The Interior Collective

Beth Smith: Transitioning from Side Gig to Full Time Interior Designer

So many designers are straddling the fence between an interior design side hustle and a full-time career. Our season one finale of The Interior Collective features Beth Diana Smith discussing her career transition and lessons learned along the way. Beth Diana Smith spent more than a decade working in accounting and finance with a hard earned Bachelor's degree in Business and a Master's degree in Accounting. Later, Beth earned a degree from the New York School of Interior Design while taking night classes working around her day job. Her interior design career started as a side hustle before she left accounting to start Beth Diana Smith Interior Design. Her designs use expertly curated art, layered textured, bold patterns, and colors to create uniquely sophisticated, layered and luxurious residential designs. Beth has been on NBC and HGTV, and you've seen her work featured in various outlets, including House Beautiful, Elle Decor, Real Simple, Lonny Magazine, Domino, The Wall Street Journal, and the Business of Home.

In this episode, Beth and I discuss:

  • The career path into interior design
  • How a background in corporate shapes her business structure
  • When she knew it was the right timing to design full-time
  • Beth's signature use of color which she credits to design school
  • Finding the courage to make a career change

Show Notes

Mentioned in the episode:

  • New York School of Interior Design
  • Beth's Instagram
  • Beth's Website
  • House Beautiful Article
  • Domino Article
  • Wall Street Journal Article
  • Business of Home Article
  • Design Camp
  • Anastasia’s Instagram
  • IDCO Studio Instagram
  • Beth’s Portfolio
Thanks for reading an excerpt of The Interior Collective Season 1, Episode 12: Transitioning from Side-Gig to Opening Your Own Firm featuring Beth Diana Smith. You can listen to our episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or access the full episode transcription below. You can follow Beth on Instagram or visit her portfolio for the latest reveals of her work.