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

Hi Jahanna, thanks for joining us today. Talk to us about building your team? What was it like? What were some of the key challenges and what was your process like?

I have been in business for over twenty-five years. In the beginning, I was pretty stubborn about hiring. I felt I needed full control over every step of the design process with my clients. Occasionally, I would bring on interns to help run errands, put samples away, and those types of things. It’s only been very recently, within the past five years that I have learned how valuable it is not to try to do everything myself. I remember I was feeling so exhausted and pulled in so many directions when I opened an email from a potential intern. I figured why not, I needed some extra assistance again with little things. I interviewed her, and as she reminds me, I never even really looked too closely at her portfolio. I could sense she was a good person and I just followed my gut. She was brought on part-time and a few weeks later Covid hit.

Interestingly my field exploded during Covid, as people were at home and not spending money on travel, it was more important than ever to have their surroundings look and feel good. She quickly went from intern to part-time employee and from part-time to full-time in a matter of months. I soon realized that she had strengths that didn’t come as naturally to me. The things that I struggled to do, she excelled at. This freed up time for me to do design and do the things I do best.

Since that time, I have had a few fails when it comes to hiring, but I have learned how to choose better with each one. I still rely on my gut and I still feel it’s important that whoever I’m considering for my team is a good human. Most everyone starts part-time and quickly becomes full-time. With each new personality and talent, the capacity to take on new and better projects presents itself. I have an amazing team of three employees and two interns currently. One of my employees excels at anything organizationally related. She keeps orders and installs flowing. One is tremendous at AutoCAD, and my newest hire does beautiful renderings. We also all collaborate on projects and sourcing materials. I still have the final say, but I love the options my team comes up with that alone I may have never thought of. I could not have offered all these services to my clients had I not been willing to relinquish some control. If I were starting today knowing what I know now I would have hired a great team right out of the gate!

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

For the readers who aren’t familiar with my company. We are a full-service interior design business based in Claremont, California. We do everything from assisting in ground-up construction projects to styling small spaces and everything in between. We pride ourselves in giving our clients a finished project that is a reflection of them, what they love, and how they live. Many firms have a specific look to their design. Each one of our designs is carefully curated and as unique as the clients we work with and the project we take on. Whether it’s mid-century, Spanish, ultra-modern, traditional, or an eclectic twist on a few styles, we make sure it’s well thought out, and done in a timeless way that our clients will love for years to come. We are proud of the fact that we build long-lasting relationships with our clients, many of whom we have done several homes with over the years. To us, it really is about the client and not the project!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I hope that we have built a reputation for not only beautiful, timeless designs, but a reputation for taking care of our projects and our clients. There are so many unforeseen challenges that every project is going to encounter, that’s a given. It’s really about the solutions we come up with and problem-solving. In the end, we want our clients to know that no matter what comes up. we are going to handle it for them, and ensure that the final result is one that they are happy with for years to come.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Honestly, we love it when a client finds us through social media or google, and that has been happening a lot more lately. However, the majority of our clients are still all referral. That truly makes us so happy. it means we have done a good job and someone has shared their positive experience with another. It means everything!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jahannanicholsdesign.com
• Instagram: jahannanicholsdesign

Image Credits
Meghan Bob Photography Traci Giles