We recently connected with Brittany Poll and have shared our conversation below.

Brittany, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Often outsiders look at a successful business and think it became a success overnight. Even media and especially movies love to gloss over nitty, gritty details that went into that middle phase of your business – after you started but before you got to where you are today. In our experience, overnight success is usually the result of years of hard work laying the foundation for success, but unfortunately, it’s exactly this part of the story that most of the media ignores. Can you talk to us about your scaling up story – what are some of the nitty, gritty details folks should know about?

When I first started Will + Blu, I assumed it would just be a fun side hobby. I took on a friend as my first paying client and sort of added in clients casually from there. When the pandemic hit in 2020 (6 months after launching W+B), everyone was sitting inside their homes for weeks on end, staring at all the things they had always wanted to do but never got around to doing. Through instagram, the word of my little side hobby spread and soon I had several “virtual” clients (since we couldn’t actually go into other people’s homes) and a full schedule. Shortly thereafter, I quit my job as a nurse (I was only working as needed, anyways) and dove in head first. I haven’t had a break in my schedule since!

In the spring of 2020, I got an email from a girl named Claire saying she was going out on a limb but loved my brand and asked if she could work for me. I had no clue what I was doing managing an employee, but I told her she was hired. She worked for me for a few hours each week, and I soon realized I couldn’t function without her. She really believed in the brand and cared as much about Will + Blu as I did. She diligently worked her way up from my back of the house girl to a junior interior designer. By the beginning of 2022, she was taking on the majority of our clients and officially became a full time designer as well as the other half of Will + Blu.

Together, Claire and I have learned and grown and figured out what things work and what things don’t. We have put processes in place, taken leaps forward even when they felt scary, and continued to expand our knowledge in the world of interior design. We set goals and continue to achieve them, and support each other when we have tough times. Our goal is to always stay authentic and true to ourselves- not for anyone else. We do this work because it makes us genuinely happy and that is all anyone can ask for! I never thought my side hobby would become my career, but I am absolutely thrilled that it did.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I practiced as a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse for 8 years, but always had a drive for expressing creativity. My obsession with interiors started when my then boyfriend (now husband) moved in together. Pinterest had just come out (ha ha) and I loved being able to find inspiration and having my handy boyfriend build it for me. We ended up renovating a few homes together and with each project I fell more and more in love with design. After a while, family and friends started asking me for help with their homes and I started doing design work for them as a fun side hobby. In 2016 we built a lakehouse in Michigan and that is truly what kicked off my career. With the encouragement of some friends I started an instagram account showcasing my portfolio and soon began taking on clients left and right.

I first started out as just an interior stylist, choosing items that would complete a persons space. I would send them shopping lists with links to purchase whatever they wanted from my suggestions. Since then, we have developed into a full blown design firm with projects that start as early as the architectural phase and continue into a fully furnished home. We hold our clients hands through every phase of design whether it is during the building or renovation process or just a simple home makeover. We have a full time finish carpenter on staff (Hartwood Collective) which sets us apart from other designers- he can design us custom furniture or a custom built in office- the sky is the limit.

We have built this business out of nothing and what we stress the most is that we don’t do it for the amount of likes and follows – in fact during our busiest times instagram is the first thing to go. Remaining authentic to ourselves and our brand is what we strive to do on a daily basis rather than following every single trend or doing something because we feel pressured to. Expressing our creativity through your homes brings us the utmost joy and we are beyond passionate about what we do.

Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?

The hardest and most difficult lesson and pitfall that our small business has gone through was when a vendor that we had purchased almost $15,000 worth of furniture from went under. For some of the clients, we had already waited several months (one client almost a year) for their items that continuously kept getting pushed back. A few of the items ended up showing up with no warning (2 sofas) and some things finally arrived after a new business took over. Unfortunately, about $6,000 worth of furniture never showed and we had to make it right for our incredibly patient and understanding clients by replacing their items at no cost to them. For a small business, this was a big blow, but luckily it happened far enough along into our career that it didn’t kill us, just made us stronger (and of course more knowledgeable and selective about who we give our business to!)

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

Social media has its negative aspects BUT it certainly is helpful for small business owners (at least in my opinion!) What started out as a fun side hobby turned into a full blown business due to the luxury of the “share” button on instagram. When I posted my Will + Blu account on my personal page (where I already had a good amount of followers) my business officially “launched”. Friends shared, friends of friends shared, old coworkers shared, and before I knew it I was an actual business with actual clients. Word of mouth has also been incredibly helpful. Many of my clients refer me to their friends, family, neighbors and coworkers which is the ultimate compliment. I haven’t had to do any marketing whatsoever and we have never had anything but a jam packed schedule with a waitlist of clients at all times!

Contact Info:

• Website: willandblu.com
• Instagram: willandblu_interiors

Image Credits
Ramsey Baker Interiors Photography