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

Hi Christine, thanks for joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later

I started my business in 2017 while working full-time, and it took a few years of growing the business before I felt comfortable to leave my full-time job and be working solely in my business. Most of my career I spent working for non-profit organizations and I had built up a number of good connections and experience in that world.

The business I started was not related to my 20+ years in the non-profit sector, so leaving what I knew was scary. I’m not a risk-taker by nature nor was I raised by parents or family who were business owners. It felt like I was jumping off a cliff and not sure whether I’d soar or land on my face.

As scary as it was, I wish I had started my business sooner as it really is my passion. I let fear and the unknown dictate my career decisions and even what I studied in college. I sometimes wonder where I’d be now if I followed my passion of photography and design years ago! But all the experiences I’ve had, that anyone has, becomes the culmination of who they are in the present moment today.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I provide interior design services tailored to the vacation rental industry, mostly properties listed on the Airbnb and VRBO platforms. The short-term rental (STR) industry has seen explosive growth in the past decade, and providing a well-designed property is critical in operating a profitable STR business.

Designing spaces for guests is different than residential interior design services in that I’m focused on the guest experience rather than the specific taste of the homeowner. My goal is to provide the guest with a comfortable and beautifully-designed space while also making sure the furniture and decor is durable and can withstand heavy wear and tear. I also pay close attention to how easily furniture pieces can be cleaned, which may be less of an issue with traditional interior design projects.

I also bring a background and experience in graphic design and communications, helping STR owners brand their properties and provide a well-designed property and help ensure it is presented cohesively online and in-person.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My business actually started out as a home staging company and we pivoted in 2021 to interior design for the STR industry. We owned over $300K in furniture, artwork, rugs and decoration and were staging several houses a week. During the pandemic we (my husband and I) were able to take time to really think about what we wanted from life and our career and realized that the home staging business wasn’t advancing those goals.

It was a huge decision to sell and donate all of our staging inventory, as we were a relatively new staging business. In retrospect, we grew very quickly without a plan in place to hire additional help. The business expenses quickly grew beyond what I ever planned for and were becoming larger (and more stressful) than I wanted to manage every month.

As we sold off the staging inventory (which took about one year to complete) I worked on building up the design business for vacation homes. Much of what I had learned while staging enabled me to quickly pivot, but not without a lot of self doubt and feelings of failure. I had to keep telling myself that making the transition was supporting our life goals. Holding onto something for ego and not pivoting would have been the real failure.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

“How I Built This” with Guy Raz podcast on NPR has been so inspirational and motivational! I love hearing how others’ built their business, how they pivoted, how they failed, and how they pick themselves up and keep going during down times or through the inevitable ups and downs that come with being an entrepreneur.

Through hearing the stories of others I realize that almost all successful business owners have failed in some form or another, and that true failure lies in not being able to move beyond it.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.vacayrentaldesign.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vacayrentaldesign/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christine.cowles.9
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-cowles/

Image Credits
Sarita Relis Photography