Welcome And Guest Introduction

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my name is Vanessa Perez. I am owner and founder of ATHAV Interior Design here based in Leesburg, Virginia. Uh, my service is for... Well, my goal is to service residential designers. Not residential designers, I'm sorry. Residential clients sometimes to the trade, contractors, and down the line, developers. Awesome. I can't wait to hear more. So you've built a career that combines creativity, functionality, and helping people feel more connected to their homes. How did your journey into interior design begin, and what inspired you to start ATHAV Interior Design? I would say growing up in a very interesting family where my mother was in fashion, uh, industry and my father was in textiles. I thought I was gonna stay in that realm, and then I realized that I was moving furniture a lot in my house and repositioning everything, so I figured that was probably a clue that I was gonna be in interior design and not fashion, because my fashion sense wasn't great at the time- as a child. Um, one of the inclinations that I realized

Early Clues That Shaped Her Style

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that it was a thing for me, um, I told my mother when I was 10, "I want a pink room, but I don't want it pink." And she's like, "I don't know what that means." I'm like, "I don't know, but I know it's in my brain that that's what I want." And then I had the brilliant idea of getting Christmas lights that had pink bulbs and just used that and decorated the whole room with it, and I said to her, "This is what I mean. I want a pink room, but it's not pink." So I think when I started ATHAV, a lot of the inspiration behind the actual number is my relationship with my husband, you know? We both- Dated for a very long time, and actually our anniversary month is August, which is the 8th. Uh, we got married on the 18th of August in 2018, so, like, the eight became, like, a big symbolism for us. And so I felt like that number was always drawn to me everywhere I went, so I felt like it was, like, a sign. So when I first started Eighth Ave, I wanted to be kind of what I used to do in, in Connecticut, because I'm originally from New Jersey, but moved to Connecticut, um, at the time with my husband. And the clients there were all freelance, so everything I did was just freelance work. I never had a name for myself. It was just, um, Vanessa. When I came here to Virginia, I knew it was different because we're in the DC metro area, and so I knew that I had to have an actual identity because legally you want to. So that's when I realized I needed to figure out my identity here, and that's when Eighth Ave became, like It began in 2022 officially through paperwork, but I didn't really establish it in Leesburg until 2023. Awesome. It's so interesting to hear how, like, your early life kinda inspired certain things that, you know, you incorporate into your business. How did those early experiences kinda shape the designer you are today? I mean, a lot of the experiences that I even endured, like let's say college, you know. I went to college a long time ago and ab- even what's bad about it was that the recession hit. So when we graduated, I graduated in 2011 there was no actual jobs, you know, for interior design specific because it was really hard market. And so I had it drilled in my mind, even from my professors, like, "Oh, when you graduate you're gonna work in an interior design firm," and blah blah blah blah. That was not the case. And so I had to find another resource to still train in a different way that's related to interior design because interior design can be very broad. I ended up doing showroom, meaning tile showroom sales, which has nothing to do with interior design per se like as designing, but it was the only way I was able to learn how to deal with people. And I think people really shape you as a designer too in how you approach, how you approach your future clients, how you can do better from your past clients. But also like what is it that you really, who do you wanna service really? I think after you've gone through so many different types of people you're like, "Okay, these are the kind of people that I really wanna target as my actual clients because these don't appreciate it and these will," or, "These really can't visualize and that's who I rather help because I can visualize very easily." And so I think when I started the way I started, I think it was a blessing in disguise. At the time when I was young I said, "Ugh, I'm not working at a design firm like everybody else. Like why is this happening to me?" But then I, I think I realized that after a while growing up, 'cause you grow up after a while that you had to go through that experience to be better in a different way. And maybe for me it was learning to

Starting A Career During The Recession

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how to service people first before really pushing like that I'm a designer kind of card out to everybody. I think learning that way was best because it shaped me as a professional. Even what I do now, it makes me more knowledgeable at a young age, and people sometimes don't expect that. They're like, "Well, you're only how old and you know all this?" I'm like, "Yeah, 'cause I got exposed to it early 'cause it was the time period and that was what we had to work with." So I did that and I think that's what makes my business- Easy for me to market because I can say I can easily talk about kitchen and bath all the time when it comes to designing it, because it's kind of like my bread and butter, as we would say, um, in Jersey. But now being in the Virginia area, I'm expanding more to other s- living spaces is what I would call it, like living room, more bedroom, maybe more outdoor stuff that I never did before. So it's just starting to open up a little bit for me. Yeah. So- And I love that you were able to get that experience early on rather than learning, you know, with trial and error- Yeah you know, when you started. Which a lot of designers do now. Like, sometimes they won't do that service part and they'll just jump on like, "I want to open my business now," but then they don't have the resources, they don't know anybody, they don't know how to talk to people- Right how to approach people, know at least the basic guidelines of, like, materials. And I think that was the blessing that I had, because I was able to learn faster what products are and that contractors will take me more seriously because I know something versus, like, saying, "I'm a designer, I'm fresh off the boat, but I still don't know much." Yeah. So they'll be like, "I don't know if I can hire you." So it makes it easier. Yeah. And I think people skills are so important- Yeah especially when you're doing a service for people, because- Yeah you could be, you know, the best at your job, but if you don't have those people skills- Yeah you know, you're not able to create that connection- Yeah and really serve people how, you know, they would like to be served. Yeah. Yeah. I agree 100%. Yeah. And you officially launched your business in 2022 while continuing to work full-time in the commercial design world. What has that journey been like, and what have you learned along the way? I will definitely say that you can be a hustler if you want. I think, And I think this is just from the kind of family I grew up in. I- my family are big entrepreneurs as well, coming from South America, especially my grandmother. And so I think for me, I've always craved more. One thing wasn't enough, but not in a bad way. It was more of like, I want more because I wanna establish something for maybe my future child that unfortunately my parents couldn't do for me. So I wanna do that for them, even if it's a baseline. I mean, I wouldn't say I would wanna spoil them. I still want them hard- to learn hard work, but it's just to get to that point. So when I was trying to learn to run my business and work full-time, it was really about management and balance of work balance, trying to have a business balance, and also a marriage balance. You know, you wanna dedicate it to them too. And so I involved my husband a lot in the process, saying, "Hey, I wanna open this kinda side gig too, but I want your help as well because I wanna make sure that we are working together because this is for the both of us." And so the tricky part was trying to... Even I do this now, is still managing the business after hours because I wanna make sure that my job doesn't think that there's a conflict of interest, and so, and it never does because they're two different industries. I do residential, that's commercial, which is nice 'cause they're completely different, even in construction. And so it's nice 'cause it, that full-time job teaches me a lot more. And then when I'm doing my residential side, it's, like, easier because it's not as complicated, it's not as intense, it's not as, uh, large. So it's a nice balance there. Um, but I would say that it's good to just be busy because I think we're always evolving, and I think as professionals, we should continue to learn. You know, I had an uncle that he would constantly crave education. And I think at the age of, like, 60-something, he already had, like, five or six degrees. Like, he would finish one, he'd be like, "Okay, I wanna do the next one." And his sons are like, "Are you crazy?" We're like, he's like, "No. We're young. Our minds are young. Let's keep on learning. I wanna do more." And I think that's w- what I get from my family. We crave more, and he's an example also of that person that I always tend to, um, be influenced by. Um, so I think it's just We are hustlers. I mean, I can't help it. It's like a natural thing. Yeah. And I love that willingness to, you know, strive to learn more- Mm-hmm 'cause I feel like there's always something more that we can

People Skills As A Design Superpower

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learn. Yeah. There is. Right? I agree. One thing that stood out from your story to me was your willingness to take on projects of all different sizes. Why is it important to you to be accessible and help clients who may not fit the traditional interior design model? Ah, that's a great question. Um, when I started in the sales world- We all have, and this is general in the sales world, you have to have, like, a sales number to meet for the year. Like, that's your range that you have to try to meet. And when I started, I was s- had a really low sales. And I remember at the time my manager, may he rest in peace, at the time, he had said, "All the little projects will lead you to something. And so don't dismiss even a contractor request for, like, 10 square feet of a floor tile, like, because you never know that because of that, it might bring you to something bigger." And I remember vividly in that job, a woman came in one day and said, "Hi, I'm looking for just flooring for my powder room that's, like, 25 square feet." That means that can equate to maybe $300 of sales. I was like, "Sure." I didn't care. I decide to help her, put my effort into it because why not? And I started talking to her saying, "Hey, you could do this. You could do that, whatever. If you de- decide to change the walls, you can do this, this and that." And then the next, you know, the next day I get a phone call from her contractor. And her contractor's like, "Hi, you helped so and so with her floor." I said, "Yeah." And he goes, "Okay. Well, I... She really liked how you worked with her and how you weren't really pushy. And so because of that, I wanna bring you my business." I'm like, "Oh, okay. So, like, what do you do?" And he's like, "I'm a builder, and I'm building multiple houses right now in New York, and they're about worth, I think, a million dollars each." Wow. "And so I wanna send you all my new people that are signing the contract to build the homes to just work with you to do all the selection, the tile selections of all, like, the whole house." And at that point, at the time, you know, you're looking at bathrooms, powder rooms, great rooms, like, flooring only. And so I said, "Sure." And then when- next thing you know, I was getting one house after the other just from that one interaction. I think from what I learned there at the time until now is, like, that's how I wanna run my business. It's like, I don't care what kind of projects I get, I'm willing to accept small requests, even if it's a consultation, because I feel like once you build that trust with someone, it'll take you a long way. And I think that's what I learned from that experience, and that's what I bring into my business where I wanna create that trust with people that they can rely on me, even it's for something so small. Yeah. I think it's amazing how, you know, one conversation can change so much. Um, and then you've also shared that a lot of your clients appreciate how well you listen and how honest you are throughout the process. Yeah. Why do you think trust is such an important part of creating a successful design experience? A lot of people don't realize that what relates to interior design to people is an emotional attachment to a space. And so a lot of people that are designing, they're emotional about what they want the space to feel like for themselves on a daily basis. Is it their retreat from a very stressful day? And so I think for them- When they feel that someone is willing to understand them and really be humble with them of like, "Okay, what are you looking for? Like, what do you wanna feel when you walk in this space? Is there sounds that you feel like that kind of cultivate that experience?" And so a lot of it is really being in tune with them, almost like a therapist but in a good way. It's like I'm your design therapist a little bit. But I think it's great because you get to hear stories as they start to open up with you, and then that's how you can kind of really unveil the kind of person that they are and really what their aesthetic is like. 'Cause sometimes they're very closed down and they won't really be open. They'll just stick to like, "I just want white and gray." And in reality they probably wanna bring in a pop of yellow, a pop of green, and they're just afraid of saying it because they, they think they're gonna get judged, and I'm not one to judge. Like, whatever you want, I'll help you, bring it to life. Like, I wanna tell your story through the design, and that's the purpose. Yeah. I think that's such an interesting perspective

Building A Business While Employed

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because for a lot of people, I think a room might just be, what they see. Yeah. But then for a lot of other people it might be like, "How do I wanna feel when I walk in this room?" Especially when it's their home, you know? Yeah. After a long day of work or after, you know, something stressful, you know, you wanna come home and you wanna feel- this is- Like- This is your spot. Exactly. Like, this is your nook. This is your safe space. Yes, exactly. Yeah. And for someone who's never worked with an interior designer before, what are some common misconceptions people have, and what can they expect when working with one? So they, they always call us interior decorators. And I think growing up, and even the industry now, they'll say, "We're not decorators, we're designers" and people don't know the difference. I think they say interior designers are decorators because they think it's all about color, but a lot of it is not just color. I mean, color is, yes, is a big part, but we're dealing with guidelines, we're dealing with coordination, with management of other resources. And so we're doing a lot of things that they don't see because they only see what we present them. But behind the scenes we're, like, driving ourselves crazy and driving a million directions and partly arguing with a bunch of people and telling them, "I want this sample by this day. I need it delivered." So I think they don't see that side, which is okay, 'cause that's why they hire us. But I think the misconception is that we're not here just to just select the paint color only. There's more to it. There's furniture, there's placement, there's dealing with workshops that fabricate things for you if it's a countertop or if it's, like, putting together a sofa for you and upholster. So I think a lot of it get misconstrued as just- Something in the background like, I don't know how to explain it. Like, even in my normal day-to-day job, my department is always thought of as like, "Oh, well, they only select color." It's like, "No, we do way more than that. We're helping you do things that you don't wanna do because you can't visualize. That's why we're here. We're visualizing it for you." We're kind of like the AIs. Original AIs, if you think about it, but we just don't show it to you- Yeah how we see it in our brain, but we see it in our brain. But I think down the line, I think they Uh, they're starting to respect us more, I think the industry. Especially, like in other states, I think they see that we're a big value. It's just kind of like when you're buying a purse. I think not every designer is meant for every client. I think it's just a matter of picking the right one that kind of fits with you, like how they mesh with you, the vibes. I feel like it's Sometimes, like if a client doesn't It doesn't work out with a certain designer, it's okay. You can find another one, you know? There's someone out there for you that will really understand you, and I think it's just a matter of the industry. I think clients or future clients shouldn't feel afraid to keep on searching. Like, don't just stick to the first one you see. Just keep on searching. You'll find someone that you will like really click with. They're out there. So don't be afraid. I think that's the nice thing about our profession. There's so many of us. Could be saturated, but I think it's nice 'cause it gives people options to see who they can really work with. Yeah, different people like different things, and I feel like- Yeah that's important when, creating a space together, is to be able to have a good relationship. Yeah. Yeah. I agree. So interior tr- interior design trends are always evolving. What are some of the biggest shifts you're seeing right now in the way people want their homes to look and feel? I would say in general, a lot of color. White has always been popular 'cause it's the cheapest material to get anyways. That's why people always tend to go with the whites. But like even in kitchens, people are not afraid of two-tone colors, which I'm a big fan of. I've always been a big fan of two-tone. I never liked the one-tone kind of kitchen. It just looks blah. You know, I'm, I, I'm a little bit maybe, uh, dark when I'm like, "I like dark base cabinets and maybe gray uppers or a wood tone base uppers," because I think about practicality, about cleaning. I don't wanna clean a white cabinet all the time at the base 'cause everything will show. But I would say that it's nice to see that they're not afraid of color, of two-tone. Height, I have noticed a lot of designs are not afraid to go really high, to kind of really- capture the height of a room. Like, let's say if a room has cathedral ceilings, like they'll go really high and just do a custom build up there. Work with your fixtures. People are not afraid of working with fixtures. You know, you got something like this. It's adorable. Um, I think it's nice to see in general in design that people are not afraid to be open. I think before they were so closed in about, oh, it needs to be always a resell type of design. You know, it has to look kind of like what you would flip through a page or a magazine. It's like, no, it's supposed to be an art form, too. And so I think it's nice that designers are being allowed to put that out there, that they're getting clients that are willing to be open and to having a different perspective of how they want their space to feel. Because it's their home. They're gonna be living in it for such a long time. Do what you want. Yeah. Like, don't always think about a resale value unless it's like a rental property or if it's an Airbnb maybe. Mm-hmm. But other than that, do what you want. Yeah. That's the fun part. Have fun with it. I feel like that's where people forget when they're designing or in renovation. They just, they find it stressful, and it's supposed to be more fun because you're putting this vision to life and, and you're just seeing the process, grow. Yeah. And if you're, if you're gonna be in that space, you know, every day, you want it to be something that- Correct you wanna see. Yeah. And then why do you think people are moving away from the all-white minimalist look and embracing spaces that feel more personal? I think they realize it looks a little too sterile. You know, although white has been around for so long. I mean, I'll admit I have a current white kitchen only because it was the quickest available color. White is always available. But also because I know that down the line for resale value, like it'll just sell. Oh, oopsie. Sorry. No, you're good. Oh. Still trying to get in. Do you want upstairs? No, you're good. All right. I think for resale

Why Small Projects Matter Most

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value, they're always trying to stick with the white is easiest. They can visualize, they can find it quicker on, like, Pinterest boards if you think about it. Like, they could say, "Oh, white kitchen," and a ton of them pop. So I think it makes them feel like they're making the right decision. So I think it's also, like, a psychology thing too. Like, they feel that it's gonna be the right decision because they see it everywhere, and that's what shows you, like, they're afraid to open up a little. Mm-hmm. And so, like, in our position, we did the white because we're like, "We are gonna sell this house, so we'll just do what everybody wants, but when I get my next one, I'm gonna do what I want there- Right because it's the actual house that I'm gonna spend more time in." Mm-hmm. So I feel like that's why they always gravitate to white, and I feel like white has been around for a very long time. I would say more than 10 years. It's never... It's, like, a timeless look, but people change it up. They'll say, "I wanted to have maybe a glazing edge," and then now it's like, "I'm gonna do shaker," and now it's, like, a different design of a white. So the white in general is changing too in terms of the type of cabinetry. But- seems to be the safest choice for everybody. Yeah. Sometimes it's nice to take the unsafe choice, right? I- I'm a risk-taker. Yeah. I would rather, like, I would be the one to say, "Well, let's add a pop of green and just do green tile in this white kitchen 'cause it needs to have a contrast." Mm-hmm. And my husband's like, are you sure?" And I'm like, "All right." "How about a herringbone?" He's like, "I don't know what that means." I'm like, "Okay, we'll do it." One of your specialties is helping clients create spaces that reflect who they are, rather than simply following the trend. Mm-hmm. How do you balance timeless design with personal style? Um, I would say a big part of, like, an onboarding process is key to really understand, like, what they are as a, as a person, and be able to kinda have that in, like, let's say a mood board to say, "These are the things that really point out to them as a person," what their likes are. And still trying to find a way to kind of mold it into something that's acceptable, that's not gonna look too, too trendy, that looks modest and timeless. I think it's just finding the right vendors, too, that you work with that can provide that balance for both things that you're trying to do. But I think overall, the onboarding process for me, and just really getting to know the client, it's essential to really trickle down those efforts. Because if you spend too much time, then it's time wasted that you don't wanna bill the client also. So, I think it's important to really get to know them well, and that's where the part of, like- really listening to them comes to play, where you really have to understand their needs because I think if you don't, then a lot of time gets wasted, and then the end goal is not met. And so, and I mean, that could happen. I mean, nobody's perfect, but I think it's, it's nice that you can try to find a balance of both in the beginning if you can. That would be my suggestion. I think if you can find that early on, then everything else will trickle and will balance out where- Yeah you're like, "Okay, I met their desires because of their personality." Mm-hmm. "But I still made it not crazy," where people are gonna be like, "What did you do in this space?" Right. Like, no, no, it looks good. Yeah. Like, you know, to be on magazine issue. Yeah. Picture perfect. So. Cool, cool. And then I wanted to talk about sustainability. Mm-hmm. Um, so sustainability can mean different things to different people. Mm-hmm. But from your perspective, what should homeowners or anybody who wants to design a space, what should they be thinking about when it comes to creating a home that's both, both beautiful and sustainable? I would say with sustainability, it can be either materials in a home that gets used, you know, like wood is an example. If it's something that you salvage or reclaim, that's one way of being sustainable with, like, materials, like with furniture. Even the fabrics of your furniture as well, if they claim that they have recyclable content on it, that's also nice. And that's one way that we always look out for if the client's really pushing for it. If you're working with harder surfaces like counters or things like that that are carbon neutral, that's one way. But the way I see sometimes sustainability is, like, the structure of a home and the efficiency of a home. So windows, doors, HVAC system, your water system, you know, roofing system as well. And maybe this is where I get from, like, my commercial side, like, those are the main things that we look for before we wor- worry about the interiors is the exterior part to make sure that the house, that the structure and the building is well-maintained. And so, or, and gonna be easy to main- easy to maintain down the line. Um, so those are the things that I always think about too in sustainability. Like, is your airflow in your home doing well? Do you have a good HVAC system, enough to generate your AC units? Do you have a good roofing system? If it's not your normal shingles, are you gonna do, like, a metal roof? Water, like, obviously water you can get public or subpump, whatever. But, What are your priorities? I think that's the first thing about if you have a client that's really worried about sustainability, like what are your priorities for sustainability? Like what is it that you feel is sustainable to you and that we can target? I mean, it's not like a house is gonna be considered LEED Silver because

Designing For Feelings And Trust

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that's mostly for commercial buildings but we can s- definitely work with your materials to be recyclable, to make sure that the flow of the home is sustainable with energy-efficient appliances, um, even water pressure of how water gets used. Like I know for a fact that people... not people, vendors have specific toilets that have the two buttons. People know that one button is to do number one and the button number is for number two, but that's because it's relates to the water pressure. And so when you do number one, when you press that button, it's using less water, so y- you're u- it's like not using too much water, and so that's the point. And so I think if you're working with energy ef- efficient appliances, I think that's a big help too. But I think overall, if client ever asks about sustainability, it's pointing out what do you feel is sustainable to you? What do you s- what environment were you in that you feel like I wanna use sustainable products? What does that mean? Because to everybody, it's different, like you said. I think that's where we would start it. But in general A home can be sustainable for sure. Mm-hmm. It's just depending what attributes you want it to be. Yeah. So sun exposure- Yeah as well. So, I mean, so there's so many different things. Sustainability can be so big nowadays. It's, it's amazing, like, how much it's grown over time. And so it's nice because there's a big market out there for just sustainability only. And so I think it's nice that it still gets highlighted a lot, and it's important. I mean, the commercial world, yes, but homes not so much. It varies. I think depends on the town or the state and what's available, what resources are available. So yeah. Yeah. That's so interesting. There's so many different aspects and, like, it just depends on what, you know, you're looking for in terms of sustainability. Mm-hmm. Interesting. Yeah. Yeah. And you're currently serving as president-elect of the American Society of Interior Designers- Mm-hmm DC Metro Chapter. Mm-hmm. And you're stepping into the role of president this October? Mm-hmm. Yep. Awesome. What does that leadership opportunity mean to you, and what impact do you hope to make on the design community during your term? So I will say it's exciting because I, I had a bucket list, as anybody does. Down the line I said I would always wanna be ASID president because I was so involved when I came back to Virginia, when I came to Virginia actually in 2020, and it expedited really fast because of internal structures. And so I first felt overwhelmed, I'm not gonna lie, because I said, "How am I gonna do this?" Because I haven't seen someone in front of me do it yet. You know, I was in small roles. But the way I approached it was, okay, what kind of year do I wanna have as president that's successful? And a lot of it is internal structures, policies, and procedures to make sure that they're ready. Because to me, having an efficient year is having a full calendar of events planned ahead of time, assigning point people to those tasks, because I feel like if we all try to do it as a group every month, it gets lost, it gets time-consuming, and we all have lives too aside from our normal jobs. So imagine a job, a business, I'm a mom, I'm a wife, and then I volunteer. So it's like I wanna make sure that even that- goal or that position is not taking too much of my time on a daily basis. Like, I wanna make sure it's efficient. And so the goal as president is to definitely continue to outreach our student engagement because the students are our future. So we're-- I'm really big about making sure students can feel welcome all the time to our events because that was something that I felt was missing when I was younger. Um, when I was a student in a student chapter in a different state, I felt like there was a misconnect from the professional students to students. There was no way of kinda bridging that gap or we felt intimidated to reach out to them. And so now being in this position where I'm on the opposite side, I wanna make sure that they always feel welcome, that if they wanna participate, we love the idea. If you wanna volunteer, great. Like, we'll bring you in. Like, we wanna teach you things that we've been learning because you will benefit. And truth be told, I think what I see also in the current generation, people are free to speak up too. So I feel like that will bring a little bit of a confidence in them. And so for me as president, a lot of student engagement, continue to outreach our commercial side 'cause our group is always seen as residential only, but it kind of affects both. Also to have fun.

Color Trends Plus Sustainable Choices

31:11

I think sometimes feel that-- people feel that volunteering cannot be fun. It can feel like it's either a burden or it's too much work for them. It should be fun to participate because you're networking with people, you're learning from them as well. You're connecting with them as well for something that they might need that you didn't realize. So that's nice also. So I think it'll be very fun once we have our planning session next month to, as a group, to plan for our fiscal year that starts in October so that when we start, we start fresh. We have an agenda and there's no like setbacks. And so I think that will be very nice. Um, and welcoming new people and then kind of showing them the ropes. So that's exciting too that we're getting interest and that's the point. We wanna create a volunteer pipeline of people. That way when we part ways with the org because our term finishes, we wanna make sure that we're not recycling consistently the same people over and over. We wanna make sure that new faces, fresh ideas are coming in because we wanna keep it young, we wanna keep it going, we wanna keep it innovative. And I think that's the goal of working with the students. I think that will help. Or working with what we call emerging professionals which could be people that had a different profession. Maybe they used to be in real estate or they were a nurse and they said, "I wanna do interior design now." And then they switch careers as a second career. But now that they finished their schooling, they wanna find and connect with people that are in the same boat with them. We have someone that kind of cultivat- that's part of that kinda world in our board that helps those peoples in that transition and kind of help them As a resource can help them feel that they're welcome, that it's great that you made this decision. You can be part of this group, and just join events or participate in anything that we do. So it's just kind of bringing them on board. I think that's the outreach and that's the goal we wanna have, is to reach all to the different people that we can. That way the grow- the org can keep on growing on a yearly basis. I mean, it would be nice to have a large pipeline of volunteers where you just have an enormous amount of people showing up at your events, but sometimes schedules happen. It's not always gonna be the case, but it's good that if we have a momentum going, then it'll be good. Plus we always have a gala every year, but this year we're not doing it, but we're gonna do it for next year, so that'll be nice. That's exciting. Yes. Yes. And I love that you're trying to build that welcoming environment for those students and bridging the gap. Yeah. You know, I think a welcoming environment is really important, especially when, you know, you're coming into a space where you might not have been before, and, you know, there's a ton of new people around you. Mm-hmm. Yeah, so I think that's great that you're, you know, trying to bridge th- that gap. And then as we wrap up, is there anything that you'd like to add on that we haven't touched on today? Um, I feel like I should say yes, but I'm, like, drawing a blank. Um, I would say that this was a pleasure. Um, I think entrepreneurship is

Leading ASID And Growing The Community

34:22

something that people forget sometimes. To me it feels, a lot of people that are entrepreneurs even struggle as well, and I think it's nice that we can build a community for ourselves too, because not everybody has a guideline of how to do it. I think we're all making it up as we go, and I think it's nice that this podcast is kind of pushing that envelope a little bit for us, because we are out there, and we are doing our best, and doing what we can even if we're small. We might not be a bigger brand like a lot of people that have been around for such a long time, but I think as entrepreneurs, what the difference with us is that we never give up, and we wanna push for more, and we push for more, and we're not afraid to take risks. We're not we're not a standard type of entrepreneur, I think we can be very versatile and co- and collab with a lot, a lot of people, and I think that's nice because that's what makes us interesting. And so I give you kudos, as we would say- in New Jersey, for really outreaching a lot of people because, or like myself, anybody else before me, because why not? Yeah. Why not? I think it makes, it makes the show fun, and you learn at the same time some things that you probably didn't realize, and we learn from each other, so that's, so I, I give you props for thank you for reaching out. Thank you. And thank you for being here as well. For anyone interested in for anyone interested in refreshing their home, seeking design guidance, or learning more about Eighth Ave Interior Design, where can they find and connect with you? They can find me on Instagram. My handle, as we would say, is @eighthaveinteriordesign. Uh, Facebook is the same handle as well. You can reach out to us, send us a direct message, obviously, because I check always my direct messages just like I did previously, and connect. Let's connect. I'm here for anything that you need. Awesome. Thank you so much, Vanessa- Thank you so much for joining me on the podcast and sharing your knowledge, passion, and inspiring story with us.

Where To Connect With Vanessa

36:31

I wish you the very best in everything that comes your way in the future. Okay. Thank you.