BECOMING PART OF DESIGN CONNECTION
Design Connection is a network of design professionals who take an interest in promoting their services to area consumers. While each designer maintains their own, independent practice, participating designers commit to a 6-month agreement in which they attend a monthly meeting at Michigan Design Center and agree to be “on-call” at MDC one day per month to provide interested consumers with a complimentary design consultation. This initial complimentary consultation provides the consumer a no-obligation opportunity to experience the value of using a professional interior designer and, hopefully, helps to eliminate the many fears that consumers have about hiring a professional. Consumers are under no obligation to meet with the Design Connection member again, but many Design Connection clients often continue to work with their Design Connection designers.

Many participating designers have found the program very successful for their business. Our original consumer program (Designer on Call) served over 800 clients each year and resulted in annual sales of over $2.0 million. In addition, many independent designers appreciate the networking aspect of the program because it provides them valuable opportunities to share experiences and business ideas with fellow designers.

The Design Connection program consists of two 6-month sessions per year:

Session ONE runs from January 1 through June 30
Session TWO runs from July 1 through December 31

In addition to the monthly meeting and on-call commitments, participating designers are required to meet a specified net sales goal in Design Connection client product purchases through MDC showrooms for each six-month session. A complete listing of membership requirements is included online.

DESIGN CONNECTION QUALIFICATION CRITERIA
To be considered for the Design Connection program, interested designers must meet the following criteria:

• Four or five year bachelor’s degree majoring in interior design or architecture
  OR
  Two or three year degree or certificate in interior design
  OR
  A minimum of six years of full-time work in interior design or architecture


• Registered with Michigan Design Center for at least one year


• Have at least 8 open and active accounts, in good standing, with MDC showrooms


• 3 client referrals

If you meet the criteria listed above and would like to be considered for our Design Connection program, please fill out our online registration form or contact Bonnie Brown, our Design Connection manager, at 248.649.3947.