Meet the Pro

"We were spending, it felt like all of our time, kind of managing the status. What's been ordered? What hasn't been ordered? What's back ordered? When has this shipped? And we were chasing our tails."
- Monica Guarnaschelli, Indigo Maven Interiors

Jessica Mountjoy and Monica Guarnaschelli of Indigo Maven Interiors specialize in residential remodels, from full-scale construction with additions to smaller decorating projects. Their design firm quickly gained momentum, but their systems struggled to keep pace with their growth.

The Struggle

Before finding Materio, Indigo Maven was drowning in disorganization. "We were kind of a cobbled mess of spreadsheets. So Google Drive was our friend and worst nightmare," explains Monica. They were juggling spreadsheets alongside Basecamp for project management, but these tools weren't tailored to the unique needs of interior design.

The scattered approach created serious challenges:

"One of the biggest bonuses that we've been able to work through with our clients is seeing this bottom line. Our clients give us a budget, or they aren't sure what their budget is," Monica shares.

Without a unified system, it was difficult to give clients transparency about where their money was going. Jessica adds that they were

"reinventing the wheel per project and not being able to pull things in and tailor them, but start over every time. So it's quite a waste, you know. Not a wise use of our time."

The stress was taking a personal toll:

"Things would keep me up at night because I wasn't able to at one place see the status of them," Monica admits.

Meeting Materio

When their bookkeeper pointed out that their growing firm couldn't continue without a proper system, Jessica and Monica began exploring solutions. They needed something that could:

• Create a streamlined process for client projects

• Track orders and their status

• Provide real-time budget visibility to clients

• Support their team's growth

"I just really wanted to make sure we were choosing the right system for our needs, and didn't want a system that was too robust, that then we were spending all of our time managing a system for the sake of a system," Monica explains.

"Materio really kind of had that sweet spot of answering our needs, being really intuitive."

A Plan for Success

Materio provided the streamlined framework Indigo Maven needed to organize their projects and grow their business:

"To have this sort of kit of parts of all of the categories from construction, really pre-construction down to construction and design deliverables. Being able to pull in what's relevant to this job just really allows us to put the scope of work together in a lot more streamlined, quicker timeline,"
Jessica explains.

The platform's organization helped them build client trust:

"When you can more efficiently get to that number in a quicker way, and just seeing that, it eliminates the stress of 'what is all this adding up to?' And I think it allows us to really be seen as someone that can be trusted with their dollars. There's transparency, this is where things are going," shares Monica.

They've embraced Materio's complete toolkit:

• Floor plan mapping: Jessica highlights, "One of my favorite features I just use this morning actually, is the measurement tool that you can utilize on plans."

• Boards for visual presentations: "We used to use slides or InDesign or Canva for creating design presentations, and since you all have updated the functionality of a board, we've really been able to utilize the platform to build those," says Monica.

• Order tracking: "Tracking the progress of orders is just huge...looking at a client's whole pool house and okay, the bar stool shipped. These are at the receiver. These are at the upholsterer. This is back-ordered...That visibility all in one place is really a game changer for us."

• Component functionality: "The biggest thing that I think we use components for is drapery...A cohesive window treatment for one window is a rod and rings and a fabric selection and a liner. And you know there's trim and installation and shipping, and so capturing all of those components into the price allows us to just keep track of all of that."

Transformation

Since implementing Materio, Jessica and Monica have seen significant changes in their business:

"It's not only changed how we operate. It's changing how we can grow as a firm," Monica explains. The system has allowed them to bring on new team members smoothly and understand their business at a deeper level.

"We're getting a little bit more ability to zoom out and think of things on a larger creative scale. And imagine a project in a more creative way on the front end, which I think leads to better design in the long end," says Monica.

Jessica adds that with Materio, they can "take on more and more in-depth larger projects when we are able to manage each little bit more efficiently."

Their clients have also embraced the change. "We see that it varies from client to client. Clients that are tech-savvy will be on it on a daily basis, and keeping an eye on it. Other clients appreciate that it's there, and they know they have visibility to it if needed."

Success

Today, Indigo Maven is thriving with the support of Materio as their partner.

"If Materio disappeared tomorrow, I would miss a good night's sleep," Monica shares. "With Materio I'm just able to rest and know that it's organized and taken care of...it gives you what marching orders are to tackle next...I would miss my peace of mind."

Monica sums it up perfectly: "Materio is badass. It's just such a great solid tool, and it allows us to put our best foot forward in every project."