We were lucky to catch up with Megan Bailey recently and have shared our conversation below.

Megan , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

I have been very blessed that I’ve been able to earn a living from my creative work. Back in January of 2018 I left a miserable working environment and decided that it was time to work for myself. The two most important things at the time were having flexibility for my son (I was a single mom at the time) and being happy in my working environment and working for myself was the perfect solution! From day 1, I had a long list of past clients who were happy to refer me to their friends and families and through (mostly) referrals, I have been able to grow my business each year since 2018, I have had the opportunity to work with some truly amazing clients and design some incredibly beautiful and unique spaces!

I took lessons and business processes that I learned from past jobs and tweaked them to form my own unique design process that my clients really enjoy being a part of! Designing a remodel or a whole house of furnishings can be a really scarry and expensive process but I have developed lots of tricks to save where we can and get those Pinterest looks for less. Of course I encounter hiccups here and there but even with my 14 years of experience, I never stop learning and absorbing new ways to do things or resolve an issue that I’ve never delt with before. Communication is key and I feel that as long as those hiccups get communicated in a timely manner (usually with 1-2 solutions in my pocket) things can get resolved seamlessly.

I’m not sure if there is anything specific that could have sped up the process of owning my own interior design business, I think everything really fell into place at the time that it was meant to happen. That being said, it definitely takes a lot of motivation, integrity, confidence, thick skin and discipline to run a small business but it’s totally worth it, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!

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.

Oh gosh, where to start about me…I live in Plano with my husband and 2 boys (9 and 2) and have another boy on the way, due in November! We are a big baseball family, love to travel and do house projects.

I grew up in Houston and lived full time with my mom who was (and still is) my biggest supporter! She is a retired CPA so my ability to crunch numbers and work with budgets definitely came from her, my creativity did not! I’ve always had a design side whether it was rearranging my room growing up, photoshop classes in high school, different art projects I’d come across and make my own, so going into college, I knew I wanted to do something in interior design, but I did NOT want to work in a furniture store. I didn’t know what my options were but assumed I would figure it out in college! My junior year, I took 2 classes for kitchen and bath planning and that was it! That is what I was meant to do! I loved the challenge of working with an existing space, rearranging a space to function better and make everything fit with the right clearances and then making it pretty! My internship was for a remodeler in Dallas and I was hooked! I’ve worked in counter tops, a retail tile showroom, for the Property Brothers when they were filming episodes in Austin back in 2012, for an incredibly talented interior designer and a residential remodeler before starting Megan Baily Interiors and each of those jobs hold a special place in the process of getting to where I am now.

If it wasn’t for the interior designers I’ve worked for (Jean Ross and Stephanie Nix) I wouldn’t have the knowledge and appreciation for home furnishings that I have today. They both really opened my eyes to how fun and inspiring that side of the interior design industry can be! Because of them, I’ve been able to create two sides to my business and offer remodel design and home furnishings services to my clients.

On the remodel side, I take an existing space and recreate it to function for my client’s needs, I draw up construction plans, do 3D renderings, source material and fixture selections and create a construction package that can be passed along to my builder or a builder of their choice. Then during construction, I will stay in touch with the client/builder to make sure everything is going smoothly and make site visits as needed.

On the furnishings side, I will space plan and size furniture to my client’s needs, source and present options, make selections, price and order all items and manage deliveries and furnishings and accessory installs.

From one space to a whole house, remodel, furnishings or both, I break down the steps and make it as easy as possible for my clients to enjoy the whole design process from start to finish! I communicate well and listen to my client’s wants and needs, and then add a little flair of my own.

One thing that I feel is very important to my business and sets me apart from others is creating relationships, if you don’t have good relationships in this industry, you wont go very far. I have amazing trade partners who have added immense value to my business and each play a crucial part in things running smoothly. I also really enjoy getting to know my trade partners and clients, I want to know about their lives, families, kids or grandkids, their vacations and things they enjoy doing because I want my trade partners and clients to know how much I appreciate them! At the end of the day, it’s those relationships that turn into friendships, referrals and repeat clients and with out those relationships, I wouldn’t be where I am today!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being creative in the interior design industry is the final product. When the clients are happy with the finished space and I can step back and say “I did that!” There are a lot of steps, moving parts, vendors/trades, timelines/deliveries and things totally out of my control that can have an effect on the finished product. After everything is demoed, framed, painted, wallpapered, delivered, installed or hung and accessorized, I can look at a before photo and know that I helped accomplish a client’s goals, I helped change the way a space looks or functions for my clients needs, I made the client’s home better for them and their family. I created a space for them to enjoy and be proud of. Knowing that I did the job I was hired to do and my clients are happy, that is the most rewarding thing!

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

The best source of new clients for me has been referrals. There is so much value in a past client telling a new client “we had a great experience with Megan and you should call her!” Referrals mean I set an expectation with the client and fulfilled or exceeded it, I created a relationship that was more than just “work related”, I helped my client achieve their goals and I provided a quality experience and design process that the client enjoyed. And to add to that, when a client takes the time to write a review on Houzz or Facebook, they are sharing their experience with future clients who they don’t even know, adding value and credibility to my business to a potential new client.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meganbaileyinteriors/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meganbaileyinteriors/
• Other: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/kitchen-and-bath-designers/megan-bailey-interiors-pfvwus-pf~1227879019

Image Credits
Southern Lane Photography and Sharp Frame Media