Lloyd Princeton

Lloyd Princeton is a management and retained search consultant who specializes in the A&D industry including North American product sales distribution. As principal of Design Management Company, Lloyd is an expert at residential design pricing and is a frequent speaker major corporations, governments, developers, manufacturers and trade associations.

Articles by Lloyd Princeton

• Keep your distance, but maintain personal relationships

  Just when it looked like remote working had hit its peak, employers are again facing the possibility…

  Friday, December 11, 2020

• Plan for 2021 looking on the bright side

  Mostly sunny with intermittent clouds and showers. That’s my forecast for 2021. It may seem overly…

  Thursday, November 19, 2020

• Grab this opportunity to finance business growth

  You may have seen mentions in the business news of late to "free money." Perhaps you thought to yourself,…

  Thursday, October 22, 2020

• Have Zoom, will design

  Interior designers are on the move — literally and virtually. Concerns about health and safety, including…

  Friday, September 18, 2020

• Uncertainty is one thing you can count on

  One of the oft-repeated truisms in business circles is that the only constant is change. It’s not hard…

  Monday, August 17, 2020

• Crosscurrents ahead — proceed with caution and optimism

  Our industry appears to have turned a corner. After a disappointing second quarter in which many clients…

  Monday, July 20, 2020

• Change happens, so explore your possibilities

  Change and uncertainty often go hand-in-hand, and right now, most people are experiencing a little (or…

  Monday, June 22, 2020

• Reshaping your business for the new normal

  Even in the most optimistic scenario, the repercussions from the COVID-19 pandemic will have a profound…

  Thursday, June 04, 2020

• Design’s role in the coming recovery

  Nobel laureate in physics Nils Bohr wisely observed, "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's…

  Monday, April 27, 2020

• Interior design is facing a talent shortage, and it’s going to get worse

  As anyone trying to hire in today’s job market knows, it’s getting harder and harder to find qualified…

  Friday, March 20, 2020

• Firms are hiring again.  Here’s how to compete.

  With the news that the global and U.S. economies were showing signs of slowing down, A&D firms as a precaution…

  Friday, February 14, 2020

• An acquisition could be your next great business move

  Consolidation is the name of the game in the architecture and design industry these days. Firms are combining…

  Monday, January 20, 2020

• Build your business with confidence

  Things are looking up. OK, maybe the outlook is not as sunny as it was a few years ago, but it’s not…

  Thursday, December 19, 2019

• Strategies for surviving the next recession

  Will we or won't we? The verdict is still out on whether the U.S. economy is headed into recession sometime…

  Thursday, November 21, 2019

• Quality of work begins with quality of life

  Two of the biggest challenges employers face today are retaining employees and keeping them engaged at…

  Tuesday, October 22, 2019

• Selling interior design services in the 2020s

  Two inevitable trends will transform the interior design industry in the coming decade. One is the rise…

  Friday, September 27, 2019

• Older designers need to flaunt their strengths

  Some readers of a certain age may object to my labeling them as "older." I get that. "Old" and "older"…

  Tuesday, September 10, 2019

• Flex time for interior designers

  In years gone by, clients hired an interior designer to execute an entire project. With some exceptions,…

  Thursday, August 01, 2019

• Does location impact your interior design business?

  Recently, a client approached me with an intriguing business dilemma. They felt their firm could be commanding…

  Monday, July 08, 2019

• What is your employee value proposition?

  Along with attracting the right talented people, holding onto them is one of the biggest challenges businesses…

  Tuesday, June 11, 2019

• Career concerns for working baby boomers in design

  This year, the last ripple of baby boomers, those born in 1964, turn 55. In two years, the vanguard,…

  Friday, May 03, 2019

• Demand for design services currently a mixed bag

  As I talk with clients around the country, I'm hearing quite divergent views of how business is going…

  Monday, April 08, 2019

• The future of interior design sourcing

  Like many other industries and professions, interior design is becoming increasingly digitized. From…

  Monday, March 04, 2019

• The future of interior design is wellness

  It’s that time again when members of the home décor media roll out their lists of interior design…

  Monday, January 14, 2019

• No response is not a response

  Have you ever had the experience of trying to get the attention of a store clerk or waiter, only to have…

  Monday, December 03, 2018

• Designing in many shades of green

  Green, or eco-friendly, is now widely accepted as a responsible way to design. Yet, in practice, designing…

  Thursday, November 01, 2018

• What to know about distributing your products in North America

  North America, and the United States in particular, is one of the largest markets for selling just about…

  Tuesday, October 02, 2018

• Beware of the slippery job candidate

  Anyone trying to hire in today’s architecture and design community knows how challenging it can be…

  Tuesday, September 04, 2018

• How to re-enter the design job market successfully

  Unemployment is low, and firms are having difficulty filling positions. If you’ve been out of the job…

  Wednesday, August 01, 2018

• Selling design when product is king

  Design today is all about product. Whether the topic is aesthetic, trends, lifestyles, sustainability,…

  Tuesday, June 26, 2018

• Is luxury the only market left for interior designers?

  As consumers’ appreciation of and desire for good design have increased in the past decade or so, competitors…

  Monday, June 04, 2018

• Bill everything you earn

  One of the challenges for any kind of service provider, professional or non-professional, is finding…

  Tuesday, May 01, 2018

• Managing the highs and lows of your design business

  We will soon be entering the optimum time of the year for home sales, home purchases, home renovations…

  Monday, April 02, 2018

• Managing employees’ salary expectations

  ​Interior design salaries have grown only minimally in recent years. Now, with the national unemployment…

  Monday, March 12, 2018

• Protecting your firm against client disputes

  ​Interior design firms in many parts of the country experienced a surge in business during the second…

  Wednesday, January 31, 2018

• Helping your employees deal with stress

  Interior designers often work under considerable stress to meet deadlines, stay on budget, manage vendors…

  Wednesday, January 10, 2018

• Attracting and landing millennial clients

  ​Whether as employees or clients, millennials have a reputation for being difficult to work with. I…

  Monday, November 06, 2017

• Diversify to grow your revenues

  Interior design business activity has improved in recent months. My wish for you is that you have a prosperous…

  Tuesday, October 10, 2017

• 5 fatal errors to avoid when setting client expectations

  ​Every now and then a news item crops up about an interior designer or decorator accused of egregiously…

  Wednesday, September 13, 2017

• 7 steps to rebuild your design business

  It takes a lot of courage to seek help for a problem — whether personal or professional. You have to…

  Monday, July 31, 2017

• Take the time to close the communication loop

  ​If you start something, finish it. That seems like one of those primal, "everything I needed to know…

  Thursday, June 29, 2017

• Building the steps to design career success

  ​Some days it's all you can do to keep up your demanding workload. It goes on day after day, until…

  Tuesday, May 30, 2017

• A values-based business model for interior design firms

  ​Over my many years of business consulting, I have come to appreciate that the best interior design…

  Tuesday, April 25, 2017

• Hiring practices for today’s fast-paced A&D job market

  Hiring in the architecture and design industry has surged again. My firm has been inundated in the past…

  Tuesday, April 11, 2017

• Consider the cost of maintaining a lean team

  ​In times of uncertainty or negative growth, it makes sense to keep staffing to a minimum and draw…

  Thursday, March 23, 2017

• Employment options for older designers

  ​A former client wrote me recently to say he had hired two older employees some months ago and has…

  Monday, February 06, 2017

• Improve your design business by focusing on what you do best

  ​Running a small business is not usually top of mind for most would-be designers. They want to be doing…

  Thursday, January 12, 2017

• Design business planning in uncertain times

  ​We are fast approaching the end of 2016. Before you get caught up in the whirlwind of holiday activities,…

  Friday, November 18, 2016

• Put your design skills to use elsewhere

  For many designers, the idea of doing something other than interior design is unthinkable. It is not…

  Wednesday, October 26, 2016

• 2 for the price of 1: The benefits of a merger

  Each designer has his or her own unique vision and talents. Design businesses, on the other hand, have…

  Tuesday, September 27, 2016

• Another new normal for designers?

  During the period of "conspicuous austerity" resulting from the Great Recession, consumers were reluctant…

  Tuesday, August 23, 2016

• Is it the economy or your clients?

  In the interior design industry, these are the best of times; these are the worst of times. For some…

  Tuesday, July 26, 2016

• Beef up benefits to retain employees

  Unemployment has dropped, salaries are creeping upward and, despite an uncertain construction forecast,…

  Friday, June 17, 2016

• A consultation deserves a fee

  "Should I charge for a consultation?" is a question I am often asked when speaking to designers. There…

  Tuesday, May 24, 2016

• Before you hire, put job candidates to the test

  Interior designers are on the move, looking to take advantage of the current hiring boom. Since demand…

  Tuesday, April 26, 2016

• Hiring strategies in a tightening design labor market

  ​Despite concerns about the global economy, the U.S. labor market continues to add jobs each month.…

  Tuesday, March 15, 2016

• 5 mistakes to avoid in recruiting for your design firm

  From the employer's perspective, doing your own recruiting makes a lot of sense. Who knows your business…

  Tuesday, February 16, 2016

• Proper diligence is key to a successful design merger or acquisition

  2015 was a big year for mergers and acquisitions. Even large, well-established companies like DuPont…

  Wednesday, January 13, 2016

• When outsourcing design work overseas, do your homework first

  ​Saving time and money are two good reasons to consider outsourcing rendering and other visualization…

  Tuesday, November 24, 2015

• 5 steps to making the right hire for your design firm

  ​One of the more costly mistakes you can make to your design business is hiring the wrong person. Research…

  Tuesday, October 13, 2015

• Interior designers can no longer ignore social networking

  ​I believe in the value of personal contact, and the interior design business is very relationship-driven.…

  Wednesday, September 23, 2015

• Safeguard your designs to avoid theft, lawsuit

  ​Whether it's vetting a design concept or solving problems on site, design projects take teamwork and…

  Tuesday, August 18, 2015

• As job market heats up, versatile designers are in demand

  There has not been a better time in the past four or five years to be looking for an interior design…

  Tuesday, July 28, 2015