As an Interior Designer, the work flow seems simple at first glance. I send a purchase order for an item, the client pays and then I place the order with the vendor. I do my best to give my clients a full cost outlook for each item, but additional costs such as storage, shipping, insurance, and unexpected labor do occasionally happen. For the sake of transparency, I prefer to prepare my clients for some of these additional costs prior to beginning a project. Setting realistic expectations is crucial to a happy outcome.
Shipping: Shipping is largely calculated by weight & distance. Due to the fact that vendors can not be sure of how much the item will weigh until it is packed up and ready to ship to you, final shipping costs are often applied after purchase orders have been submitted. Most will try to give an accurate estimate at the time a proposal is requested, but this will sometimes need to be later adjusted.
Storage: Christine McGovern Design works with a local receiver to collect all soft furnishings and will schedule an Installation Day once everything has arrived. This allows us to have more control of the process as well as gives us the opportunity to inspect your goods and have any necessary treatments applied prior to arrival in your home. You will benefit by avoiding multiple billed visits to your home for our team to accept deliveries, and more importantly, you will be able to enjoy the impact of what your space looks like completely pulled together on Reveal Day.
Insurance: It is important to have insurance, and to check with your insurance company and Interior Designer, as to who is responsible at what time for coverage on all items, especially those items being shipped long distance.
Unexpected labor: It is inevitable that there will be some surprise labor costs in a renovation project. Your entire team will go to great lengths to avoid this, but it is best to prepare yourself for the possibility going in. Knowing that a little flexibility may be needed when embarking on a design project will minimize stress and help you to enjoy the process.
Expected labor: Exact labor costs are difficult to always gauge. We will provide estimates on all work we are subcontracting for but there will be times when labor fees need to be adjusted. We will always be following things carefully and submit any changes to you for approval before moving forward. Restoration, upholstery faux finishing and special treatments are all areas that tend to be a “work-in-progress” process. While it may not be possible to provide exact costs, we will provide you with constant communication to avoid surprises.
Minimum Fees: Some items needed during a renovation will have minimum fees and minimum yardage requirements to place orders. Vendors will often not reflect these minimums in initial proposals, but we will try to avoid this. We will do our best to have all proposals accurately reflect final costs so that there are no surprises when a Purchase Order is presented for payment.
Rush fees: It is best to try to avoid fees for expediting deliveries as they can be costly. They, are at times, necessary and something to factor in when setting your expectations.
*Christine McGovern Design will provide several tools to help your team and project stay organized and on a timeline. There are many moving parts to a design project and it is our goal to help you stay on track and avoid unnecessary added costs.