We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ciara Lindley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ciara thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you share a customer success story with us?

I have a few stories but this one jumps to mind. About two years ago, two sisters called me on a time crunch and desperate for help. Their parents were moving across states to an empty new-build home in the area, both elderly, and one a stroke victim with permanent disability. One of the sisters would be living with their parents to help, so they wanted to surprise them with a home nearby that was ready to move into, organized, minimal, and simple to navigate to help ease their fears and uncertainty of moving. None of their belongings except some clothing would be transferred with them, and they would be starting over fresh with new furniture, kitchenware, food, linens, home decorations, storage products, etc. My job was to recommend and purchase organizing and household products for the entire house on a budget, and then physically come in and organize everything to fit with the needs and disabilities of their elderly parents, in addition to working jointly with the interior designer and handyman they had already hired. What I found to be unusual with these clients was their atypical interest in questioning about transparency and honesty, hidden fees, product cost receipts, and other similar topics, paired with their very active involvement and engagement down to the last tiny detail. They seemed hesitant with moving forward initially, and when I did ease their minds and start organizing in-person, one of the sisters would come to visit the house every day. To clarify, I, in no way, think any of this was wrong and had no issues with my clients, they were wonderful people! Based on the hesitations, though, I just seemed to get the feeling someone had done them wrong.

Well, after many many hours of working with them, the story finally came out. The interior designer I met the first day had been lying to them about her company’s pricing, the cost of products, fees she was charging, and services she offered, and my clients were currently in the process of quietly collecting evidence and working with a lawyer to bring her to court. She had not only wasted valuable time, but robbed them of THOUSANDS of dollars, much of which couldn’t be recouped once they realized what was going on. So then I understood where they were coming from!

Upon completion of the job, my clients sent me a text saying “Hi Ciara, we showed a picture of what you did to my mom and she was in tears. Tears of joy!” They told me that not only did I do a wonderful job organizing an entire home independently in a short amount of time, but that my transparency, honesty, upfront answers, and reliability were a huge relief, and in this day and age it’s hard to find a trustworthy person. So, to finally get to the point and answer the question, I believe the job was a success in fulfilling the physical organizing needs of my clients but more importantly in reaffirming their belief in the existence of a trustworthy business that strives to provide the best customer service possible. I’d say that’s a win-win, wouldn’t you?

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?

To start, I did not ever expect to pursue home organizing (I didn’t even know it existed!) and much less start my own business. As a teenager, I was far from organized. My room was always such a ridiculous mess that you couldn’t even see the floor, and my backpack had a growing stack of wrinkled papers. My parents even encouraged my three siblings and I to be clean and tidy, and we had weekly chores we were responsible for that I’m sure we complained endlessly about, yet I never saw any real reason to keep up with the habit on my own. It never crossed my mind that perhaps making my bed, folding my laundry, and picking up after myself could actually be a good thing!

When I got to college, everything changed. With my newfound freedom, I apparently took on a new sense of pride as well. I became semi-obsessed with keeping my bed made, the floors picked up, and my desk clear. Through each college room, apartment, and house I lived in, I made sure my space was clean in case anyone dropped by unannounced. This trend continued post-college through my many “career” choices- including cardiac rehab intern, coach, grad student, lifeguard director, and elementary teacher. It wasn’t just a stage; it seemed I needed the stability and peace an organized space provided, possibly to counteract or dampen the chaotic world around me, or just as something I could control and create structure in my fast-paced life.

I found home organizing while searching for a job to bring in more income during the summer when I wasn’t teaching. I had served my time managing and instructing new lifeguards after doing it for 10+ years, and instead found myself searching for jobs related to my passion for organizing that had become apparent over my last few years of teaching. I applied for a position under a well-known Austin organizer who was just starting to build her team, went through the interview process and got the job, but unfortunately she had hired too many organizers so sadly I never worked a session that summer. Since it was required to have a DBA on file and insurance for her company, my husband and family encouraged me to start my own business instead. In hindsight, I thank God for the series of life events leading up to Sorted Spaces & Design!

Recently, I was presented with the challenge of expanding due to client demand and baby girl number two. I’m proud of how my business has grown and of the two amazing, talented, hard-working team organizers working with me. The behind the scenes of a business is not easy for me, as I am not business-minded, so there is a large learning curve with lots of room for improvement. Fortunately, though, I’m blessed to have my family and friends around to encourage, advise, and support me through this unfamiliar journey.

What’s so special about us? The process between organizers may look slightly different, but over the years, I have learned we all bring something unique to the table. Personally, I want to be able to advise on and provide what is needed to fulfill the potential of the space, while keeping it as simple as possible for my client, which is why my session packages include all the bells and whistles under one flat rate. In-home assessments, organizing, decluttering, and redesign, product research, shopping and returns, and donation and trash drop-off are some of the main services, but my team is also relatively handy and has a basic eye for design so we do a variety of home services such as installing shelving systems, building furniture, furniture placement, hanging decorations, etc. I’ve even been asked to install light fixtures and put in landscape lighting! I hope to bring in systems to fit the lifestyle and help the functionality and aesthetics of a client’s space. But that’s only the surface. Ultimately, I strive to build relationships and provide a full-service experience where my goal is for my client to see the simplicity and beauty of organization and how it creates space for mental, physical, and emotional freedom and freedom from stress and anxiety.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Initially I was worried at the thought of needing to purchase so much just to get started. With a teacher’s income, there wasn’t much left over to be taking risks with, so I was hesitant at the thought of buying anything. Luckily, in this line of work, you do not have to purchase a ton of inventory or start out spending money on materials or goods to sell. I was more worried about funding a website and possibly hiring a website and logo designer, having a large enough vehicle to transport products and donations, advertising, fancy programs to send invoices and digital contracts, hiring an accountant or tax specialist, buying the most expensive label maker or Cricut machine on the market, or becoming a member of NAPO. But after joining many professional organizer groups on Facebook, browsing through articles on Google, and listening to professional organizer podcasts, I learned none of that was necessary. In fact, many successful organizers said they started with mainly their DBA, a website or Facebook page, and whatever they had on hand to stock their organizing work bag. So, since the general consensus seemed to be that very little investment was needed for launching the business, with the option of acquiring needs and improving as you go, I decided to take a leap of faith and start with the basics. Within a week someone found me on the Nextdoor app and unknowingly became my first client!

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

I would have to say Google. On my website, when potential clients enter their information, they are also required to answer how they found out about me. The answer is 90% through a Google search. Even though I am visible on Google Maps and one of the first organizers that pops up in my area, I saw the biggest influx of clients after I received my first five-star Google review. I think having even just one review really assures potential clients that you are, in fact, a real trustworthy business and at least worth looking into.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sorted-spaces.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/sortedspaces_design
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/sortedspacesanddesign