Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Allison Campbell. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Allison, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about your team building process? How did you recruit and train your team and knowing what you know now would you have done anything differently?

When I first decided to go back on my own after working for a builder, it was just me. I managed the projects and workload as it came in, but after a year and half, I realized I needed help keeping track of everything if I wanted to continue to grow. I interviewed several people for the position of “intern” because I knew I couldn’t afford to hire someone with a ton of experience. After interviewing a couple, I sat down with one and we just hit it off. I hired her later that night and asked if she could start the next day. That was over 5 years ago and of course she has become my right hand. Since then, I have hired several additional designers and have had to let some go, but I have been able to now create the perfect team to help me keep all the projects flowing beautifully.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I have always been a creative person. I would rearrange our furniture often and shop within our own home to make each space look different as I changed things up and it helped me fill my creative need as I was raising my children. In 2000, a friend asked me to do her daughter’s room for a birthday present. That was the first project I did outside of my own home. I then did a friend of a friends house and so on and so forth. In 2009, a different friend came to me and mentioned that he wanted to start a construction company and asked if I would help them design the 2 homes they wanted to build to see if this would all work. Up until that point, I had only done remodels. With new construction, I found that I had more freedom to try different things because we were starting from a blank slate. I was hooked! I worked for that builder for several years as the interior designer, as well as project manager. In 2017, I felt like I wasn’t quite getting enough of the furniture and decor side as we were so busy with the Construction portion of the project. It was then that I decided to go back out on my own.
One thing that I had learned during these years I was good at creating relationships. I had become friends with the subcontractors and vendors, and I had become someone they could rely on. When I left, I started getting a lot of referrals sent by these subcontractors and vendors that had enjoyed working with me and knew my work ethic. It has grown and grown from there. I have the ability to see things from a construction point of view, not just the Design side. Because of this, I have been able to earn the trust of those I work with on the construction site. I have found that this is actually rare among designers to be able to come and speak with the subcontractors in their construction language and help solve problems that normally most Designers are not be able to do. I believe I have become well-known in the industry where we are for being able to come up with viable solutions that end up being amazing features of the home. I have worked hard to build a good reputation and back that up with amazing work.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

As I mentioned, previously, I enjoy being on site to help solve problems, come up with solutions, and overall spend time with those who are actually putting the Designs into play. I work in a male dominated industry and when I first started coming out on job sites early in 2011/2012, I swear I saw eyes roll from the subcontractors and laborers working there. I think that in their experience, when a designer steps onto the job site, additional work is placed on them, because the designer doesn’t know the ramifications of her decisions. I have had to work hard to prove myself and my knowledge and understanding of construction. I have worked with several builders that had a hard time understanding and allowing me to show that I do understand and know construction.
I have been able to create trust between the builders and contractors and subcontractors and vendors that I work with so that now when I walk on the job site, they feel like answers to their questions will happen quickly and decisions will be made. It has gotten to the point where they will call me first to solve something before even the builder as they know that I will be able to make things happen. One of my most prize possessions is the trust that I feel and the appreciation that happens when I come on the job site and we get things done.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I feel like in my industry, my reputation is what has helped build my business. At the end of a build/project, I only have pictures of the finished product. The actual product belongs to my client. So I don’t have something that people can come and touch and feel and look at. They can only see pictures of it. So, with this in mind, The pictures have backed up my reputation. Along with the pictures of the work that I do, is word-of-mouth. I don’t really advertise much. I have been in a couple of magazines, but most of my work comes from the recommendation from architects, Builders, previous clients, vendors and subcontractors. I feel like getting a recommendation from someone in the industry is the highest form of complement. These recommendations and referrals have helped substantiate my business and help it grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: www,allisoncampbelldesign.com
• Instagram: @allisoncampbelldesign
• Facebook: Allison Campbell Design

Image Credits
Amanda Peterson Photography