An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
I’d say for those looking for new experiences, take on a project that will get you out of your comfort zone. Don’t let the “what if’s?” stop you from taking on a project. You might never know what great lessons would be had, and what great opportunities may lead you next.
As part of my series on the “5 Things You Can Do To Help Your Living Space Spark More Joy”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Mariko Sampson.
Mariko Sampson, Founder of The Apartment Designer, is expert at breathing life, style, and functionality into lackluster rooms. Her renowned design methodology is loved by clients because unlike “the big guys,” Mariko doesn’t select furnishings from a stocked warehouse of mass-purchased, cookie-cutter inventory. Every piece she incorporates into a design plan is custom, and curated to achieve the full aesthetic potential of that unique space.
Thank you so much for joining us in this series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
So for me, it started when I was kid. Growing up I would rearrange my Barbies’ spaces and arrange them in the most colorful way. I would also rearrange my furniture in my bedroom — This drove my parents crazy!
Then, as a young adult working as an accountant, I would constantly organize and decorate my co-workers office spaces instead of doing my duties as an accountant. Being an accountant to me was boring, but I LOVED decorating my co-workers’ spaces. You don’t want to hire me as an accountant!
Fast forward to when I was a leasing agent for a luxury end apartment building. I would give tours to prospects, and then I would quickly start talking to them how “I” would decorate the space. You know, “set the bed this way in this area so that you face the window that overlooks the pool”, or “I’d get a velvet purple sofa, and a gold floor lamp, and add in a few vases on top of a wooden side table”. After being a leasing agent for about a year, I was saving money for my nest egg, so that I can become an interior designer. I accumulated clients and relationships at the property, which started me off with a list of referrals to start my business from..
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started this career?
My most interesting story comes when a woman reached out to me for design services for just her room. She told me she’d lived in her apartment for her entire life until her parents passed away. She confined herself to one room and every other part of her apartment was left in the condition before her parents passed.
Her one room she wanted me to design was dark, dreary and held sad memories of her , so it was important for me to come up with a realistic and fun design plan for her. A big challenge for her project was I had the idea to get rid of her old school carpet in her room. Just doing that would be a big game changer. It was not easy, as she had to ensure she had permission from her landlord to make flooring changes, but she pulled through and was able to convince them it was ok to do so. With that approval, I had free range on my design thoughts. I created a game plan with my team, and went to work to get it all done in 1 week. Out went the yellow-ish walls, and in came the powder blue paint with white paint on the trim, and out was the old school carpet, and in came the nice upgraded wood-like luxury vinyl floors. All that compiled with new hip decor and art, and new yet with charm curtain rods and curtains to keep her own style in play while the rest of the place shows signs of improvement.
Her reaction on the reveal day is one that warms my heart every time I think of her. I could physically see the joy enter her body. That for me was the best day. Better than any high-end multi million dollar property I have ever worked on.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I’ll start by saying this…if my fiancee was not on the job with me, the client would’ve found their sofa still on level one of the complex!
Doing a project virtually is a great lesson for all of us designers. You have to think much more than just a design plan for the space, you have to think about things you wouldn’t necessarily think about if it were in person. For example, who would consider a fire extinguisher hanging on the wall would be an issue? We just think, “oh for sure, that media center (already built) will fit in your apartment, you have so much room in there?!” Uh, yea…you need to consider spatial planning.
So here’s the quick version of my funniest mistake story: my client’s apartment was located on the 2nd level of the complex, and at the top of the stairs, their apartment shared a landing with their neighbor on the right. Well, that space in between was not enough room to allow for the sofa I ordered. I knew the sofa would fit in her space, but it never crossed my mind to ask the client “what does your outside look like?”
We deliver the sofa to the complex, unload it, and take it to the beginning of where I thought my client’s space was. I saw the flight of stairs, looked at the sofa, took one more look at the flight of stairs, then I looked at my fiance, and told him “ Nope, I’m not getting that sofa up there. My client will find her sofa here (on the first level of the complex)!!”
He convinced me that my option is not the solution, and yes, I knew that, but I wasn’t in the mood to figure out this puzzle. After some thoughts, I figured the only way to get the sofa in was by having the adjacent neighbor’s door to be open to allow for the extra room we needed. I’m glad the neighbors were nice and understanding of the circumstances at that moment. My fiance and I took a breather, relaxed, and got the sofa in…FINALLY!
Now I know when working virtually, to measure, measure, and re-measure for assurance! Don’t assume every building will fit a standard size sofa.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?
Definitely decorating models for apartment complexes. We had a chance to do 4 units at a complex in San Diego. It was so much fun. Very scary though. We currently reside in Seattle, WA, so I had to really sit down and consider how I was going to tackle this project from Seattle before making a commitment to take this on.
This project took me out of my comfort zone for sure, but there were plenty of new lessons learned. I learned how to design many style-guides that can be easily interchanged to create new designs, but keep the core of the design simple enough to complete 4 model units quickly. I learned to give up control and give trust to my team on the ground to execute my game plans. I also learned to create guide templates with detailed instructions on where things will go, how they’ll go, and alternative solutions in case something went wrong. I usually don’t put that much pre-work into projects, since I’m always on the ground with my team working our way through projects. So this time around, it was “different’ to say the least, but in a positive way.
I’d say for those looking for new experiences, take on a project that will get you out of your comfort zone. Don’t let the “what if’s?” stop you from taking on a project. You might never know what great lessons would be had, and what great opportunities may lead you next.
I can’t wait to do more of them in the future.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
This quote may not be the way other people have heard the lesson, but for me, it has personal meaning to me since the life lesson quote comes from my dad in his own unique way. My father’s quote is “Never mind if the horse is blind, just load the wagon”. I take this to mean: You can’t control everything, just do what you can. I am a big control freak and trying to follow this simple life lesson is challenging for me, but I’m able to confide in those closest to me and trust them.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
My parents are very influential in my success. I watched both of them own and operate their own businesses. They have had pitfalls along the way but both continue to get up each morning and do it again. That strength and determination has been passed down to me and I am overly grateful for that.
Here is the main question of our discussion. What are your “5 Things You Can Do To Help Your Living Space Spark More Joy” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
Here are my “5” things to help spark more joy in your living space.
- Plants
- Color
- Uniqueness
- Something old
- Something new
When these 5 pillars are combined from the person giving aspiration, the space becomes truly unique and alive!
You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
I believe that everyone deserves to have a well designed space. That being said I would love to have more designers (including myself) give our free time to help design tiny homes for the homeless. I love the idea of these tiny homes giving people a second chance at life.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this, especially if we tag them 🙂
I have great admiration for a designer that I follow on IG. Her IG page is @blessedlittlebungalow, and her name is Amber. I recently have started following her. Her page is so colorful and full of life. I love her style and the daring way she approaches design. I would love to one day collaborate with her and soak up as much flavor that I can from her.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
I’d say check out the website –you’ll find my social media links there. Plus, you’ll get to check out my story and how Mariko Interiors- The apartment Designer came to be.
Instagram: Mariko interiors
Website: marikointeriors.com
This was great, thank you so much for sharing your story and doing this with us. We wish you continued success!
Mariko Sampson: 5 Things You Can Do To Help Your Living Space Spark More Joy was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.