Hi There, I am Kate.

As a qualified interior designer for almost 20 years, I launched my first baby –  Interiors & Ko in 2020 as a passion project to help all Australians design functional, beautiful, bespoke homes.  My aptitude for design has led me all over the world, establishing projects in London, Melbourne, Darwin and, of course my current home – Perth.

Throughout my 20 years of experience in the construction industry and now more so as a small business owner, I have found there is a significant disconnect between what we are being taught in our higher education facilities (as interior designers, decorators, architects and building designer)  vs what is actually important entering the industry and the workforce.

Having worked on both sides of the fence in the industry – as an interior designer and as a project manager for a construction company, the ratio of males to females even in office environments still blows my mind.  Being witness to this and also having experienced bullying as a female on a construction site, I developed a passion to not only encourage women into the industry but to also equip them with the tools they need to feel confident.

The research I have conducted to date identifies that students and graduates (particularly women) are lacking the fundamental knowledge and skills to make the transition into the workforce seamless and enjoyable.  This includes things like:

• No understanding or awareness of the process of a real life project.
• No awareness of all the local and national networking opportunities and the importance of networking.
• A substantial lack of knowledge around the actual building process.  This also includes sub-contractor scopes of work like electricians, plumbers, cabinet makers and tilers.
• A substantial lack of awareness around reviewing technical drawings and contractual information.
• No awareness of how to handle conflict and stress.
• Assistance when it comes to refining LinkedIn profiles, portfolios, CV’s and interview preparation.

Taking the above into consideration, my goal is to create an online mentor program that fills in the gaps and offers the support to students and graduates who might not yet have the confidence or in fact the knowledge they thought they would from completing their studies.   This program would be available four times a year throughout each term and would involve a short 4 week ‘incubator’ with live weekly calls (with myself) to delve deeper into certain areas that have been requested by the participants.  The would also be an opportunity to have special guest speakers (builders, small business owners, tradies, company directors) who would then add further insight and knowledge.

Further to this, I am also aiming to approach established companies and small businesses who potentially have a requirement to employee students and graduates and offer a database and even an introduction to any of the participants that have completed this program.  Additionally, associations like Master Builders Australia and National Association of Women in Construction would be approached to utilise this program for their members.

The funding received will go towards further research, further developing the course content, creating the online platform to deliver the course, copywriting to refine the content and a marketing strategy and implementation.  One thing I have established as a small business owners is that marketing and strategy is KEY.

As mentioned previously I have already commenced research and have 75% of the course outline identified.  I have already been engaging with consultants who specialise in creating the course platform as my goal was to have the program available for the first term in 2023.  Marketing would commence in Jan 2023.

This program would run in parallel to my design clients as I am currently in the position to grow and scale my business and take on a purely client facing role with the design work being completed by my amazing team!