THE ITALBEC INTERVIEWS

How has covid-19 impacted your business and industry?

I realized that about two years ago, the world shifted into a more fearful place and I do not think it's going to let up. Why? If you read anyone like Naomi Wolf and all these kinds of people, you will see that crisis is a major capitalist opportunity that is not of normal proportions. There are too many people profiting right now to let up the pressure. If you can keep people in a continuous state of fear, they'll trade you just about anything for security. Today, we have to think globally in the sense that you have to see the world as one and you have to realize that what's happening anywhere in the world is affecting everywhere else.

On one hand, things are more fearful. Now, what happens when people get fearful? A few things. Number one, they go into survival mode; fight or flight. They shut down and get more essential. One of the benefits of the last two years is that people cut out a lot of the nonsense. Prior to covid-19, you'd see minimalism and capsule wardrobes to simplify people’s lives.

That being said, the first major impact has been staff. Prior to covid-19, it was easier to help your employees grow because there was more engagement and people were present and around the table. You can coach people easily when you see them because you reading their body language and there's a full portrait. These new boundaries have made it so that you can't help your employees grow anymore. Due to this situation, I find the staffing has been really arid and engagement is lower because we are all lacking human exchanges. We are also encountering a massive obstacle because of inflation. There is a huge demand for raises right now. People are looking to have more space because they are confined to their homes. They are now jumping five years ahead of their timeline but businesses have zero adjustment time.

The second major impact has been clients. The keyword for industry is going to be flexibility and we're seeing it already. You have to be flexible with how you run things. You have to be flexible with the needs of your clients, how you work with them and payment options. You can be good at your job but people are going to find ways to work with you, that work for them. Our clients need to keep delivering but at a higher cost and they have less to deliver with because of inflation. People are more reluctant to invest and spend. They become more careful with every dollar they spend and this becomes truly challenging with every project we design.

How has covid-19 impacted you as a professional in the way you design?

From a design perspective, it's been very interesting because it forces you to become cleaner and smarted with how you do things. We have to realize that safety comes in all shapes and colours. We are now seeing the use of traditional, desaturated, light and pastel colours. Also, there is a large presence of real textures, visual and 3D texturing in all design materials.

Prior to covid-19, I designed group working environments that were all open concept with lots of shared space. Now, we’re seeing an abundance of micro-hoteling. Creating your office now becomes a minimum office. We can design a business where we take an office and reproduce it 50 times. Then, rent it to 10 companies because everyone has their own cocoon. Therefore, cocooning has grown significantly in the last 2 years.

We're going to see people readjusting their work-life balance. This is really going to be reflected in design. People are renovating, but they're renovating on their own terms. They have this need for de-stressed flexibility, ease and declutter. There is also a need for escape. People have been confined and are now trying to find ways to escape safely. There is a major trend where people are escaping to cabins, all-inclusive resorts, country houses to find a sense of normalcy and safety.

When you are designing new spaces or renovating existing spaces, are there any allowances or attentions being brought because of covid-19?

There is more focus on outdoor event spaces and group activities, such as dance and yoga. Also, there is definitely more consideration for cleaner surfaces, but they are still keeping the design facet highly present. For example, I walked into a designer’s showroom and they displayed a brass hand sanitizer dispenser. It was gorgeous!

What is your favorite way to meet a client?

The most common way today is through zoom, which is not a bad thing because you don't have to travel the world to meet with someone and we're now open to the world. However, my favorite way to meet people remains meeting them in person. But, I couldn't believe how challenging it was towards committing to meet on both ends. Though, I have to tell you that the barriers to meeting in person today are higher. Yet, I have certain clients that have made it imperative to be present and in person when doing business with me.

What is one thing that people are generally surprised to find out about you?

Adaptability means you learn a lot of new skills. One of the things that people are surprised to hear is that it's very hard for me to say no to different experiences. I've had various side careers and hobbies that have become almost semi-professional. At one point, I was at a pro magician, photographer, event planner, rave producer, wedding planner, florist, yoga instructor.

I’ve always wondered what it would be like to do the type of job that my clients have. I would try to become my clients’ assistant for a short period, as much as they allowed it. These experiences also helped me better understand their needs and to figure out how to design their space. I consider it method acting for design! Also, the questions that I ask my clients are usually not about design but about their business and how they best serve their clients.

Do you like to visit the projects that you’ve worked on in the past?

Throughout the 30 years that I’ve been in this business, I realized that you have to move on from the projects you’ve created. Now, I don’t even get photos of the finished project. You really are a surrogate to your client’s design. If they didn't need you, they wouldn't hire you. But once they're done with the project, they don't need you anymore. You're there to help them work out what they can't work out for themselves.

The first year that I spend with newly hired designers at our company is getting them detached from projects because it’s too much emotional investment. The hardest part is when the designer doesn’t have a family unit. If you have a family unit and kids, you can't invest a hundred percent of your energy into your job. When you’re single, your identity comes from your job. This creates a problem; if someone rejects you at work or a client rejects your design, it becomes personal. But if, you have to deal with three kids and daycare, you’re a lot less attached and your identity is not woven into your work.

What is the biggest lesson you have learned throughout your career?

The first big lesson that I’ve learned in my career is that nothing is about you. If you can't live with a bigger mindset and you can't realize that you are living to serve in this business, you're going to be miserable. The very basis of your growth as an interior designer has to do with realizing that it's not about you. It is about the alignment of your client, the client's client and your staff.

Another thing that I've learned is to have a faith that things will work out. When I was working in event business, I used to teach once a year. I told my students that if they didn’t believe in a God, they’d better choose one because in this business, you will realize that even if you have thought of everything, you didn't. There's always going to be Murphy's law.

Alignment is also one of the most essential words in my life. It means that what you do, what you say, what you think and what you surround yourself with, there's an integrity. It doesn't mean it’s homogeneous. On the contrary, it’s best when it’s more heterogeneous because then, you can function.

Alignment also means ‘Why do I implement this method acting in design?’ if I'm not deeply aligned with my client and I'm not aligned with my client's client, then I'm not doing my job. There is a very nice Japanese word IKIGAI meaning that what you are passionate about, what you're good at, what you can get paid for and what the world needs, all merge together. If you're able to get them to come into focus and in alignment, you will be a happier person and you will be in symbiosis with what's around you.

What advice would you give to someone starting in your industry right now?

You have to know yourself. I started building an educational channel because I realized that when you're in school, you don't know a thing about the business and industry. Many people leave design school and they don't practice as designers because there is a major gap and a disconnect between what they're taught and the reality. The very first thing that I realized when they enter the industry is that everyone has a preconceived notion of what a designer does and it's completely off.

Student would ask me how much design I would do. My response was ‘very little’; most of my time is truly spent listening, finding solutions and looking at all the different aspects. If I can correctly identify the problem, I'm 90% done solving what the client actually calls me for.

People think design equals ‘I'm going to be important’. The fact is that people do not pay you for you. People pay you for them. This aspect takes time to not only understand, but to also love because you have to embrace it. If you can't embrace it, you're always going to be at odds with your profession. I would strongly advise you to take those strong Campbell Interest and Skills exams and do what you have do to get a sense of who you are.

What type of projects have you done?

We’re a diversified company. We have many clients in different industries, which has saved us. We have clients who are industrial. What I mean by that is we started by doing their offices in factories and now we designed their factories; which is a completely different skillset and a major and incredible learning experience.

We also designed a lot of real estate with transitional design; meaning people who have had to upsize or downsize hoteling offices. Many clients relocated and their departments would fluctuate in staff. As a result, there was an abundance of transitional design.

Then, we have retailers and restaurants. Our restauranteurs stayed in business but they had to rethink everything. We have now become more familiar with pop-up shop and pop-up restaurants. Restaurant design has changed because restaurateurs had to learn to work with the outdoors. Eat New York did the most incredible job by making all their restaurants outdoors and the indoor dining space became their kitchens for take-out and pick-up.

What would be your last message to the world today?

Viktor Frankl wrote a very famous book about surviving the Holocaust. He mentioned that it's not the optimist that made it through because they kept getting disappointed; it wasn't the hardcore pessimist either. The person that made it through was this realist with hope; meaning that they’re going to work with what they've got, but they're going to know that it's getting better every day and they have to believe that this is all for good.

The goal of the challenge is to transform you towards the truth. As a world, we are actually being transformed towards the truth. The point here, which I can say with such certainty, is that we've never been made more aware of the lies. I would say that we have to believe that it's getting better. We have to also look for the better, we have to seek the better, but we also have to be really realistic and do what works. It's not about being apologetic, but being empathetic and compassionate about it. We have to stop lying to ourselves and to each other.

If we can do this, we will maintain the hope. If we can do what matters to us, we can find a way to build communities.

To learn more about Emmanuel Amar, Co-Founder of IDX design communication : Commercial Interior Design and Strategy Consultant, visit the following website www.idxdesign.com