With us on the podcast today is Julie Murphy. Julie is the Owner of Designer Draperies of Boston, a full service to the trade workroom. She began as a home-based business in 2006. In 2014 she purchased Designer Draperies of Boston and merged the 2 businesses. She has tripled the size of her team as well as sales since transfer of ownership. She attributes her growth and continued success on 3 things: Quality, Effective Communication and Exemplary Customer Service. 

Today we will focus on her journey to make a business acquisition – the highs and the lows.  

How many of you go to an industry conference at least once a year? On our podcast today, I am just returning from the International Window Coverings Expo. And I'm going to share with you 10 things that really stood out to me while I was there.  

Joining me on the podcast today is Ericka Saurit. She is the founder of Saurit Creative, which is a boutique brand marketing agency. This is really going to be such a fun discussion. We’re going to talk about story, leaning into your story and inviting people in. Ericka has such an honest and curious approach. I love that. I really think you're going to learn a lot not only about your brand and marketing, but about being able to invite people in to share your story and to feel a part of it, and to use words and emotions to do that. Enjoy the podcast. 

Joining me today is Brooke Chapman. She's the executive director of Three by 3 and Nine Boxes. Brooke has a proven track record in helping small businesses really create a strategy around their marketing. Today we're going to be talking about strategy versus tactics in your business with regard to marketing. Brooke uses a phrase that made me laugh, she calls it random acts of marketing. That's when we're just doing tactical work instead of strategy work. So listen today and see if there are some changes that you can make to your business to be more strategic.

As a business owner, one of the biggest challenges you face is managing your pricing strategy in response to fluctuating costs. Pricing is a crucial element that can determine the success or failure of a company. On the podcast today we will explore how to manage this in your business.

Joining me today on the podcast is Dominique Deraiche, with Designer Elite. She is a co-founder of Designer Elite, which provides Operations and Support for interior designers. Dom and I are going to have an awesome conversation on how to get help, how to determine when we're in overwhelm, and how to ask for support and delegate without dumping. Enjoy.

Joining us on the podcast today is Barbi Burris. Barbi is the owner of Full Well Fitness and has a signature program the Well Stretched Life. She is a Christ follower, a flight attendant, a certified fitness instructor - she does all the things. She knows what it's like to have a very busy life and to try to work in being fit at the same time. And you know, that's the life that many of us have, we're really, really busy. We need to take care of ourselves. Our conversation today is going to be centered on how we can take fitness and put it into our life in doable doses and why that's so important. Welcome to the podcast.

Have you heard of quiet quitting? Maybe you have seen or felt it in your business or when speaking with a colleague. Quiet quitting is defined as an emotional quitting instead of physically doing so. On the podcast today we are exploring quiet quitting. What it is, how it occurs, how to spot it and hopefully stop it before it escalates. 

Joining me on the podcast today is Kaitlin Brophy with Brook and Elm. What I love about the conversation that we're about to have is that it's going to be focused on creating a niche company from the very beginning, using skill sets from a prior career, and also just building a business with intentionality. So I hope you enjoy the podcast.

Joining me on the podcast today is Nikki Rausch. She is a sales coach, trainer, author and speaker. Nikki shares with us how to authentically move people through a sales process naturally. I'm so excited to have her on the podcast. She has her own podcast, The Sales Maven. So, make sure you check it out.

Here is a question I get repeatedly when someone shows me their financials, “Is this good?” While many may be good judges of great design – being a judge of great financials can be a bit more difficult if you don’t know what you are looking at or how to compare the numbers you are seeing. In this podcast I will share some benchmarks for financials in the Interior Design industry – and in healthy businesses in general. 

Today we have Jamie Van Cuyk. Jamie is a hiring strategist, a podcast host, and a speaker. And today we are going to dive into all things hiring. I know that hiring a team has been very difficult for many of you, you've probably had some starts and stops along the way. You're wondering what the next right hire is, how to make sure you're choosing the right person. And that's the conversation that we're going to dig into. So welcome to Jamie Van Cuyk.

Today we're going to be talking with Sandra Halling. And Sandra describes herself as a recovering corporate consultant turned anti-hustle, pro-equity, productivity coach. We're going to be discussing all about listening to ourselves, having an awareness, and then creating some opportunities to protect ourselves while we're also building our firms. And so it was just such an awesome fun conversation, but also one that helps you think deeply about caring for yourself caring for your business so that you can care for your clients. So enjoy the podcast, and I'm excited to have Sandra with us. 

Usually, we talk about ending a year well. What could it look like to start the year well? Hang with me as we consider what could make our year begin well..

On the podcast for our yearly review and progress session is Ceil DiGuglielmo of the Sew Much More podcast. This is a joint podcast that we love and look forward to each year. This year we seemed to really look at our personal lives and how they intermixed with our business lives a bit more. Also, listen in to hear the one thing that we both struggled with this year that we have enjoyed so much in the past.

This week we're rerunning episode 131 of the Profit is a Choice podcast, “How to easily create a strategic plan for your design firm.” This is an awesome topic that we processed through a couple of years ago. And I will say to you, it is still relevant and it's something that we work on and focus on in Scarlet Thread Consulting all the time. So, I want to encourage you as you wrap up this year, and get ready for next, that you take the time to consider your strategic plan, what it might look like, and how you can improve upon it from moving forward.

Do you know how to define a toxic workplace? Are you the one bringing the discord into the office or is someone else? Maybe you are looking for a job and want to know what to steer clear from. Today, we are going to talk about what makes a workplace feel yuk – and how to spot areas for improvement.

It is not often that I get to dive into a topic that is totally foreign to me when we start the podcast. Usually, I have heard something about the topic and have a little knowledge. The 831(b) plan was a new thing – and Ed Bryan joins me to help us understand this tax deferral and risk management opportunity.

Today I am welcoming Erin McGhee to the podcast. Erin describes herself as an Accounting Manager for service-based businesses. Her big goal – to put you in charge of your money. As you can tell, we have a lot in common. Listen in as we discuss what is needed to have you in the driver’s seat of your business vehicle and what it takes to keep you there.

Lately I have been thinking about the value in building a community of support for your business. We really are not in business alone. In this podcast I am going to share some of my community, how I chose it, how it supports me – and how you can do the same.