From Hustle to High Design with Corey Damen Jenkins at KBIS

Casey: 00:00:32

Hi, I'm Casey.

Rainey: 00:00:33

And I'm Rainey. Welcome to the Reframing Design podcast. If you're a new designer, a seasoned designer, a homeowner, or a home enthusiast, you are in the right place.

Casey: 00:00:44

We are going to talk about all things design. Our stories, our opinions, our experiences, and we're probably going to chase a few rabbits down a few rabbit holes.

But one thing we can guarantee, we will not talk about politics.

Rainey: 00:00:59

Okay, here we are.

Casey: 00:01:01

Oh, my gosh. At KBIS Caybus in the south hall.

Rainey: 00:01:05

Can you believe this? We are joined today by Corey Damon Jenkins. He is the tell me again lead designer and principal.

The lead designer, principal and chief executive officer of Corey Damon Jenkins and Associates. And so we are so happy to have you with us today.

Corey: 00:01:25

Thanks for having me.

Rainey: 00:01:27

So, so much for the introduction. Right?

Corey: 00:01:29

That was great.

Casey: 00:01:30

We just didn't want to do any. We don't want to do you wrong.

Corey: 00:01:33

We are totally fine. I just love long, lengthy titles because why not? We only live once, right?

Casey: 00:01:39

Yeah, it's memorable. I mean, seriously, if you were just Corey, then people be like, wait, what was that? But it's Corey Damon Jenkins.

She's got this thing that you have to say all three.

Corey: 00:01:47

So three names. Yeah, Bobby Burke always calls me three name.

Rainey: 00:01:51

Three name.

Corey: 00:01:51

Yeah, it's always three name. I'm like, I'd rather be three name than two.

Rainey: 00:01:54

So I like it.

Casey: 00:01:57

So do you want to do we like to start these with a win? Can you share what your win today? Winners, maybe.

Corey: 00:02:04

So my biggest win in the last few weeks has been the adoption of our new puppy. Her name is Charlotte and we adopted her from a rescue program.

She was in a pretty rough situation with 17 other dogs and so in a small apartment in New Jersey. So she's a beautiful Havanese slash Yorkie mix and. And the most docile, kind, lovable creature.

I can probably count on one hand the amount of times that she's barked. And so she's just been perfect.

She's already had two out of state business trips with me and my partner in the last four weeks and she's handling it like a trooper. So it's been great.

Casey: 00:02:49

She's precious.

Rainey: 00:02:51

We met her and she is precious. That is so. So is this your first time? Is this your first rescue or.

Corey: 00:02:57

My first rescue for sure, My first rescue for sure. But my second dog, but definitely very different personality and we travel a lot for work.

So I'm so thankful that already she's proving that she'll be up to the challenge of being A real pup. And getting out there in the world with us was great.

Casey: 00:03:14

I love that.

Rainey: 00:03:15

What's your win?

Casey: 00:03:17

I'm looking out right now and seeing my most favorite humans. So I think my win right now is just support from our friends and family literally in front of us right now. I can't even get over it. And we're here.

Rainey: 00:03:30

And you with him in my life.

Corey: 00:03:31

Yeah.

Rainey: 00:03:32

So my win is next week, my husband and I will be celebrating 35 years of marriage.

Corey: 00:03:38

Oh, congratulations.

Rainey: 00:03:39

And so we are going to go away for three weeks and turn off our phones and disconnect in a way that we've never done before. And so that, for me, is my win.

Casey: 00:03:51

It's wonderful to that point. Have you ever disconnected for three weeks, King?

Corey: 00:03:58

It's been a long time since I've disconnected for that long of a period of time. But, you know, if you can make it work, that's awesome.

Casey: 00:04:05

It's amazing.

Corey: 00:04:06

Hopefully this winter I can do that.

Rainey: 00:04:08

The holidays, where was the last place you traveled? Not for work.

Corey: 00:04:12

Paris. We were in Paris for Christmas. That's like, our family traditions. So we get away to France for the holidays.

We love to celebrate Thanksgiving, obviously, with our family here in the States, but everyone kind of does their own thing for the Christmas holidays, so we always go overseas.

Rainey: 00:04:28

So we go to the same place, like the same hotel and the same restaurant.

Corey: 00:04:32

We actually. Yeah, we get an Airbnb and we rent out a beautiful home because Adam loves to cook.

So we like to have a great kitchen and go to the market and get groceries and, you know, fresh vegetables and just really enjoy the entire moment because we're there for, like, three weeks. So that was probably the last three weeks stint that I had a few weeks ago.

Rainey: 00:04:53

And that's a good time in our industry to, like, disappear, right?

Corey: 00:04:56

Yes. Clients are turned off.

Rainey: 00:04:58

Yeah. They're quiet for five minutes. Yeah.

Casey: 00:05:01

Everybody's kind of shut down. You're not. Checking in with people in Paris at that time of year is beautiful because you get to bundle and wear all of your best winter gear. Yeah.

Corey: 00:05:09

And it's not usually that cold yet. Now January, it gets to become really frigid, but it's still kind of fairly mild.

Casey: 00:05:17

That's so fun. Okay, so, Corey, we've got lots of questions and so many things we want to talk to you about, but what I.

I got to listen to you about six years ago you came to Houston, so thank you for gracing us with that. And you spoke about how you started. So you had talked about that journey and you know, the car and sort of these things.

Would you take a few minutes and share some of that backstory with us?

Corey: 00:05:44

Yeah, absolutely. I'll give you the Cliff Notes.

Casey: 00:05:45

That'd be amazing because I know time.

Corey: 00:05:47

er in interior design back in: 1996

during the Great Recession in: 2007

The good thing about being a purchasing agent, you're working with big multimillion dollar budgets. You're negotiating, you're collaborating with tier one suppliers. In that case, I almost said contractors, but tier one suppliers.

But it's the same general concept. You know, you're working with people to get the best from them to produce a product.

And so that skill set was very helpful because I was able to pair that with my creative abilities as an interior designer. So I got laid off.

And then I decided after a few weeks of kind of meandering through options as far as trying to apply for other jobs in the industry, I decided at that point to create my own destiny and to produce an opportunity that could not be outsourced to a different country. Right. Being in complete control of my destiny. So it was easier said than done. Michigan is a very conservative, kind of laid back state.

People don't really show off a lot when it comes to their wealth.

And especially during a Great Recession, people are even more sensitive about showing off, you know, buying a new house or, you know, redecorating or things of that nature. So the idea of trying to launch a firm for design in a Great Recession in a Midwestern state is a very tall order.

Casey: 00:07:30

Perfect, right?

Rainey: 00:07:31

No problem. What can go wrong?

Corey: 00:07:32

What can possibly go wrong?

Rainey: 00:07:33

Nothing.

Corey: 00:07:34

So I launched the website and I waited for the phone to ring. It didn't ring at all. And after a few weeks I realized, okay, I have to go out to the business rather than waiting for the business to come to me.

And I went and put together some color boards, a satchel of sketches, three dimensional renderings of rooms, some CAD floor plans, and then set out on a comprehensive grassroots campaign of sorts, really. I mapped out the wealthier areas of metro Detroit and rented an Enterprise Chrysler 200 vehicle. Because you can't. Well, you can't.

I had a Honda Accord at the time, but because I knew that most of my wealthy customers were going to be connected in some way, shape, or form to the Ford, GM or Chrysler. I didn't want to pull up into the driveway driving a foreign vehicle.

Casey: 00:08:24

It's brilliant, right?

Corey: 00:08:26

So I went to the Enterprise rent of the car people and got a Chrysler, and I just drove from house to house, suburb after suburb, one gated community after another, knocking on doors. I set a goal for myself for 1,000 doors.

And I told myself if I didn't get a hit by 800, I would just hang it up and wait the recession out and maybe get a job at Starbucks or something, you know, or.

Casey: 00:08:49

Enterprise, because you're the best customers.

Corey: 00:08:52

I knew them very well at that point. But I knocked on 6, 779 doors in the process, and most times people did not answer the door at all.

Although I did develop an uncanny ability of detecting movement within the house by looking at the glass panes in the windows and seeing the vibration. You know, like, I know you're in there. I can feel their presence in the architecture of the building.

Casey: 00:09:20

I'm a furniture designer. I know that.

Corey: 00:09:21

I can feel you in there. Right. But most people did not answer the door at all. I did have quite a few doors slammed in my face.

Rainey: 00:09:29

Wow.

Corey: 00:09:30

Had a couple of people call me some rather unsavory names that are racist that I can't repeat here on this podcast. And then I had about, maybe I had two different occasions where people set out dogs to chase me off the property.

I got up real close and personal with a Doberman pinscher and then a pair of huskies, and one of which had one eye was green and one eye was blue. And I had no business knowing his eye color, that level of detail, that's how close he got.

So I got very discouraged after a while, you know, knocking on all those doors and all that rejection, especially coming behind already being laid off, which was the first massive rejection after 10 years of being a successful business partner at that company. And so I said, okay, I'm going to round this goal down from 1,000 doors to 800. If I don't get it hit by 800, I'll just hang it up. At the 779th door.

This really wonderful couple came to the door, the doctor and his wife. They invited me in. It was a cold winter day, and they offered me coffee and scones, which was the first time that anyone had offered me anything.

That's always a really great sign when someone offers you refreshments, especially On a cold winter day, it says that they view you as a potential partner and not as the hired help, you know. And so they gave me a nice cup of coffee. I got through my entire presentation.

They hired me to do the project and we did a complete gut rental and transformed the home. Took a few months to get that all done.

And then after I completed the project, I hired a really great photographer named Beth Singer, and she photographed the project. I put it on my website, which had been just thirsty for real work finally.

And then three weeks later, executives from HGTV casting the project saw my work online, just kind of scouring the Internet and cast me on my first television show. So I competed on this design star competition. It was insane. It was crazy.

And I was again, my self esteem was kind of jacked up through all this process. But I did win on that competition and that kind of catapulted us to the next level of our firm's legacy.

Rainey: 00:11:36

Do you still have a relationship with that couple? I'm interested to know?

Corey: 00:11:39

I do, I do, yeah. They're at our wedding. I talk to her. I talk to her at least once a month.

We do these little coffee clutch club Zooms where we'll get on Zoom and just, we'll literally have our cups of coffee out. And often it's just me and her, but the last time we had one, her husband joined us and we'll go to Michigan and we'll have dinner with them.

They come to New York. You know, we always make it work.

Rainey: 00:12:01

So I love that.

Casey: 00:12:02

And did they even know they want, needed a designer when you showed up with your fabulous satchel of goods?

Corey: 00:12:07

They did. They actually have fired their previous design.

Casey: 00:12:09

Okay, so just.

Corey: 00:12:10

It was kissing.

Casey: 00:12:11

It was. You literally knocked on the, the right.

Rainey: 00:12:14

Door at the right time. I feel like you should have a, a, a necklace, like a tattoo seven, like that's your number.

Corey: 00:12:21

It's a magic number.

Rainey: 00:12:22

Yeah, that is your number.

Casey: 00:12:24

The oddness of the that number. That's beautiful.

Rainey: 00:12:26

Growing up, were you surrounded by layers and layers of beautiful things that then sort of informed your maximalism design aesthetic or how did that come to be?

Corey: 00:12:38

Absolutely Rainey. I come from a long line of decorating ladies that appreciated fine design. My grandmothers on both sides love design. Both of their homes.

My grandmother in Chicago, Della, she had a fantastic home with very traditional neoclassic elements. Well done, color coordinated. She had peach and cream and black and chocolate and gold.

And then my grandmother in Detroit had one of those beautiful boulevard style homes in Detroit when Detroit was in its heyday, you know, back in the 60s, you know, when the Supremes were reigning supreme with Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5. So they had a beautiful home there. And again, very much into decor with her lavender and cream and a little bit of chocolate.

That was her favorite color palette. And then my mother loved to decorate. And our home was always being refinished in the. In the 80s and the 90s. They were always redoing the home full.

Not really gut renovations, but definitely new wallpaper, new paint, new furniture, new art. Facelifts, constant facelifts. But I will always come behind my mother and redo everything that she had done.

Rainey: 00:13:46

What would she say about that?

Corey: 00:13:47

I think she always thought that it was her idea because there were always very subtle changes. You know, like, I'm gonna just move this vase to this table. I'm gonna flip this pillow on this side.

I'm going to straighten this artwork, or I'm going to change this stack of books. And I think that people would come over and just compliment her on how beautiful the home looked.

And I think she just thought, oh, yeah, it does look great, because I think she thought she had done it, but it was actually her son coming behind her.

Casey: 00:14:12

So to do that, that kind of speaks to the generosity of a human that you are, because it shines through in so many ways that people might not realize when they watch you on the masterclass. You are always gracious and you're always kind, but that is a moment some other kid, myself mostly, probably would have been like, hey, Mom. Hey, Mom.

Look what I did. And it's that quiet kindness that you gave her because she owned it. But you could have. She's the mom.

And it's that respect that you obviously give to everybody around you.

Rainey: 00:14:45

Including us.

Casey: 00:14:46

Including us.

Corey: 00:14:47

I mean, it's my pleasure.

Casey: 00:14:48

It's just. It's. It's just telling of who you are, and it's special. So. Yeah.

Rainey: 00:14:53

So one of the things that I remember from the. The phone call and the stories that I've read about you, and you touched on it.

But I do have to go back and make this one point about this car that you rented.

Corey: 00:15:02

Yeah.

Rainey: 00:15:03

That when you first rented it, you explained to the Enterprise people that you were going to need this exact car.

Corey: 00:15:10

Yes.

Rainey: 00:15:11

At this exact time, every week. And you could not deviate because you couldn't go roll up in these neighborhoods in a different car.

And if you know anything about rental car agencies to get the same car, you're not. And so you had to really befriend them and trust them that you were going to have the car, right? Yeah, I think that's such a great part of the story.

Corey: 00:15:32

He was so good to me. I mean, he allowed me to even peel the Enterprise renter car sticker off the glass window that's in the lower left hand corner of the driver's side.

Because I know that if I pulled up with that, they would know those are rental cars. So I would peel the green. It was a green black and white Enterprise logo.

I would pull it off and I would put it on the visor on the mirror above my head and just let it sit there. And then I would put it back on when I brought the car back.

So I think probably after several times of taking it off it, probably and sticking on that well, after a while. But they understood.

And I think because I articulated what the challenge was and so many people were out of business at that time and were out of work and were looking for new opportunities, I think they were very sympathetic to my plight. So there are still good people out there.

You may forget that sometimes when you look at the news and the world, the cruelty and the nastiness, I think by nature, more most humans are good people.

And so I just happened to be lucky to stumble upon a number of really great human beings back to back between the enterprise manager, my first clients. You know, these are all things that were lining me up for success.

Casey: 00:16:41

For success, yeah.

And so with that, and how do you keep your brain in this sort of very inspired and not really seeing those other elements, because you seem to do a really great job of taking care of that for yourself, for you and Adam, you know, you just. You do that for you. And so how intentional is that? How do you bring that into your daily because you are wanted in so many capacities.

So is that how do you manage it?

Corey: 00:17:08

I think it's important to surround yourself with good people. My staff is absolutely incredible. And when you're putting together a team, it's like casting a movie.

Every actor, every actress has to have good chemistry. There has to be a good balance of introverts and extroverts.

And they have to all, I think, have a measure of humility and kindness, because that's the type of person I'm trying to be. And so therefore there's no room for egos or for toxicity. So I think that's very important.

I think choosing the right clients is also a big part of it, because if you partner yourself with clients who may have toxic behavior or are unkind or abusive and not maybe just to you as a designer, but to everyone in their orbit. That's not a good connection, because we do as empaths. At least I think a lot of designers are empaths.

Rainey: 00:17:59

I agree.

Corey: 00:18:00

We absorb that negative energy, and then we become basically burdened with that damage.

So I also find that saying no to the wrong proposals, the wrong opportunities, it's important to keep your emotional and mental enamel in good condition. Yeah.

Rainey: 00:18:21

Powerful. I know.

When we talked last week, when Casey and I were talking about interviewing you and the things that we wanted to know, we wanted to know if there was an. If there was ever a time that you suffered from imposter syndrome.

And when we mentioned that, it opened up this whole thing that you dropped in our lap, this huge surprise. So I. I just kind of want to lead with that question. Is there ever a time you've suffered from imposter syndrome?

And then will you share what you shared with us?

Corey: 00:18:55

Well, I think that imposter syndrome is something that most creatives, at some time or another encounter. I know I definitely have had my fair share of it.

I think the worst of it was really when I was launching the firm, because I was coming at it from such a different vantage point than most designers traditionally arrive with their firms. And so there were definitely times where I didn't think I was good enough.

I wasn't talented enough or didn't know enough of the right people, the right connections. Designers in Michigan were a bit cagey with sharing resources and sharing who their best painter was. So I had to go through a lot of trial and error.

And that does not help your self esteem if you're making bad choices with subpar contractors. Right, right. So I definitely feel that I suffered from that.

And every once in a while, I have to continue to remind myself that imposter syndrome is very much like a form of emotional cancer. Cancer. Once you have it, you can mitigate it.

You can keep it from progressing from a stage one to a stage four, but you may never completely eradicate it.

And so I think for those of us who are infected with imposter syndrome, it may be more about managing it and keeping it in remission than necessarily getting rid of it. Because we're human beings. Right. And these things do trigger us.

Casey: 00:20:15

That's a wonderful way to look at it. Yeah.

Rainey: 00:20:17

And then I think you spoke to this whole idea and something very exciting that you're working on. Is that something that you can tell us about today or which one you.

Corey: 00:20:27

Talk about so many things.

Rainey: 00:20:28

I think it Was. Was it in your foreword of something that you're working on?

Corey: 00:20:32

Oh, about the dedication.

Rainey: 00:20:37

Yes.

Corey: 00:20:38

Yeah. I mean, I actually said that. I said that ever since I brought a copy of it. I didn't memorize it.

Casey: 00:20:45

It's so beautiful. Oh.

Corey: 00:20:47

It was like, I think I said to all the design superheroes and creatives out there who are poised to take flight and are breaking through the chains of. Of fear, doubt, and imposter syndrome soar high. Remember that broken crayons can still color and that delays do not mean denial.

Rainey: 00:21:11

That is.

Casey: 00:21:12

It's so beautiful.

Rainey: 00:21:14

I feel like I want to have that on a podcast somewhere.

Casey: 00:21:17

Is it too long to have tattooed, like, here, here, and here? And where's that going to. Where's this dedication at?

Corey: 00:21:22

It's going to be in my next book.

Casey: 00:21:24

There it is. There it is.

Rainey: 00:21:25

We finally.

Casey: 00:21:26

We were like, we're here.

Corey: 00:21:29

And then we did a great prep call, but I was like, we had such a great conversation.

Casey: 00:21:35

I love that. That wasn't where you. You're like, you're just here. We just.

Rainey: 00:21:38

Full disclosure. We wanted to pop popcorn and just be on that call with you forever.

Corey: 00:21:43

We had, like, we had a good time.

Casey: 00:21:45

That was fun. But. So tell us about this new book.

Rainey: 00:21:47

This new book.

Corey: 00:21:48

Oh, we're very excited about it. It's going to be launching on presale next week, top of March. I think it's going to be March 5th. It's going to be available.

That's what we're being told by our marketing team at Rizzoli. And it's my second book, my second coffee table book, coming behind our first publication with Rizzoli, which was entitled Design Remix.

It came out in: 2021

You know, I haven't been posting a ton of new work on my Instagram because I've been holding back all of this new work. But, yeah, we have about 276 pages, which will be much bigger than the first book of fresh new work, so we're excited.

Rainey: 00:22:37

And you had how many images that you looked through for this one?

Corey: 00:22:41

I mean, we probably. We had a few hundred. We had a few hundred images we had. Because our photographer, Andrew, he's so thorough.

He just gets every detail, every nuance, every vignette. But when you're consolidating all that into one book, you have to make some tough choices. And so a lot ended up on the cutting room floor.

So you'll probably see those images on social media and maybe on the website. But in the book, we just chose our top 20 images for each chapter.

Casey: 00:23:05

And what's the kind of between when and when were these projects completed and when? What's that?

Corey: 00:23:11

iest project was completed in: 2021

Rainey: 00:23:18

Wow.

Corey: 00:23:19

Okay, so it's very recent.

Casey: 00:23:20

So you've been holding some of these, though, for a very long time. Just. Was that the anticipation of knowing this was going to be your next book?

Corey: 00:23:26

Yeah, we signed the deal with Rizzoli about two years ago.

Casey: 00:23:29

Okay.

Corey: 00:23:29

So we knew this was coming. And there's just a matter of kind of planning things out with the photo shoots and all the things that we've been developing with these projects.

And we've had just some incredible clients that have been so hospitable in opening their homes to us and letting us come in and share their world. So I just can't wait for the people out there to see it. It's a much bigger book as far as it's longer.

It's about 30 or 40 pages longer than the first book. It's also a bigger trim as far as the size of the book. And it's just going to be, hopefully, a nice sequel to the first album, if you will.

Casey: 00:24:03

And so that goes on sale on March 5 and then on pre sale. Pre sale. So then that will be out In September. September.

Corey: 00:24:11

September 9th.

Rainey: 00:24:12

Casey and I are like, we want to buy 10 copies. Well, we had talked about give them away.

Casey: 00:24:16

That's what we're gonna do. So if you. Anyways, if we can.

Corey: 00:24:19

I can autograph this.

Casey: 00:24:20

Well, that's it. So people who watch or see this and then they, you know, tag everybody in and then be honored. The first 10 that do that, we're.

Corey: 00:24:29

Gonna be honored to do that.

Casey: 00:24:31

But we can't get our hands because I still have mine in office. And it's still. The remix is just so beautiful and colorful.

But you said this is just very different than remix because of stories and because it's not. So it kind of. People have something exciting to look forward to.

Corey: 00:24:45

Yeah. There's some similarities between the two books.

You know, this one is project driven, Whereas the first book was driven by theme, like how to decorate with color, how to decorate with pattern, how to decorate in black and white. Whereas this book is driven by 10 projects. And then, like the first book, we have these takeaways on how to do these things yourself.

I think people love having a takeaway, a DIY payoff moment where they feel that they've won something versus just buying a fancy book. They do want to learn something about how to incorporate these different things, things in their own personal lives.

So the book will have a ton of great tips. I think we have five takeaway sections of designer tips that they can apply in their home.

Casey: 00:25:28

Invaluable coming from you for sure. So you're standing here. Is this almost gonna have a birthday coming up?

I'm not, I'm not gonna divulge your age if you're an age person, but do you have a. When, you know, Instagram did that do some do well by your 8 year old and your 80 year old person.

Do you look now at yourself and think about that 8 year old Corey and what would you tell him now and then, you know, and then moving Forward into your 80 or so, you know, your 80 year old self?

Corey: 00:25:57

Yeah, that's a great question. That's a great question. I would tell 8 year old Corey that it's going to be okay. You will lose all of your hair and it will still be also be okay.

Casey: 00:26:12

Handsome as hell.

Corey: 00:26:14

Oh my gosh.

Rainey: 00:26:15

But you're going to get these rad glasses.

Corey: 00:26:16

Yes, you're going to get these cool glasses because you'll also lose your eyesight. But you know, as a child in school, I was always different. You know, I was raised in a very strict Christian household.

Obviously being different, you know, as a young gay child and being very interested in design and fashion and colors and pattern and being an artist. And I was also really into writing and I was at the top of my class as far as my grades. So I was basically a nerd.

And so we have all of those things combined together. Kids picked on me constantly.

I remember spending every lunch period in junior high and most of my high school years in the library because I could not bear to go to the cafeteria with all the bullies that were picking on me every single day. The school bus. I would always sit in the very front row because all the bad kids sat in the back.

I don't want to get my butt beat up in the back, you know, of the bus.

So I would tell that younger version of myself that as crazy and as and dystopian as I thought life was going to be at that, you know, chapter of my life, that the light at the end of the tunnel really did turn out to not be a train. But it really is sunlight. There'll still be Some challenges, but you're going to be okay.

Casey: 00:27:28

You're going to be okay.

Rainey: 00:27:29

So I have a question for you. All of these, I know. I just want to stay on these same topics forever.

Corey: 00:27:36

Right.

Rainey: 00:27:37

But in thinking about the gorgeous interiors that you've created, and surely everyone has seen several of them by now, I wonder if there was ever something that you purchased that you curated that you put in a client's house and that you've thought about after that and thought, oh, I wish I had kept that piece for myself. Like, is there a piece that got away?

Corey: 00:28:03

Yes. Every project I have a piece or pieces that get away from me. We just completely.

A really fantastic apartment for a wonderful woman and her two daughters on the Upper east side of New York. And she has a mirror in her front hall.

It's a 19th century federal style mirror, gilded, with beautiful prongs to hold candles, like a candelabra mirrors. It's an oval mirror with all these beautiful carved floral ribbons, you know, motifs with holders for, like six candles, like tapered candles.

And they are coming off on these little arms. And it's just this incredible piece of jewelry. And I almost did not show that to her. Because you wanted it. I wanted it for myself. And.

But I know that she had been looking for it. We had been looking for. For several weeks to kind of finish off this front hall space. And I said, you know what?

This client and I are becoming dear friends who are also neighbors on the Upper east side. I can just stop by frequently and pet the mirror and stroke the mirror and light the candles and then go home and be on your way.

Casey: 00:29:10

Yes, exactly.

Corey: 00:29:11

So I say, okay, I'll let you have it.

Rainey: 00:29:12

But it happens often for you, huh?

Corey: 00:29:14

Every project. But I think that that's also part of why I love what I do.

Rainey: 00:29:17

That's right.

Corey: 00:29:18

I'm giving my clients the very best what's possible. And I would never give them anything. It's like a doctor. I would never give any patient a treatment that would not save my life.

Rainey: 00:29:27

I love that.

Casey: 00:29:28

And so in that moment when you're finding these pieces, do you. Is everything kind of curated specifically for a client? Or sometimes are you just out and you're like, this is too fabulous to pass up.

It will go somewhere at some point. Are you. How are your. Your process? I mean, everybody's so different with that stuff.

Corey: 00:29:45

Yeah, we don't carry a lot of inventory. I don't like carrying inventory. I don't like paying for it at my monthly bills. So occasionally I may come across Something.

We were in the south of France, and we came across a few things that were just so incredible, you know, too incredible to pass up, that we went ahead and scooped them up and a client did purchase them. But aside from that, it's more about really tailoring it to the client's needs. I mentioned being like a doctor.

You know, I love to speak in analogies like I did on Masterclass. And so, you know, when you're a doctor delivering a baby, the baby should look like its parents. Right.

And so the home should resemble the client's style because it is going home with you. It is not coming home with me. This is your house. Are your investments being used to articulate the interiors of the space?

So I really try to, you know, make it very bespoke and very tailored to fit their personalities like that.

Casey: 00:30:36

Beautiful.

Rainey: 00:30:37

So let me switch this. Let me reframe this just a little bit to Corey, like the non designer. So it's Saturday morning, and you're at home. And what is it that you're doing?

What does Corey do on his downtime?

Corey: 00:30:52

Sleep.

Casey: 00:30:54

I like it.

Rainey: 00:30:55

Recharge.

Casey: 00:30:56

Yeah.

Corey: 00:30:59

I love our home in New York City. I don't get to spend as much time there as I would like. I travel extensively. We're always on a train, plane, or in an automobile going somewhere.

And I'm very grateful that our clients and our partners are bringing us literally around the world for different things.

Rainey: 00:31:15

And Adam gets to join you.

Casey: 00:31:16

Right? That's amazing.

Rainey: 00:31:17

That's wonderful.

Corey: 00:31:18

Yeah. He's our director of business and marketing. And now Charlotte will be coming along, too. Exactly.

So it'll be three of us, and so it really works out well. But we put a lot into our home in New York, and I don't get to enjoy it as much as I would like.

So I think a Saturday morning for me, raining is just curling up in my pajamas, watching tv, mindless entertainment. Cinnamon toast crunch, if I can pull it off. Right. And just not answering my phone and not opening my laptop was such a luxury for me right now.

Rainey: 00:31:53

So is there. Do you have, like, guilty pleasure tv? Like, what are you watching?

Corey: 00:31:57

Star Trek.

Rainey: 00:31:59

Really?

Corey: 00:31:59

I'm a huge Trekkie.

Rainey: 00:32:00

You're a Trekkie?

Corey: 00:32:01

Massive Trekkie.

Casey: 00:32:02

Okay. I love. What is there? What is it?

Rainey: 00:32:05

What is the draw? What's the appeal?

Corey: 00:32:07

It's the optimism, you know, it's the promise of a better future than what we have today. And when I was a child, I was very much into science fiction. Remember, I was that nerd. So all those lunch hours in the library.

I was reading books by Hans Christian Andersen and L. Frank Baum with the wizard of Oz series and these different science fiction writers. And so I really enjoyed that.

And I got attached to those types of design. I'm sorry, those kinds of categories for entertainment. So anything that involves science fiction like Star Trek, Star wars and Marvel.

I'm a huge comic book nerd. I have a million comics collected. My grandfather got me turned on to that.

So that's where you'll find me is on Disney or Paramount plus and whatever they have to offer in those categories.

Casey: 00:32:56

So when you were drawing as a kid in all of those times, and you're one of the most articulate, well spoken humans I've ever to listen to. It's just beautiful. So it's clear you spent plenty of.

Corey: 00:33:05

Time in the library.

Casey: 00:33:06

In the library. I spent time in the library for similar reasons growing up. But I wasn't reading. I was probably smoking something, eating some. I have no idea.

But I was in there just not doing what I was supposed to be doing. I should have probably taken the time like you did and sound a lot better. But. But during those times of sketches, were you ever doing comic stuff?

Were you. Was that ever something that like characters. Did you have a character? Like, do you. Did you create one?

Corey: 00:33:31

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I had so many superheroes and heroines that I was drawing. I loved Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman. That was the era that I grew up in.

You know, that whole late: 1970

Rainey: 00:33:43

We can identify that she was still.

Corey: 00:33:44

Right. She was still writing those first three seasons on TV's mind. Yeah.

So I was loving drawing her and also drawing very futuristic buildings and architecture. So my mother has all those sketches. So we have the receipts. You know, in terms of the interest in design and architecture was in me.

Even if it was influenced by like the Jetsons or these other science fiction leaning shows, the desire was later draw architecture.

Casey: 00:34:11

I love that you called them seats. Yeah, I'd never heard it referred to.

Corey: 00:34:14

You have to have proof.

Casey: 00:34:15

That is so fantastic.

Rainey: 00:34:17

Okay, so if you weren't an interior designer, what would you be? What would your career path have been?

Corey: 00:34:23

It probably would have been in fashion. I love fashion. I love textiles, you know, I love prints and textures. Silk and cotton and leather and patent leather and velvet.

I just love what we do with textiles in our design signs. So if I wasn't putting it on drapes and sofas and on the rugs and the floor, I probably would be putting it on human beings, as far as attire.

Casey: 00:34:47

Yeah. You always look amazing. So was there.

So, you know, in our industry, there's always dinners and you get invited and, you know, you show up because there you might possibly meet somebody. So when. Do you remember when you kind of went from being that awestruck person at the table to being the person.

Person that everybody was awestruck to be with because there was a switch, right?

Corey: 00:35:08

Yeah.

Casey: 00:35:09

Do you remember when that sort of switched?

Corey: 00:35:11

Yeah, I think. I mean, it's been.

It's been a few years probably, but I remember when I went to a dinner that was hosted by one of our favorite magazine editors, and I was seated with a number of up and coming designers who had a lot of questions for me, having seen me on masterclass and on television on Rachel Ray, whatever they saw me on, and I'm answering all these questions and they're all eating their dinner.

And by time the first few courses were wrapping up, my plate was still full because I had been talking the whole time because there were so many great questions. And so I think at that point I realized they were looking at me as more of like a mentor than as their peer. But for dinner, I'd rather be the peer.

Casey: 00:35:54

I want to eat my meal.

Corey: 00:35:56

I want to get my meal in. Yeah.

Rainey: 00:35:58

So if I called your best friend and I said, tell me something interesting about Corey that nobody knows, like something a really interesting fact about him, what would your closest friend say?

Corey: 00:36:15

Do you think that Cory's an introvert? That he's an introverted individual? That what you see on TV and in the press and, you know, like I said, master class, that is my job.

That's what I do for my career. That public facing, servant support expert thing. But in real life, I'm much more shy. Yeah.

Casey: 00:36:35

Interesting.

Corey: 00:36:36

That is way more private. Okay. Which is really not a good fit for what I do. But.

Casey: 00:36:41

But it worked. It's working. It seems to be taking off pretty well. So let's not change that at all. But did it.

What did it take you to have to get to place where you stood in those spaces confidently talking all the time? Does it help that it kind of on your masterclass, it is just you, so you're not having to entertain necessarily her and I. So does that help?

Was that sort of that stage that you could go into confident and then leave because it was still sort of a solo mission?

Corey: 00:37:08

Yeah, I mean, like I mentioned earlier, when I first launched the firm, there were so many designers in Michigan that were cagey with their information and, and reluctant. Like they were like gatekeeping.

Rainey: 00:37:19

Do you know what I call it?

Corey: 00:37:20

Keeping me out of it.

Rainey: 00:37:21

I call it pissing on the fire hydrant.

Corey: 00:37:23

Yeah.

Rainey: 00:37:24

It's like, this is mine.

Corey: 00:37:25

You can't have it.

Rainey: 00:37:26

Right.

Corey: 00:37:26

Like marking your territory.

Rainey: 00:37:27

And it's so unattractive.

Corey: 00:37:28

Yeah, yeah, it's horrible. And I just told myself, okay, this is making me feel very, very. It was very condescending. I felt less than.

And I promised myself that I'm ever in a position where I can help designers. I will break this cycle and I will be a mentor. I will be someone that will help others because I know what it feels like to be shut outside the gate.

So I think that that probably is what kind of guides my principles with this. I do it when I need to, for the cameras, to help others, because I think we all deserve to have a support system.

And then when I'm done, I'm out, you know?

Casey: 00:38:08

Yes.

Corey: 00:38:08

I go back and recharge.

Casey: 00:38:09

Exactly. You've given that to people. But I think that again, speaks to who you are.

And as much as it pains me to know that little eight year old boy, that what that must have been like because I anyways what that built to be the man you are so that your kindness exudes through all of it.

Because you could very well have gotten to this place where you're at, in sort of let that little boy go in a way that you grew into, like a bigger, you know, because you, you are phenomenal in every way and you're famous. And so you've. You've just kept who you are. That must. Your parent, your family must just eat you up.

Corey: 00:38:51

Well, here's the thing. The Greek word for humility is humus. H U M M U S with an accent mark over it. And when you translate that to humor English, it means dirt or dirt.

Like, so I always believe in keeping your head to the ground, you know, staying grounded, staying humble. If you keep yourself grounded, if you do happen to trip and fall, you don't have too far to land.

Gravity sucks you down a lot harder with a much more devastating splat. When you elevate yourself above others to a point where it's like haughty or condescending. So just stay.

Rainey: 00:39:29

Just grounded.

Corey: 00:39:31

Yes.

Rainey: 00:39:32

I have to say, in our experience with you, with you and your entire team, Casey and I have talked about this, the kindness and the graciousness. And I will also share that.

One of the takeaways that Casey and I had from our phone call with you was that you said, I know you've just started your podcast. I know this is a new voice in our industry, and because of that, I want to be part of it.

Because you fully acknowledge that bringing your brand and aligning that with ours for this hour is shifting a game changer for us. Plus, you know, we love you, we're huge fans, and so your brand and the kindness has meant the world to us. So thank you.

Corey: 00:40:18

No, thank you. It's my great honor. It's such a pleasure and I'm so proud of what you guys are embarking on. It's very different.

It's a very different type of podcast. I'm very selective and picky. You know, my staff will tell you I say no a lot more than I say yes these days because time is just very limited.

But what you guys are looking to achieve with your podcast is a very different and very fresh take that. I think the industry and even those beyond the industry I think will really benefit from. So it's easy to say yes.

Rainey: 00:40:47

Well, thank you.

Corey: 00:40:48

Of course.

Rainey: 00:40:48

We love you to pieces.

Casey: 00:40:50

Thank you.

Rainey: 00:40:50

Feel so lucky.

Casey: 00:40:51

Oh, so good.

Rainey: 00:40:53

Thank you.

Corey: 00:40:54

Thanks for having me.

Outro: 00:40:55

That's a wrap for this episode of Reframing the Art of Interior Design. We hope you had a blast and found some inspiration to bring your dream space to life. Feeling inspired to start your own home transformation?

Contact us@helloeframingdesign.com we want to help you make it happen. Don't forget to subscribe, share and leave a review this show was edited and produced by Truth Work Media.

Until next time, remember, your space is your story. Make it beautiful.