FAQs
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Claude Designs is collaborative design group. Depending on your needs, depends on who works/manages your project. A little bit about our team: Jessica Claudio, Owner & Principal Designer Jessica attended NYIT (New York Institute of Technology) for her BFA in Interior Design. In 2013 she helped start up a home staging company in NY which is when she become a certified home stager. As part of belonging to IFDA & RESA (industry associations) she regularly attends educational seminars and trainings to keep current. Garry LaCombe, Lead Interior Designer Garry attended Kansas State University for his degree in Interior Architecture. He has sat for his state licensing (NCIDQ) which is preferred when working within commercial interiors. Delia Calderon & Harriet LaCombe, Staging Consultants Both ladies, while not formally trained are fulled with immense natural talent and have been properly trained by Jessica Claudio in all that is Home Staging. You can find them reading up on current trends and tagging along on educational seminars and training.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
Each one of us have our own stories in why we do what we do but here is how Claude Designs had gotten started: "Since I can remember, I knew I was going to become a designer. I remember telling everyone at my 7th birthday party that was going to be a designer and work in the big city. Something about it just called my name. Growing up watching my father's screen printing business solidified the meaning of hard work and running a successful business. Further solidifying my interest in interiors was my stepfather. At the age of 14, my stepfather opened his own contracting business where he would take me on job sites with him and fill me in on what he was working on and ask for my opinion. It was amazing to see blue prints come alive and well that's when it really all sparked for me. Fast forward years later, my upbringings helped in creating Claude Designs. I knew I was tired of being the mind behind design jobs for other companies without being recognized so I opened my own company. Most Interior Design companies are self named. While that was a possibility, I decided to simply give an ode to my family name so that eventually it would grow beyond just me. I thought about my future designers and how I wanted them to shine. Claude is such a traditional name that you don't hear anymore. I liked that was was traditional so I went with it and applied a modern logo to it. It really encompasses what were all about: traditional values with a modern approach." -Jessica Claudio, Owner & Principal Designer
- What types of customers have you worked with?
We work with various people from different walks of life. A large percentage of our business comes from realtors due to the fact that we offer home staging services. On the Interior Design end we have worked with champaign budgets (bottomless budgets) to the moderate, average person. Great design shouldn't only be accessible to the top of the food chain. We strive to work with any budget/ price-point and have worked hard to establish relationships with different manufacturers so that we can offer quality furniture and home decor all of the price point spectrum.