Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jenna Morrow. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Jenna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
In 2016, my husband and I purchased our first home and we decided to DIY most of the renovations. I shared before and after content online which gained the attention of family and friends. One friend in particular reached out to me when they bought their condo in DC and said “I want you to decorate it. Let me know your price and let’s do it.” I was excited but nervous because I only had experience with my home and I didn’t know the first thing about design rates. Nonetheless, I figured it out and spent my weekends working on decorating the condo only to quickly realize it wasn’t something I could do while working full-time in corporate America. My husband noticed my love for design which I continued to study. Then the pandemic hit which left me furloughed from my corporate job and afraid for my health as I have Multiple Sclerosis so I’m on the immunocompromised list. Combine that with the birth of my first baby plus postpartum anxiety and my mental health was threatened. I sought professional help for the anxiety and one of the methods my therapist gave me to cope with panic attacks was the 5-4-3-2-1 method. It encourages you to use your immediate surroundings to ground yourself and bring your mind to the present. Since we were on lockdown, my immediate surroundings were always my home and it was during those times that I used the 5-4-3-2-1 method that I realized how important your interiors are and I wanted to bring that same message to clients. I just didn’t feel ready to do it so soon. Fast-forward to the summer of 2021 and my husband planted the seed for me to pursue full-time entrepreneurship. He repeatedly told me “the work you’re doing in corporate America isn’t for you. You should be designing.” I considered it then nervously took the leap. My last day at my job was in July 2021 and I immediately hit the ground running to clarify my business’s message, ensuring that I was clearly and succinctly connecting interior design with mental health. For the next year, I worked on my business plan and repeatedly updated my mission until it was easily relatable and digestible to potential clients. I also did a market analysis to see how my message compared to other designers in the US. Were they discussing mental health? Were they sharing how your home has a direct impact on your productivity? Of the three I assessed, the answer was no so I realized I had something unique, I just had to get the message right. I also had to build systems that delivered on our mission and brand promise. It’s one thing to get clients in the door, it’s another thing to keep them happy enough that they either come back again or recommend us to their network. It took repeated iterating and restarting our operations to get it right but we are finally there. The key for us–and for any business owner–is to not get so wrapped up in getting it right on paper that you don’t execute your vision. What you say and how you say it is essential but how you bring your message to life and over-deliver on your brand promise is most important.
Jenna, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m the founder and principal designer of The Morrow Home Interior Design. We are a Washington, DC based boutique design firm that designs from the heart to the home. We believe home is your most personal environment so it should tell your story. Our design philosophy is home should tell the story of who you are, where you’ve been and what you aspire to be. Our consideration for storytelling combined with our focus on mental health sets us apart from many design firms and it’s an aspect of our business that we are proud of.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I paid for a few of the platforms and systems I used, initially, to set the business up via my credit card. They were basic platforms since I wanted to keep my overhead costs low but they worked since it was just me behind the scenes. I kept the prices for my services pretty low because I wanted to secure enough clients so I could make make an adequate amount of money that would allow me to, eventually, improve my back office systems. By the first quarter of 2022, I had made enough to enhance my operations and strengthen my client experiences which also changed the caliber of clients I was attracting. That also turned things around for my business so I was able to hire a part-time designer in order to begin scaling the business.
How do you keep your team’s morale high?
What has worked for me is making my team feel safe. We’ve gone from a team of two to a team of four plus one intern and I have found that giving them the space to be heard and seen impacts morale. I asked each of them to set goals for the year–three professional, two personal and one area of growth. But, I also did the same and shared them with the team. We have monthly check-ins where we review their goals and that’s my opportunity to ask them how they feel about the business. Everything from client relationships to operations. During those meetings we also flip and they provide me with an evaluation as a designer, as their manager and as a business owner. Finally, I challenge them to get uncomfortable by assigning them a task they may not have done before but I support them in that discomfort so they never feel isolated or intimidated.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.themorrowhome.com
- Instagram: @themorrowhome