Today, Trish has Malibu designer Barrie Livingstone in the Student Lounge. Livingstone is a veteran interior designer whose career took him from Manchester to Florida, to Dubai and finally to Malibu. He shares his wisdom about the best way to network, how to break into the industry as a student, and how to dress when job hunting.

If you have questions you want Trish and Barrie to answer in a future episode, submit them here.

Advice:

-Meet as many people as you can, and find ways to get them to associate you with interior design. Simple business cards are a great way to introduce yourself and then use contact information you get from other people to build an audience for a blog or newsletter.

-It’s O.K. to be nervous about introducing yourself to industry people. The most important thing is to project confidence and enthusiasm. People will respond favorably and remember you.

-If you can’t afford to travel to big events like High Point Market, there’s probably home shows in your area that you can go to to familiarize yourself with local vendors and make connections with them that might lead to connections with designers they work with.

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Resources

Visit NEWH Scholarships to learn more about scholarship opportunities.

A big shout-out to Porcelanosa and Benjamin Moore for sponsoring The Student Lounge!