The interior design community is all about broadcasting perfection. We show perfect renderings, record high checks, share successful cases, and write expert columns from the perspective of confident professionals. But when I founded my own studio two years ago, reality quickly put everything in its place.
Being a designer is one thing, running your own business is another. During this time, I have undergone not only a professional but also a personal transformation. This column is an honest story about how I gradually transformed from a perfectionist who sought to control every pixel to a leader for whom people, trust, and responsibility became the most important things.
Dimensional drawings and visualizations of the interior design project. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
The Illusion of Control and the Price of Delegation
My journey as an independent designer began with a desire to be in control. I felt that if I didn’t do everything myself—from initial measurements to final rendering—the project would lose its uniqueness. So I immersed myself headlong into the technical routine.
I remember sitting alone for hours, trying to tame the capricious 3D visualization software, downloading gigabytes of models, most of which I never needed. Today, I want to smile at my then self and say: "Sasha, stop. Studio manager and visualizer are different professions. Stop wasting time on other people's tools. Your main focus is management and construction."
It took me a while to realize that the value of a leader is not in being able to push all the buttons in the world, but in the ability to strategically manage processes. It was necessary to go to the construction site, stand next to the specialized craftsmen and openly ask: "Explain to me the intricacies of your work. What does the technological ideal look like and where does the compromise begin?"
It was only when I stopped thinking in terms of a performer and saw myself as someone who strategically manages processes that this vicious circle of total control finally broke. Effective leadership took its place.
Alexandra Kepina uses a palette to choose a color for a wall panel. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
Drawing instead of chalk: how an author's approach saves time and money
I was lucky enough to go through a serious school in the leading repair and construction companies of Odessa. I saw brilliant standards of work, but having founded my own studio, I acutely felt the responsibility for each project. After watching my colleagues who design “live”, drawing with chalk directly on the walls in the dismantling zone, I realized: chaos in work is unacceptable. High-quality design is, first of all, a perfectly organized process.
My author's system of drawings was born from the analysis of the first projects. Every time the foreman called from the construction site to clarify the details, I didn't get annoyed. Instead, I thought: "Sasha, you didn't formulate the task clearly enough." If the same question was repeated on different objects, I sat down at the table and forever "sewn" this problematic node into the design standard.
The value of a leader is not in being able to push all the buttons in the world, but in the ability to strategically manage processes.
Thus, detailed scans of skirting board joints, precise calculations of lighting, and many other clarifications appeared in the studio's working documentation. The drawings became so detailed and well-reasoned that a craftsman of any qualification could read them without error. Yes, this requires more time at the design stage. But now the builders have no reason to say: "We didn't understand the author and did it as best we could." For me, this is a manifestation of respect for someone else's work, time, and professionalism.
The process of interior design of a room. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
The reverse hiring effect: team architecture
I have always valued inner freedom - I was cramped within the strict office schedule from nine to six. It was much more interesting to escape to an interior design salon to disassemble a faucet cartridge with my own hands, or to spend hours studying the history of parquet flooring. Therefore, when creating a studio, I immediately abandoned the idea of a classic office: I wanted to give talented people the freedom to work at their own pace.
The team was joined by strong freelancers—motivated professionals who set their own pace. And that’s when I realized what I call the reverse hiring effect. They’re not really working for me. I’m working to help them reach their full potential.
I will never forget one incident. It was a day off, I was spending time with friends. Suddenly I receive a message from the visualizer and realize that because of my hastily drawn up technical task, the person has done a huge amount of work in the wrong direction. I was sincerely ashamed of my managerial miscalculation. I immediately called and honestly said: “Forgive me, this is completely my fault. Your work is impeccable, I will pay for this time, and now let's adjust the course.”
High-class visualizers are not just scarce specialists, but full-fledged co-authors of the concept. If a manager gives a weak technical task and makes the team guess what he meant, he inevitably loses authority. My TOR today is not an abstract “make it beautiful”, but precise color codes, verified references and the most clearly formulated expectations.
And another rule that I follow: if a client comes with emotions or irritation, I never convey this negativity to the team. My goal as a manager is to turn emotions into a clear professional task: “We change the geometry, we switch to azure.” Calmly, constructively, and without unnecessary emotions.
Selection of finishing materials and color solutions for the project. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
The Ethics of Financial Maturity
Amazing metamorphoses have also taken place in my perception of money. At the beginning of the journey, everyone is happy about advances. When you hold the first large fees in your hands, it is easy to believe that success has already come. But in reality, this is only an advance on responsibility — a credit of trust that has yet to be justified by a quality result.
Today, my main source of entrepreneurial drive has shifted to another point - the moment of paying fees to the team. I get great pleasure from clicking the "transfer funds" button. When I pay for the work of a draftsman or visualizer, I feel proud every time: "I was able to. I created a strong team, provided talented people with large-scale tasks and a decent income." It is at these moments that I truly feel that I have succeeded as an entrepreneur.
Trust in strong professionals and willingness to invest in their work pay off a hundredfold.
At the start, I deliberately took a risk and invited visualizers to cooperate, whose price tag seemed too high to me at the time. But their cosmic level of graphics instantly brought the studio's portfolio to the top league. It was this visual language that completely different clients came to — with large budgets. Then I realized: trust in strong specialists and a willingness to invest in their work pays off a hundredfold.
3D visualization of a bedroom interior in gray and blue tones. A pendant chandelier provides soft and warm diffused light. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
The limits of compromise: lessons worth learning
Of course, this path, woven from experience and development, consisted not only of victories, but also of constant rethinking of my own decisions. There was a period when I invested a lot in social networks: I regularly created content, but almost did not invest in its promotion. Later, I realized that in this way I was talking mainly to those who already knew me. Social networks without a marketing budget are an illusion of activity. If a brand wants to develop, it must talk to those who will come to you tomorrow.
Another important step was the filtering of incoming requests, the ability to choose projects more carefully. Coming from a large construction sector, where implementation budgets were a priori high, I learned to recalibrate expectations on freelance. At first, I took on orders where clients did not need design as art or new ergonomics of spaces, but rather technical support for repairs. I made compromises, made discounts, but each time I felt: in such projects, the designer gradually ceases to be the author - you become just a "tool" for drawing other people's chaotic thoughts.
Today, I know how to say no delicately but confidently if I see that we understand the value of design differently. And every time I am convinced: a timely refusal sometimes becomes the best solution for both parties.
Hanging hammock chair in a bright, minimalist space. Image courtesy of Kepina interiors
Not the peak, but the direction
Over these two years, I have deduced the main axiom for myself: professional and business maturity is not about creating the image of an invulnerable “iron lady.” It is the ability to openly admit mistakes to partners on construction sites, put the team above your own ego, and feel proud that you are creating jobs for the best in your field.
Today, my studio is not just a business, but a living organism built on dignity and mutual respect. We have already passed the stage of the first steps, and now each new project for me is a conscious challenge, impeccable implementation and pure joy of co-creation. Perhaps this is what true climbing is all about - not in reaching the top one day, but in not losing the desire to move on.
What does professional growth mean to you today?
