We were lucky to catch up with Anais Chaumien recently and have shared our conversation below.

Anais, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

I started my career as a lawyer, and then spent a few years working in real estate.
But I always felt those were jobs to pay the rent. I was never passionate about any of this.
One thing I was always passionate about though? Apartments, and how to style them.
I spent all my weekends rearranging my space, or my friends’ apartment. I was constantly changing my decor.

I moved from France to Morocco while still working in real estate, and there I discovered a new world.
I started an Etsy store, selling Moroccan decor (rugs, baskets, pillows…) and it was really fun.
One day, a Parisian client who bought stuff from me asked me if I could style it, as she had no idea on how to make all this look great in her place.
I did it, and that’s when I had a revelation: I didn’t care about selling decor, I wanted to *create* it!

Because I suffered (and sometimes still do) from major imposter syndrome, I decided that I needed a degree. I studied interior design for a year, and got my diploma.

Now was the time to decide what to do with it.
I knew I wanted to work for myself.
After 7 years working for others, I was sure that wasn’t what I wanted anymore.
The key for me? Freedom.
I was not afraid of working a lot. I wanted to work on my own terms.

I heard stories of interior designers who joined design firms and spent 3 years only designing walk-in-closet.
That was definitely not for me.

I had a side job as I was still working in real estate, so I decided to take some time to craft my business around my dreams, and not the other way around.

As a designer, you often have to visit the space you’re designing. You usually also purchase furniture & decor and install it.
Finally, if the project includes some renovations, you manage the contractors.

All those things were NOT what I wanted.
My goal was to focus on the creative part which, to be fair, was my real value.
Managing contractors in a country I didn’t really know, in another language? No, thank you!
But creating beautiful and functional designs? Yes, please!

I also didn’t want to be tied to a specific location. I love traveling and moving around, and I’m in the US thanks to a visa that might not always be there.
If I’m tying my business to a precise location, what happens the day I need to move out? Or the day I want to travel for 2 months?

Again, my goal was 100% freedom in my business.
I had a secured side job that I could keep if I wanted. So if I was to launch my own business, it had to be for a better life.

Once I had all this in mind, I started thinking about the interior design industry.
I always felt there was a gap between super cheap online services, that could be okay for a small budget but that are definitely not personalized and custom, and super expensive full-design services, taking months to complete, and at least a $20k fee for a bedroom.
But what about people in between?
To be honest, I thought about people like me, like my friends, in their thirties, wanting a more curated and intentional decor, but not knowing where to start, not having hours to dedicate to the project, and with a smaller budget.
I thought about renters. What about us? Aren’t we allowed to enjoy our home even if we don’t own it?

After moving around 30 times, across 3 continents, I knew how essential your home is to your well-being, whether you own it or not.

So I created Design by Anaïs for my friends. For people who don’t have an unlimited budget but still want to transform their apartment into a home they can be proud of.
For renters who want to enjoy their time in their space, whether it’s for a year or 10.
For people who want their home to be unique, to display their unique personality, without spending months on it.

More flexible & more affordable (without being cheap!) while still creating 100% personalized designs and a true 1:1 process.

That’s the story behind Design by Anaïs.

I spent some time working both jobs to make sure I had enough clients (and money) to ditch my 9-to-5, and after a year, I decided to leave my day job, and finally work only for myself.
It’s been 4 years now, and I’ve never been happier.

Sure, it’s a lot of work and stressful times. But everything I built was tailored exactly to what I wanted to offer, to my expertise and my creativity.
I never take on a project I don’t love. And I never have to handle things I don’t want to.

My advice to readers wanting to launch their business: think about what you like doing (and what you don’t), and make sure to create your business around it, not the other way around!!

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 feel I gave tons of info about this in the previous part, but feel free to ask me more questions if needed

Have you ever had to pivot?

As a former lawyer, I was used to working a lot, and it was never an issue for me.
When I started my interior design business, I decided to organize my clients so I was only working on one project at a time.
I was blocking approximately one week per room.
At one point, I started to receive a lot of requests. So many people wanted to work with me, and everybody wanted the result ASAP.
I was so happy, and honestly, relieved, that I accepted everyone.
I decided to pile up projects like I piled up work when I worked as a lawyer, thinking I would just work late and on the weekend for a few weeks.
At first, it was okay. But after a month, I was exhausted. Which I used to be in my previous job too.

That’s when I discovered something: you can’t force creativity.
Writing pages and pages of documents as a lawyer was one thing.
Finding the perfect color palette, or the perfect table lamp to pull a whole room together was something else.

I had never worked a creative job, and I had to learn it the hard way: to be creative and do the best possible job for my clients, I couldn’t be exhausted. I needed my energy, my focus.
For a few weeks, I did my best, but I must confess that what I was sending to my clients was not my best job.
And no surprises, they asked for a lot of revisions, which is really rare today.

Now I make sure to dedicate plenty of time to each project. And if someone needs something ASAP and I’m already full, I gently direct them to someone else.
That’s the best thing for me, but also for them!!
I owe to my clients, who trust me with their homes, to dedicate all my time and energy to serve them, and deliver the best possible result.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

I usually find my clients through Instagram and my website.

For my website, I decided early on to invest in SEO. This is actually the only recurring expense in my business, and it has been for years now.
But believe me, I’m happy to pay my SEO expert every month. He allowed me to rank super high on Google for important keywords, and more than half of my clients come from a Google search.
I also made sure my website was as great and converting as possible.
A lot of designers just showcase their projects online. You don’t see anything else which, for me, is a huge mistake.
People want to know you, and learn how you work.
I made sure to include lots of info about how I take care of their homes.
I also display my prices. That allows me to filter requests, and every person contacting me knows exactly my fee.

I also find a lot of clients on Instagram.
To be honest, I have a love-hate relationship with it (who doesn’t?). It’s so hard to perform on it, to get people to engage.
I was so frustrated with my data on Instagram. And one day, I decided to stop focusing on it.
From day 1, people were finding me on Instagram. That’s all I’m asking for!
My new mantra: clients over engagement.
I decided that if people were finding me there, I must be doing something right.
So I keep posting, and people keep coming, even if my engagement is ridiculously low. Who cares?
Same as for my website, I really make sure to share a lot of behind-the-scenes so potential clients can see how I work, and if we can be a good fit.
I talk a lot about business, I show my face, I make sure to talk on video so people hear my voice etc…
Things that not a lot of designers do online.
That makes me unique on Instagram, and probably helps potential clients understand how we could work together.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.designbyanais.com
• Instagram: @designbyanais