We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Vinita V. Pugal. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Vinita below.

Vinita, appreciate you joining us today. Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

I had an established master planning and landscape architecture consultancy practice in Southeast Asia with my friends before I moved to the United States twenty years ago. Design is an expression of one’s surroundings through art and storytelling. Moving across the planet to re-establish my life and career made me value the lessons I learned from the people and communities I met worldwide.

I am honored to have worked with numerous creative professionals in the design and entertainment industry who are inspiring storytellers. My passion for integrating storytelling, art, master planning, and landscape architecture guides me to be a creative design professional.

The inspiration to start a platform for designers dates back to the 2008 global recession. We wanted to name it Design Node – a node or a place where creative professionals could connect and provide design services online. We first established the company in India with my mother as a partner. My mother passed away in 2017, but the company remained as Designodal.

In 2019, I was at a beautiful basketball court where my son was practicing, and I was reading the news on Reuters and saw a photograph of children playing in a filthy recycling yard. I distinctly remember the image that transformed my thinking. I decided that it was essential to be able to support nonprofits and agencies of change as part of Designodal’s mission.

My personal reason for working independently through Designodal is to spend time with my teenage son instead of being stuck in Los Angeles traffic!

Vinita, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Designodal, Inc. is a collaborative platform for designers to imagine, share, and explore creative solutions. We engage in design projects related to the public realm, master planning, landscape architecture, outdoor event design & permitting, experience design, guest experience, and visitor attractions. We are a women-owned small business based in California, working on projects worldwide.

We provide master planning services to design offices, entertainment, and experience design companies. We collaborate with our partners to create a compelling brand activation and immersive experience for design projects. We also support organizations working on outdoor events and public space activation. We aspire to work more with design organizations and cities working on activating public spaces for the community.

Designodal passionately supports local artists to showcase their work, connect with clients, and help local nonprofits with fundraising. We aim to connect people and transform the world through design by integrating art, nature, culture, and storytelling.

Designodal is an open platform where designers can initiate projects and lead their teams. The key is that the project should align with the organization’s values.

We are grateful for how the business model of Designodal can impact society in small ways by leveraging our skills and network.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect is to see the joy on the faces of people who use the space we designed. Most people who use buildings, public spaces, urban plazas, and parks rarely know the numerous designers, engineers, and construction workers who worked behind the scenes to create the space.

Though we have worked on various design projects worldwide, one of my most rewarding personal contributions has been to give back to my parent country, India. I was the founding panel member for drafting the Landscape Architecture Building Codes for the Bureau of Indian Standards. I have strived to support the profession for 25 years, even after moving to the United States.

The design profession is similar to an orchestra that creates a beautiful symphony through teamwork. An additional reward of working together on a creative mission is the ability to build lifelong friendships along the journey.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

The process is to take small incremental steps forward and accept to learn through mistakes. I worked through college and spent weekends on construction sites to learn skills that added additional value when I graduated from architecture school. So, the capital for my design consultancy in India was skill and a network of good friends.

After moving to the United States, I worked as a full-time employee in design companies and did part-time consultancy for other offices to save money to raise capital. The relationships I built with my previous employers, clients, and coworkers helped support the transition. I even requested my ex-employer loan me a laptop with design software to kick-start the process.

We are on our journey and learning along the way.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.designodal.com
• Instagram: @designodal
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Designodal
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Designodal

Image Credits
Photography by: Brittany Del Soldato, Lucky in Lush. Additional Photo Credit: Teresa Cuba, Pugal Ramakrishnan, Project Illustration Credit: Designodal Inc, Mycotoo Inc., RIVA Creative, SmithGroup, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise, Architect Harish Tripathi & Associates, Vinita Vijayan & Associates.