On May 11, 2006, an article titled “The Secret Source Is Out” by reporter Kimberly Stevens appeared in The New York Times. The fairly catty commentary opened with the line: “NOTE to Mario Buatta: The world as you know it is over.” 
If the highly respected Prince of Chintz wasn’t too happy with the content of Ms. Stevens’ piece, then he wasn’t alone. In a sea of media misunderstanding and public misperception, this article in particular just happened to hit a nerve. Read on to learn how Robert Wright, President of the American Society of Interior Designers [ASID], took action in attempt to set the record straight.
If you are a registered member with The New York Times online service and are willing to shell out a tiny bit of cash, then you can read the article in question in full by clicking here. However, if that process is too much hassle, let us briefly summarize, hitting the high (or would that be low”) points:
The Gist: Members of the public no longer need to pay a design professional to access many desirable products, and industry professionals are angry and scared about it. The majority of consumers can now achieve high-design without the assistance a professional and his or her associated fees.
The Tone: Watch out, high and mighty designers, because the public now has a leg up on you, and you’re losing your insider edge! This newly educated public has got your number and will no longer stand being a slave to your exclusive entrée. So there!
The Implication: Now that this access exists, dodgy designers can no longer cheat the formerly disadvantaged public, and anyone with a penchant for décor can create top-notch interiors on their own.
The Misconceptions: 1) Due to public access to extensive high-end product selection – in conjunction with the myriad of shelter magazines and Internet sources that educate the public about design – only the elite need to hire professionals anymore. 2) Access equals knowledge, talent, and experience. 3) Decorators and interior designers perform the same tasks and have the same educational background.
So many counter-arguments could be made in response to the misleading exposé, but we came across one so well-stated that we asked for (and were granted) permission to print it for PLiNTH & CHiNTZ readers.
Below is the letter to the reporter from Robert Wright, FASID. As current President of ASID, Mr. Wright was interviewed for and quoted in the piece. When The New York Times published the finished article, he felt compelled to respond.
May 18, 2006
Dear Kimberly:
On behalf of the 38,000-member American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), I am writing to express concerns about your article, “The Secret Source Is Out,” in the May 11th edition of The New York Times. ASID believes that the article’s content is confusing to your readers and makes inappropriate generalizations about the practice of interior design.
First, within the article, you use the terms “interior designer” and “decorator” interchangeably. Interior designers and decorators actually are quite different. Interior designers possess education and experience in the field, and many have passed a stringent professional qualifying examination. The practice of interior design also is regulated in 26 U.S. states and jurisdictions—including the state of New York. Because no license is required, individuals who believe that they possess a “flair” for design can call themselves a “decorator.”
Secondly, the examples of alleged “price gauging” throughout the article were done by decorators not interior designers. However, the article also portrays interior designers in the same negative light – particularly by incorporating my comments in “defense” of design professionals. Your article also doesn’t explain the time-consuming process of specifying product. Instead it portrays the service as merely involving “a single 30-second phone call that ended up costing them [the client] $30,000 in commissions.” Interior designers or decorators who use the cost-plus method for their services incorporate the cost of their time during the programming (client meetings and research) and installation (client and vendor relations) phases of a project, which can be considerable, as well as their level of expertise or seniority in determining the marked-up price of the products specified. This type of price arrangement for services is similar to that for any other type of commission-based business relationship.
In addition, the types of services offered by interior designers go well beyond specifying furniture and fixtures. Interior designers specialize in project management and space planning, and have specialized training in lighting and acoustics; flame spread ratings, smoke, toxicity, and fire rating classifications and materials; national, state and local building codes; dimensional design, construction documents and ergonomics. They are educated on how to develop design solutions that meet the needs of special populations and that incorporate eco-friendly principles, and that consider the health, safety and welfare of their clients. In other words, interior designers’ services expand way beyond aesthetics, whereas decorators are only concerned about aesthetics.
One more note: ASID headquarters is based in Washington, D.C., not New York City as you reported. My studio, Bast/Wright Interiors, is located in San Diego, Calif.
In closing, please let me state my thanks for contacting ASID and including my comments at the end of your article, as they add some balance to an otherwise one-sided article. In the future, I hope that you will provide your readers with greater balance in your reporting of the interior design profession. Consider ASID a resource to you in this valuable service to your readers.
Sincerely,
Robert Wright, FASID
President, American Society of Interior Designers
This New York Times article is just one source of erroneous information related to the world of design and décor. Overconfident reporters sensationalize the vocation to sell issues and brash television producers trivialize the process to boost ratings, and the industry suffers. Day in and day out, design professionals – both established and aspiring – struggle to educate others about what they do and why they add value to people’s lives.
One positive out of all of this change” That more and more design professionals will begin charging for their significant education and experience, inherent talent, and valuable time instead of marking up product in order to make a living. If that happens, it’s one small step for interior designers, one giant leap for the design profession.
