Sande Beck meets her design clients where they are.
Sande Beck never dreamt of having a design firm. After following a friend from Florida to Atlanta to teach elementary school, which she did for 10 years, she stayed home with her four boys. “I loved design, but it was more of a hobby,” she says. Her mother, Peggy Storey, had been working part-time for a designer in Birmingham and came to Atlanta for a project. “My mom said that I needed to get over there and help. From that day on, it was referral after referral after referral,” she says of the unconventional start to her design business in 2008. The ASID-certified designer has since enjoyed a fruitful career, helping Atlantans make their dream interiors realities. Her mother worked alongside her at Sande Beck Design until she retired in 2013. Here, Beck shares more about her philosophies and why now was the time to find studio space at ADAC.
What’s your design philosophy?
In the beginning, we’d start by coming in and saying, “You’ve got a good chest; you’ve got a good lamp; we can move the sofa.” We would rearrange the entire main floor and then make a plan. We still do that to this day. Husbands love us because we don’t spend any money up front on new items; we work with what they have first. As we move things around, it always looks better immediately, and then we start filling in. I am a good steward and am not buying something just to buy it. I love repurposing and reusing things. Some designers might hate that because they think it’s money lost, but my method has brought us so many new and repeat clients. I’m responsible with people’s money.
What about your philosophy as a business owner? I am 62 and have learned to be happy with who I am; I do not worry about what others think of me. I know the right clients will find me so long as I enjoy what I’m doing. From day one, I said if this is not fun, I’m not doing it anymore. I’m like my mother; she’s 87, but her brain is still 40. At 50, I would have said all these young designers are going to take our jobs, but now I think that my experience is important. And I love mentoring people, especially on the business side. I don’t mind paperwork and creating processes; that’s probably the teacher in me. You’re now at ADAC’s 242 Design Studios.
Why was now the time for studio space?
We wrote down goals when we first started: to be published, to be invited to do showhouses, to speak on a panel and to have an office outside of my home. I’ve been published four or five times, I’ve done six showhouses, and I was invited to speak on a panel. It had been driving me crazy to work in my house when my children were home, but it made sense because I could run out the door or be at home and work while they were sick. But the mess! I was taking up half of my house with fabric spread out. Even though my kids are gone, the mess was still making me crazy. It’s always been a goal to have an office, and it’s great because all of our resources are right there. It’s the best decision I’ve ever made. I wish I had done it 10 years ago.
SANDE BECK DESIGN
404.808.0557
sandebeckdesign.com
@sandebeckdesign
