Jonathan Gordon became an interior designer because his grandmother said he should. “That’s a true story,” he says. With an engineering degree and an aptitude for fine arts, he first attempted a career in amusement rides. When that fell apart in 2012, he sought career advice. “My career counsellor and my Grandma – on the same day – came up with the same idea… I should be an interior designer.”
During his interior design studies at university, and unable to land an internship or entry-level job in the industry, Gordon launched his firm, Design by the Jonathans in 2014. Here, he shares how he overcame the initial struggles of starting his own company, details his design POV, and explains how he keeps up with the latest technology to help his business grow.
Success Takes Time
Gordon recalls skimping for meals, and barely being able to afford his mortgage when he started his firm. Even when he could take a holiday, he spent his leisure time continually worrying about the business. “Those first years were very hard,” he says. “It got better.”
Success came gradually. Hiring his first employee, an administrator, was the turning point that led his company in the right direction, he says. The new position lifted a weight off of Gordon so he could focus on his clients and design work. “I can’t do my job properly – or really at all – without Renee taking over certain detailed and specific functions that I had to do previously,” he says.
Now, his seven-member team takes on both residential and commercial projects. His firm transformed the tired interior of one of the best sushi restaurants in the area to an elegant and inviting space with a dazzling bright red glass tiled sushi bar and a sophisticated tin tile ceiling.
“I love playing with spaces like restaurants, bars, and hotel lobbies, where you can do unusual things with material and flex that creative muscle,” he says.
He’s comfortable with a wide range of design styles whether it's country chic, grand dark deco, coastal cottage or Euro modern, his firm's work has appeared in many US magazines and has been honoured with well-deserved design awards. A local award for best cloakroom in 2022 went to the firm for its bold design of a bathroom trimmed in gold fittings and whimsical purple wallpaper.
Design by Collaboration
These exquisite design projects are made possible because Gordon and his team take a partnership approach to working with clients. He is not heavy-handed and he never imposes his personal aesthetic and viewpoint on them, and uses the word “chameleon” in the positive sense to describe his firm’s design versatility. “I would say that Design by the Jonathans is an industry chameleon, meaning that we can do any style and design that you could think of, and do it well,” he says. “We're not the ones who come to you and say, ‘This is how we think it is and this is what we want it to be.’ We say, ‘What are you looking for? This is how we think we can make that happen for you.’"
Of course, as a professional designer he brings his own ideas to the table, and shares them with clients through a collaborative approach. “We can mesh into any situation and create any type of product that you're looking for at whatever level you want to see it,” he says.
Who is Gordon’s dream client? Someone whose project scope and budget match up: “Somebody who knows somewhat what they want, but who also wants new ideas and creative solutions,” he says. They are not afraid to spend the money they need to achieve the vision so that you can execute a project at a price point that works for them. “It is much better to know that you have the ability to create within guidelines that support what they want for their spaces,” he says. “It's just ideal all around.”
Make it Work Behind the Scenes
Sometimes, it is what clients don’t see that makes their experience more pleasant and seamless, he says. “The forward facing product – the conceptual renderings, plans, etc. is the pretty stuff that everybody sees. The back-end is rarely seen, but still very important,” Gordon says.
He uses Houzz Pro as his all-in-one software management system. As premium software for success, it helps him operate the workings of the back-end of his business more efficiently so his team can move quickly and nimbly while working with his clients. “Generally, the faster you can move, the happier clients tend to be,” he says. Houzz Pro is a perfect fit for his growing business, he says. “It's stable, it holds up, it does what it's supposed to do,” he says.
Be Tech Savvy
Interior designers who do not adopt new tools in the ever-changing landscape risk falling behind their competitors, he says. “You have to figure out how to leverage new methods and technologies so you don't get left in the dust,” Gordon says. “You need something that's going to push you forward. Unless you're planning to close up shop in the next few years, you need to do something to keep you current, relevant, and ready for the industry and the world as it is now.”
Clients expect you to have the latest innovations that they see on HGTV or online whether it is 3D design development or AI-aided approaches. “Let's say that you're designing a kitchen in a nice house and you're looking at high-end appliances,” he says. “If a client could be spending a lot on that space, wouldn’t they want to know what it will look like before they spend the money?” he says.
“We're doing it all in 3D. That's one of the reasons why we've been able to capture a significant market share. In our area, we stayed ahead of the curve as things were changing, and as they continue to change” he says. “What holds true for the forward-facing product also holds true behind the scenes when it comes to cutting-edge solutions. I would tell them (other designers) that they need the industry leader in design business management solutions. It's ahead of all the others,” he says of Houzz Pro.
“You start to see the true value of Houzz Pro when we're putting together a cost estimate for a furniture package proposal, or invoices for plumbing fixtures, tiles, stone, or decorative lighting,” he says. “Having everything clickable and with images has been good internally and for presentation to our clients. We don't have to create a giant packet of paper or a PDF with mood boards. We send the digital proposal over for [client] approval, and then we share a corresponding invoice. It's all there! That's one of the major improvements we've seen since adopting the [Houzz Pro] system."
Gordon also adds that Houzz Pro Clipper, in particular, is “a lifesaver.” “It gathers the information for you, it’s fast and requires minimal effort and time”. When you clip any product to your product library, all the images, descriptions, pricing, and more are ready to pull into your proposal.
In recent years, as the design industry transformed, so did the tech solutions. “In the past, the invoicing was detached from the CRM, which was detached from all the other pieces that make the backbone of the business,” said Gordon. “Having it under one hood has been nice. You on-board a client, you create the design vision with the client and you create the invoices. You don't have to worry about replicating things or exporting giant spreadsheets from place to place to keep your finances on track. Houzz Pro handles it. It’s as impactful as the difference between drawing a design by hand and doing it on a computer. It speeds things up phenomenally, and making changes is a much easier process. You don't have to redo things from scratch. You just edit.”
Optimism for the Future
As he continues to power through 2023, Gordon is confident about the months and years ahead. He is looking forward to seeing some of his big projects that are underway go to completion.
“I love when we get to do a lot of spaces together in the same project at the same time. We have a few of those types of projects going on concurrently. We have a couple of very large, full-home projects, a half-home project, and a new build from scratch that we designed all running as we speak,” he says.
“When you have the ability to coordinate across a home you start to change the dynamic versus the design of individual spaces,” he says. Gordon loves the questions that arise in designing spaces, especially multiple rooms: “Do you want it to be eclectic or do you want a structured style? Are we defining the space around artwork or is artwork decor? Should the home have a one or two-colour palette that we're going to stretch across various spaces? Monochromatic or multi-colour? So many options and choices, but they create a cohesive look, feel, and environment when you tie it all together.”
And, while he won’t share the details just yet, he is plotting out his firm’s growth for 2024. “We have expansion plans,” he says. “I'm not telling anybody much more than that yet.”
While inflation is driving very high prices, Gordon says the economy still feels good. “Even if we do enter a mild recession, the hope is that the industry continues to be strong,” he says. ”As everything continues to change, I'm looking forward to seeing what we can create, how we can innovate, and what we can do to make a difference,” he says.
That means continuing to do what Design by the Jonathans does best: Make people happy. “From my standpoint, it's about trying to deliver happiness,” he says. “At the end of the day, we want to be the ones who the client will trust to take that vision and make it something that they can truly enjoy, now and for years to come.” Learn more about Houzz Pro for interior designers with a free trial.
All photos in this article are by Robert Norman Photography
