A CHAT WITH MELISSA LUNARDON

MENTOR TO NEWLY MINTED INTERIOR STYLISTS!

It’s what’s inside that counts; as true for interiors as it is for people. In this episode, we tick both boxes with the lovely and skilled Melbourne interior designer and mentor, Melissa Lunardon. Hers is one of the longer resumes and one better experienced by exploring the trail of purposefully and creatively styled homes left in the wake of hurricane Melissa.

In the age of option anxiety, choice excess, analysis paralysis, whatever you want to call it, interior designers and stylists are here to shepherd you through the myriad of colours, accessories, furnishings, styles, and feelings to an aesthetic solution that suits you, your personality and your home.

Kribashini and Melissa talk about her beginnings as a designer, her entrepreneurial transition, and how she became a mentor in the field. They then move into the design space touching on capturing personality in design, and tactics to approach a job, before finishing up with Melissa’s mentoring program and the perks of business ownership. Oh right, COVID gets a mention too of course – that’s mandatory in podcasts these days, right?

Get your foot in the beautifully designed interior styling door today!

If you have a topic or question you’d like us to cover, contact us here.

SOME TOPICS THAT WE COVER:

  • [2:38] – How Melissa’s first job at Space Furniture gave her solid experience straight out of university
  • [3:50] – Working for Andrew Mitchell as a young designer and what that involved
  • [4:00] – Melissa’s experience working for a volume builder
  • [5:30] – How high demand for her services amongst friends became her entrepreneurial spark
  • [6:40] – The similarities in Melissa’s career journey to Kribashini’s
  • [8:00] – Although you might not have your dream job, use your current role as a stepping stone
  • [10:10] – Why Melissa hired a business coach before she had even started a business
  • [10:43] – Setting up an exit strategy prior to exiting your role to start on your own path
  • [11:33] – Melissa talks us through the Osborne Street project (check the street name)
  • [12:20] – The benefit of having your interior designer on board from the start of your build
  • [13:45] – How an architect and interior designer can work really well together
  • [15:40] – For those of us that struggle with too much choice, an interior designer can take the struggle away
  • [17:00] – How you can show off your personality in your design choices
  • [18:30] – Developing for your own home, or developing for-profit and the differences between the two from a design perspective
  • [20:00] – Melissa’s mentoring program and what’s involved
  • [21:00] – The power of networking
  • [23:00] – Why having someone guide you through the process, joining a course or mentorship program helps you define what it is that you need to do in the proper order and with minimal headaches
  • [25:35] – The benefit of running your own business in your ability to pivot when needed very quickly
  • [27:30] – The flexibility in working for yourself and how no day is the same in this industry

LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

We have several Facebook Groups at BuildHer Collective.

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BHC DevelopHers Circle and BuildHer Collective Members Only – these are closed groups for women who are doing our Build Like a BuildHer course or who have joined our DevelopHers Inner Circle.

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Anyone is more than welcome to join our Women who Design, Decorate, Renovate & Build group. You will note that it’s a closed group but ask to join and if you’re into building and renovating, this is such an amazing and supportive FREE community, so come on and join in the building goodness!