Over the past several weeks, hundreds of interior designers completed our new assessment, “What Kind of Design Business Is Right for You?”
What began as a simple quiz quickly became something much more powerful: a window into how designers think, what they want, and what they struggle with most.
The quiz was built with two clear intentions.
First, we wanted to help designers identify their Tastemaker Archetype – the natural way they create value, influence, and opportunity. Your archetype reveals how you’re wired to succeed, the business models that fit you best, and the kind of work that will feel both purposeful and profitable.
Second, we wanted to listen. To gather data. To truly understand what designers feel they need right now to grow a successful, sustainable, modern design business. And designers told us… honestly, vulnerably, and with surprising consistency.
The findings were not only illuminating; they were deeply validating. They confirmed what many of us in the industry sense intuitively: the landscape of design entrepreneurship is changing, and designers need a new kind of support.
Below is the full story of what we discovered.
Part 1: Why the Tastemaker Archetype Matters
Every designer brings a different creative energy into the world. Some feel most alive when crafting beautiful environments. Others thrive in strategy, storytelling, research, or entrepreneurial building. Some naturally attract community. Some innovate. Some organize. Some inspire. Some teach.
Yet the traditional design industry often tells everyone to follow the same linear path:
build a portfolio → find clients → do projects → repeat.
But not every designer is meant to follow the same path, or serve the same type of client, or build the same kind of business. Some feel drawn to product lines. Others want to teach or mentor. Some dream of building a boutique studio. Others want to fuse design with media, content, retreats, creative direction, or something completely different.
The Tastemaker Archetype exists to give designers language around those instincts. It answers questions like:
- What business model fits your personality and natural strengths?
- Where do you create your greatest value?
- What style of visibility plays to your advantage?
- What audience is most naturally drawn to you?
- How should you structure your offers?
- Where do you stand out, and where do you struggle?
This is the part of the quiz designers loved most. It held up a mirror and said,
“You are not random. You are not behind. You are simply wired in a specific way, and there is a business model that fits you perfectly.”
But if the archetype reveals who you are built to be, the second part of the quiz reveals what you need to thrive.
And that part told a very different story.
Part 2: What Designers Need to Succeed — The Real Data
After identifying their archetype, each designer answered one open-ended question:
“What is your biggest struggle right now?”
The responses ranged from a few words to paragraphs. Some were vulnerable. Some were frustrated. Some were hopeful but uncertain. Some were written late at night, clearly by someone juggling a full-time job and a creative dream.
And when we analyzed them all, seven unmistakable themes emerged. Below are the results – by percentage – and the story behind each one.
1. Getting Clients, Visibility, and Building a Pipeline — 48%
Almost half of all responses fell into this category.
Designers talked about wanting more clients, but beneath that surfaced something deeper: a longing to be seen. A desire to attract high-end clients. A frustration with algorithms, slow engagement, quiet inboxes, and social media that feels like shouting into the void.
Many admitted they don’t publish consistently, not because they lack ideas, but because they lack a clear strategy. Some struggled with confidence around showing their face. Others said they simply had no time to maintain an online presence.
What emerged was a portrait of talented designers who know they can deliver exceptional work, but who feel invisible in a noisy market. Visibility, it turns out, is not a vanity metric. It is the oxygen of the modern design business.
2. Finding Time to Work on the Business — 15%
This group wasn’t short on passion; they were short on hours.
The stories here were raw: designers working full-time jobs while trying to build their studio on the side. Parents trying to film content during nap time. Designers overwhelmed by current projects with no time left to nurture their pipeline. People who know exactly what they should do, but feel life is pulling them in every direction except toward their goals.
For these designers, time isn’t simply a constraint, it is the barrier between intention and momentum.
What they need isn’t motivation. It’s structure. Systems. Time-saving templates. Small, executable weekly actions. A business model that doesn’t require being online every hour of every day. They need a way to grow without burning out.
3. Knowing Where to Start (or Restart) — 13%
The next largest group described a kind of quiet paralysis.
Some were just beginning. Others were returning after years away from the industry. Some felt overwhelmed by too much advice. Others didn’t know which path to follow. Several confessed they had been “thinking about starting” for years but felt trapped in indecision.
These designers are not lacking creativity; they are lacking direction. They need a roadmap. A sequence. A clear sense of what matters now, what can wait, and what doesn’t matter at all. Without that clarity, every step feels risky – and so they take none.
4. Defining a Niche, Ideal Client, and Positioning — 10%
The comments in this group were some of the most thoughtful:
- “I want to work with high-end clients, but I don’t know how to position myself that way.”
- “I need to define my niche.”
- “I don’t know who my ideal client actually is.”
- “I’m not sure where I fit in the market.”
These designers are stuck in the middle space between creative talent and business clarity. They have strong design instincts, but feel scattered about who they serve and how to communicate their uniqueness.
They aren’t lost – they’re unpositioned. And that is something that can be corrected quickly with the right framework.
5. Pricing, Money, and Economic Pressure — 5%
Money wasn’t the top challenge, but when it came up, it came up with intensity.
- “I’m seen as too expensive.”
- “I don’t know how to price myself.”
- “Cash flow feels tight.”
- “I feel guilty asking clients to spend money right now.”
Almost every money-related challenge was intertwined with confidence and positioning. Most designers weren’t actually struggling with math; they were struggling with perception. This group needs a stronger value narrative, clear packages, and the confidence to stand behind their work.
6. Systems, Processes, and Structure — 5%
These responses came mostly from designers who had started gaining traction.
They weren’t stuck at the beginning, they were stuck in the middle.
Their struggle wasn’t creativity; it was structure. They needed better templates, smoother workflows, reliable systems, and a sense of organization behind the scenes. When designers in this category get help, they often scale quickly, because the foundation is already there.
7. Confidence, Mindset, and Creative Identity — 4%
This was the smallest category numerically, but one of the most emotionally charged.
Designers wrote about losing confidence in their work, questioning whether they were “good enough,” or feeling intimidated by peers online. Many mentioned perfectionism, self-doubt, and the fear of showing up.
Confidence is the silent block that affects visibility, pricing, creativity, and leadership. It is often the final missing piece that unlocks everything else.
What These Results Reveal About the Design Industry in. 2025
When we step back and view the full picture, a story emerges.
The majority of designers aren’t struggling with design at all – they’re struggling with business structure, visibility, direction, and identity. Traditional design education prepares designers to create beautiful spaces, but not to build sustainable, profitable careers.
- Designers want clarity.
- They want a confident sense of identity.
- They want visibility that attracts the right people.
- They want systems that save time.
- They want offers that feel aligned with who they are.
- They want bold, modern, diversified design careers, not just project-based income.
And that is exactly what the Tastemaker Archetype and the Signature Framework were built to support.
The future of the design industry is not only about aesthetics. It’s about positioning, storytelling, audience building, and creating a business ecosystem that matches the designer’s unique strengths.
