Today we’d like to introduce you to Ava and Arlene Tai.
Ava and Arlene, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
AA Design Firm was created rather seamlessly, simply because we were doing what we loved and what came naturally to us. But before, we get into the story of how we got started, let me clear up any confusion on whether or not we are sisters who look a lot alike or twins and the answer is that we are twins. 🙂 🙂 We first brought and designed our 1st property which was a condo. We were so excited about our first property that we invited all our friends and family to visit and they started noticing our design style and what we were doing.
Next, we brought another property and did the same thing but this time people who came over started to ask more questions on how we did that or why we did this and soon after they started asking us to do the same thing for their houses. And one of them lived at the Ritz Carton Residences DTLA, so we started there and now we are one of Ritz Carlton Residences DTLA premiere designers.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not really, because we had to find ourselves sort of speak, before interior design found us. We did some modeling and acting when we were younger. Modeling taught us a few things but most importantly it taught us the importance of good lighting, a girl’s best friend. Along the way, we also started a stylish stationary company that sold products to Urban Outfitter that taught us a very big lesson in how to source products to make our bottom line stay in the black and not in the red. And lastly, we owned and managed a contemporary noodle restaurant in Downtown Los Angeles that forced us to learn how to manage a team of people and the importance of effective time management. We didn’t know it at that time, but all these lessons really came together in perfect harmony to form AA Design Firm.
Because of our knowledge in lighting, time management, and in sourcing it has really benefited us in being well-equipped interior designers. One of our true gifts to our clients is our ability to look at a room and know what we can do to add real benefits in the most cost effect way and still make it comfortable and stylish for everyday living.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about AA Design Firm – what should we know?
Creativity, Integrity, and Problem solving. That’s what we do every day at work. We solve problems before our clients even know there was a problem, so to our clients the entire designing/installation process is enjoyable and fun. That’s the way it should be. When we see a room that is unfinished, we get really excited because there are infinite possibilities for what it can be, but what’s the most important part is to put our client’s personalities and life style into the room. That’s when you can really see magic. In another word, we make sure that the room fits them not the other way around.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I would say Passion. We are both extremely passionate about what we do and what we create for our clients. Passion goes a long way and it allows us to achieve the impossible. And when things are not working or going the way it should, which often is the case, we are still there because we love what we do. We care about it like if it is our place and it matters to us how it all turns out.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.aadesignfirm.com
- Phone: 310-892-0833
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: aadesignfirm
- Other: houzz- https://www.houzz.com/pro/aadesignfirm/__public
