Meet the Pro

Emily Campbell is a Washington State-based interior designer who launched her firm in 2024 after careers in fashion design, product development, and digital marketing. With a background that includes agency work and startup experience, she understood from day one that systems and processes would be critical to her success. Now managing 6-7 active projects (both local and virtual), Emily is building a business designed to scale, with plans to hire her first team member within the year.

The Problem

Before Materio, Emily was piecing together a patchwork of tools that never quite fit. She used Google Drive, spreadsheets, Toggl for time tracking, Calendly for appointments, and Make.com for integrations. When that wasn't enough, she hired someone on Fiverr to build out a custom Monday.com setup.

"I wish I didn't spend as much money as I did, because I'm not using it anymore," she admits.

The Monday.com system worked internally, but it had a fundamental flaw:

"It wasn't super visual. I could never really share it with a client. It was never going to be client-facing, it was all internal."

She also tried Studio Designer, MyDoma, and other platforms, but "nothing really felt like it was going to  give me everything that I needed."

The result? A cluttered inbox, time wasted on back-and-forth approvals via email, and zero transparency on project profitability. Something that's "kind of like a mystery" when you're six months into business.

With Materio as a Partner

When Emily heard about Materio from a fellow designer at a local event, and then again on a podcast, she decided to try the free trial. The decision came fast.

"It was pretty much immediate, honestly. Like, upon being able to be inside of the platform and start to load a project in... I was like, dang, this is like what I built with my guy on Monday.com, but way better!"

What sealed the deal was Materio's openness during the trial.

"Just simply having the freedom to build out a true project, and not being limited by a trial version that only gives you 5 of 20 features. That was really helpful, because it really showed me the power of the platform from the start."

Beyond the product, Emily found a team that felt like true partners.

"I feel attached to Materio, and not just the platform, but the people. It feels really great to connect with another team member. I really like being part of a team."

The Transformation

The impact was tangible and fast. Emily landed a major furnishing project in Washington, DC, and credits Materio directly.

"The client wrote me back, and he was like, 'I am so impressed by the technology that you use.' Here's the signed contract. So it's paid for itself already."

Now, instead of requesting approvals via scattered emails, she sends clients a link where they can click a green approval button. "It feels good to everybody–it feels very official." Her inbox is less cluttered, her project profitability is visible in real-time, and she's canceled subscriptions to Monday.com, Toggl, and Make.com.

Success

Just one month into using Materio, Emily has become one of its biggest advocates, recommending it to fellow designers and even suggesting the team partner with design schools to reach students early.

When asked what she'd tell a designer who's never heard of Materio, she doesn't hesitate:

“You’ve got to invest in Materio if you’re a designer because it makes collaboration with your entire team, including the client, contractor, vendors, subs—everybody—just invaluably clean and easy to navigate.”

Her advice to fellow designers?

"One place. Stop paying for all your other... BS."

Connect with Emily

Follow Emily's work or get in touch at emilyjeaninteriordesign.com and @emilyjeaninteriordesign on Instagram.