I know some awesome people who run their own businesses here in San Diego and I want to shine a spotlight on them!
Every week or two I will interview and introduce a local entrepreneur who has gained my trust and respect, and might be able to help you!
For my fourth installment, I interviewed Lisa Packard who has a keen eye for interior design, especially kitchens. Lisa is an invaluable resource if you’re considering a kitchen remodel or refresh. If you’re considering an upgrade to your kitchen, be sure to reach out to her to see how she might help.
How to reach Lisa:
858.414.7816
lisa@conceptsbydesignllc.com
conceptsbydesignllc.com
Here is a transcript of our conversation:
Hey, this is Jon with Paint Green. I’m here with Lisa Packard, from Concepts by Design. She does kitchen remodels, cabinetry, and she has really great taste from everything that I’ve seen. I’ve seen a bunch of pictures of your work, Lisa, and I got to say, I’ve seen a lot of different kitchen designs doing what I do painting houses. I’m in people’s kitchens all the time, and I just really think that you have a good eye and I just wanted to put a spotlight on you and [crosstalk 00:00:31] show a little bit of my community what you’re all about and maybe you can end up helping some of the people that I know.
Love to. Love to. Just like Jon said, my name is Lisa Packard with Concepts by Design, and I do kitchen, baths, remodeling projects. I have so much fun and I connect with my clients so much and I work very closely with a select number of contractors. So the relationships that I build and working in San Diego is just amazing. It’s amazing.
Yeah. Right on. Yeah, I love working in San Diego, too. Well for painting, it’s great because we get to work year round in the outdoors, but what do you love about San Diego?
I’m from LA. I moved down here when I was 23 and fell in love, I just fell in love with San Diego. I love the weather. It’s about as Southwest as I can get and still be in the states. So the weather, the ocean, the people are amazing. So working intimately going into people’s homes, I like to establish those relationships and it makes a difference in San Diego.
Yeah. Cool. One of the things I love about San Diego too, is that everybody’s really open and friendly compared to a lot of other places in the world. But so tell me a little bit about your business and the process and how you help your clients.
Okay. Well, I do want to say that I offer complimentary in-home consults. So what I like to do is go in, assess the space, talk about needs, wants, wishlists and so forth. If it seems like it’s a fit, we write up a proposal that can be existing or custom to what they’re looking for. And then I recommend some contractors, but if they have their own contractor, that’s fine too. So the packages can include just writing up recommendations. It can include doing the design of the kitchen and bath, including color rendering, so they can get a feel for your painted cabinets. And then I put together a project binder if they’d like, and it’s just A to Z step by step. So everybody, the homeowner, the contractor and myself are on the same page. And I like to do site visits and just do the whole thing till we cheer to your new kitchen.
Yeah. Cool.
Or bath.
So you’re kind of a consultant then who adds the design element of what a kitchen remodel could look like. You’re not necessarily the contractor yourself, but you do have contractors you could recommend, but you’re the creative brain behind it that can come in and help lay out the design and…
Yeah.
Work with the customers to get exactly what they want.
Yeah. But I do take it a step further, Jon, because what I do is I call it project coordination where I help in the education and communication on all levels, but I don’t swing a hammer yet.
Okay.
I don’t have my contractor’s license, but yeah. Like I said, I work intimately. I do frequent site visits.
Okay.
So I do have a lot of knowledge as far as the order of things, the materials, the design eye.
Got it.
I studied with the National Kitchen and Bath Association, so I know all those guidelines. And then there are codes and so forth specific to the areas.
Yeah. Got it. Okay. So you also help coordinate the project and everything?
Yeah.
Not just doing of the design elements of it.
Yeah. If that’s what they’re interested in, absolutely. I love to do that. I like to be involved.
Right on. That’s good. So who would be the ideal client for you or what type of customers do you typically find yourself helping?
Primarily kitchen and baths. I do cabinetry design, like you said, whether it’s laundry rooms, offices, entertainment centers, or so forth, but the ideal client is somebody who wants to invest in their property. Maybe they’re first time buyers, not necessarily flippers because they’re not going to necessarily need the design element and they’re not going to want to invest that much in the property. So if it’s a forever home, so that they want to really invest in the materials, the design and pull it all together.
Okay, cool. Yeah. That makes sense. What’s a common misconception about what you do?
The misconception is that my services aren’t needed. Sometimes people go in and they go, “Oh, I have an idea.” And, “I’ll look on Pinterest or Howse”.
Yeah.
And that’s great, but I do have vendors. I’m connected. So I know where to get cabinetry. I know where to get their cabinetry refinished.
Right.
Or painted and being connected and dialed in is really key, and so some people go, “Oh, I have a plumber, I have a electrician.” But the coordination of that, it can be disjointed. It can draw the project on longer and it could cost more money.
Yeah.
So there is that misconception that people think they can do it on their own.
Yeah.
And another thing is the investment dollar that goes into things. If somebody has not done a project before, they could be shocked at how much. So I do educate on, between estimates and my proposals, the investment amount, depending on the scope of the project.
Okay. Yeah. I imagine there’s a lot of little nitty gritty detail that goes into design and it’s probably a really big gap between having an idea and actually getting it like executed. And so that’s what you helped fill in is that gap.
Yeah. Yeah. Like somebody might say, “I like this tile, oh, I don’t know how much to get, oh, maybe there’s a design element that I can do where it’s not just subway all the way.” Which is beautiful too, especially in San Diego, but sometimes you want to add a design element. And so there’s quantity and how to organize that.
Right. So what do you love most about what you do, would you say?
It’s a passion of mine. I’m going to tell you real quick that when I was a little girl, I used to sit on the curb out front of my house and fantasize about what was happening, the lifestyles and what the inside of homes looked like. So I took a detour from that and then came full-circle and decided to study interior design.
Yeah.
I really like space planning. I like seeing the transformation from a funky kitchen to demo to just the magic. And what I like to say is that I improve people’s lifestyle and my tagline is “beautify your inner space.” You might sound hippy dippy, but I think it’s beautifying your inner space inside so that you have a beautiful space that can lend itself to healthier cooking.
Yeah.
Entertaining.
Well, and the kitchen is like the hub of the home, right?
Exactly. It says that in my literature.
Put a little bit more investment into your kitchen pays off way more than any other part of the home, I would think.
Absolutely. And in some of my literature, it says that the kitchen used to be where somebody isolated and cooked and then…
Right.
Presented the food.
Right.
To another room where now it’s not just a place to prepare and clean. It’s a place to gather and entertain.
Yeah. It’s a social center for sure.
Absolutely. And I socialize a lot and entertain a lot, so…
Cool.
I love it.
Well, is there anything else that you want to say to the viewers or…
I just want to invite them to call me.
Okay.
I’m sure you’ll put up my contact info.
For sure.
And if you’re not doing a project, perhaps somebody, you know is, and if you’re just looking for somebody from a trade, like I said, I am connected and there’s no charge for referring. Cause I just love San Diego. It is kind of a small Metro town.
Yeah.
But I’d like to stay connected and you just never know the relationships and people you’ll meet and establish.
Well, thanks so much, Lisa, for coming [crosstalk 00:08:47] out and meeting here downtown. Thanks for sharing a little bit about your business and everybody we’re going to put her website and email and phone number and all that stuff and the contact information on the post. So…
Yeah.
Definitely give Lisa a call if you’re taking a look at redoing your kitchen or bathrooms or any other part of the house. Cool?
Yeah, absolutely.
Alright. Thank Lisa.
Thank you for having me, Jon. Thank you.
