighting, savvy design solutions, and a healthy mix of high and low pieces. In addition to designing artful interiors, Carolyn helms WorkRoom C, a textile company that offers fabric by the yard, pillows, drapery, and bespoke soft goods. She holds a BA in Art History from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a MPS in Hotel Administration from Cornell University. Tune in now to find out more. Show Highlights: How Carolyn started with her unusual business strategy. Carolyn explains her free, and her paid consultation processes. Carolyn has grown her business so that she's in a position to direct it in any way that she chooses. It's not always the swankiest private schools that make the best clients for Carolyn. Some clients tend to experience some fear when using the services of an interior designer for the first time. Being really clear when explaining your processes and pricing to new clients. Staying on track with the amount of time that's been allocated for a consultation. You don't have to have children to be able to tap into the schools' PTA donation market. It may take some time to tap into Carolyn's kind of market. Carolyn talks about how she started with the fabrics that she's designing. The complicated reality of providing exactly what clients want. What Carolyn learned from Amy Flurry about PR. You have to have an intention behind everything that you do in your business. Other episodes mentioned in this show: Amy Flurry #108 and #323 Andrew Joseph # 39  Krista Coupar #24 #45 #60 #81 #150 Links: Carolyn Rebuffel Designs: Workroom C WorkRoom C

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey, I want to give a shout out to my friend Susan Winterstein. You may know Susan from her two

0:05.5

podcast appearances here, episodes 164 and 717. In these episodes, Susan told us about her charity that

0:13.9

she founded Savvy Giving by Design. Now she has introduced the Savvy Giving Design Coalition.

0:23.7

The mission of both of these is to bring comfort and hope to families by transforming kids' rooms into healing sanctuaries. Previously, in order

0:30.9

to help Savvy Giving by Design, you could open a chapter in your own area and then design

0:36.7

spaces for children in your area that are in need.

0:39.9

Now with the Savvy Giving Design Coalition, you can contribute and impact the lives of these children

0:45.5

without taking on the beginning of an entirely new chapter.

0:49.9

Savvy Giving Design Coalition operates through the collective efforts of you, the designer, as well as sponsors and volunteers.

0:58.6

This organization is making a real difference in these children's lives, and you can help now in whichever way feels right for you.

1:06.3

I encourage you to listen to Susan's two episodes to learn more and then visit their website at

1:12.2

Savvygivingbydesign.org forward slash design coalition. We'll also put that in the show notes.

1:24.0

This episode is sponsored by Revelwoods. Revelwoods is your source for premium hardwood and resilient

1:29.6

flooring. Using the Revelwoods selector tool, you will be able to find curated suggestions for each

1:35.1

specific project based on criteria such as style, color, zip code, and usage. Because the species of

1:42.6

wood that performs in a laundry room in Key West is not going to be

1:46.1

the same as the wood that will perform in a living room in Chicago. And how do you know that?

1:51.2

Well, Revelewoods helps you. Know before you specify. And when you sign up for a free professional

1:56.9

membership, you'll get access to exclusive discounts and referral benefits. Visit revelwoods.com to get started.

2:16.5

Welcome to a well-designed business.

2:18.3

My name is Luann Nigara, and I'm so glad you found this podcast.

2:22.3

Together with my husband Vince and our partner Bill, we have grown our company Window Works from the ground up,

...

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