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An Interview With Candice Georgiadis

Cozy blankets on the sofa. I love them and they always give me so much comfort. But now my standard poodles take them from me, so it gives me a laugh, now I need more!

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 Kim Coombs.

KBCO Design is an Orlando-based hospitality, commercial, and luxury residential interior design firm. Their heart and soul (and expertise) lies in creating beautiful and functional environments in the luxury residential, hospitality, and commercial markets. Their company was founded in 2002 by Kimberly Bewley Coombs (the ‘KB’ in KBCO) and they’ve spent the last 14+ years approaching both large and small projects with a creative, driven, detail-obsessed fervor.

From big picture strategy to finishing finesses, their team offers the expertise of a large firm with the personal attention of a boutique firm. Their ethos is the care of intuitive, inventive design and some noteworthy clients include Loews Hotels, BMW, Tishman Hotel Corporation, and Universal Studios, just to name a few.

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?

In high school, I took a drafting class and I loved it. Because I enjoyed the process so much, my teacher allowed me to take it three more times! He created an additional curriculum so I could do more advanced projects, which helped me in college.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started this career?

The Versailles project is 90,000 square feet and is the largest house in America. The construction of the house started 16 years ago and was never completed. It is now being completed and the home is under renovation and construction at the same time. The house has been the focus of a documentary called: The Queen of Versailles, and most recently, HGTV created a TV show documenting the completion of the home. Our firm, KBCO, designed the rooms in season one and continue to work on completion of the home.

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 made a mistake on an Excel document and when presenting the budget to the client, it was triple what is should have been. So embarrassing! I prefer design programs and applications!

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?

Versailles. Because this project is being aired on TV, it gives viewers full exposure to the complicated process of interior design. They not only see extremely luxurious materials and exquisite period antiques being used, but other modern materials designed within the challenges posed by the pre-existing conditions of the house. The public gets to go on the ride of highs and lows of a project of this scope.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

When something goes wrong in your life, just yell “plot twist!” and move on. I have this quote saved, and it has become more relevant than ever as we film the show.

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 mom. When I was a child, she always encouraged us to do art. As an artist herself, she continued to help and support me with projects throughout my life and contributed to my development as a designer. She even helped me get my first job and continues to be a huge support to me.

Thank you 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.

  1. Cozy blankets on the sofa. I love them and they always give me so much comfort. But now my standard poodles take them from me, so it gives me a laugh, now I need more!
  2. Artwork. A room is not finished without art. Art adds customization and personality to a room.
  3. A clean house. I love coming home to a clean home. When everything in its place, and the house is in order, I feel truly peaceful.
  4. Artificial Turf. I recently had my outdoor living space redone, and I have to say the artificial turf brings me so much joy. It is always perfect, always green, always clean. I never thought something so simple could spark so much joy!
  5. Antique wooden filing cabinet that my dad gave me. I love that he used it in his office and passed it on to me. It means so much to have something he used in his office, and now I use it too.

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. 🙂

Definitely a health-focused movement. The type of movement that stresses the importance of diet and taking care of your body through exercise, supplements, and other wellness methods.

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 🙂

Elon Musk. He stands up for himself and what he believes in. He is super smart, and he gets things done, nothing holds him back.

How can our readers follow you on social media?

Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational!

Kim Coombs of KBCO Design: 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.