In the early 1990s, David Phoenix found himself at a crossroads. After living in Los Angeles for nearly a decade, working for industry brands like Brunschwig & Fils, Pierre Deux and Ralph Lauren Home, he lost his job. At the time, he was taking care of a friend dying of AIDS, who was staying at the home of media mogul Barry Diller. When their mutual friend passed away, Diller helped Phoenix get back on his feet, asking, “What are you passionate about? Think big and you’ll be big.” Phoenix responded, “I’m going to become an interior designer. That’s what I want to do. I love beautiful things, and I love putting them together, and I have a great eye. I think I have a career in this.”

Diller immediately helped get him set up with a resale number, and Phoenix officially launched his firm in 1994. While running errands at the design center for an unofficial project for Diller, he ran into an old client from one of his past gigs, Maria Shriver, who ended up hiring him. “That’s how I started my business. It was not by careful planning or strategy—it was just part right time, right place, and part having the courage of my convictions and just going for it,” Phoenix tells Dennis Scully on the latest episode of The Business of Home Podcast. More than 20 years later, his firm has taken on high-profile projects around the country (clients include Rob Lowe and former L.A. mayor Richard Riordan); its work has been published in numerous shelter magazines; and the business has survived Phoenix’s sobriety journey and Stage 4 cancer.

Phoenix urges new designers not to fear asking for help along the way—something he resisted at the outset of his career, when he was insecure about not having the education and accreditation of some of his peers. “If you’re passionate about something and you feel like you can do it, do it. I think there’s nothing wrong with asking for help, which I was not good at, because I felt like that was a sign of weakness,” he says. “Obviously you make mistakes, you learn from them, and you move on. For younger designers, I think it’s essential that you ask for help. There’s nothing wrong with it.”

Elsewhere in the episode, Phoenix talks about his client checklist, his collections with Hickory Chair and Kravet, and his take on the ongoing “decorator” vs. “designer” debate.

Crucial insight: In his projects, Phoenix likes to mix high and low. “Timex and Rolex—that’s how I look at it. If you have a Fabergé egg, you can buy a Crate & Barrel table. They’re both going to look good. If everything is precious, then nothing’s precious,” he says. “That’s what the art of design is really, you know? People are paying me to curate, at the end of the day. Yes, you’re buying things, you’re shopping and you’re specifying, but at the end of the day, when the rubber hits the road, you put it all together, and that’s when the magic takes place.”

Key quote: “I always tell people that I like to collaborate. I think when everyone is collaborative, you have a better result at the finish line. It’s not about any one person, it’s about the whole team. I have two ears and one mouth, and I listen a lot more than I talk. I feel people respect you when you listen to them. It’s not so important to always be right about everything.”

This episode is sponsored by Ernesta and Crypton. Listen to the show below. If you like what you hear, subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

The Thursday Show

Host Dennis Scully and BOH executive editor Fred Nicolaus discuss the biggest news in the design world, including layoffs at Food52 and Schoolhouse, a new design district in Charleston, and a look back at how the pandemic changed the industry. Later, John Edelman joins the show to share some updates on Heller.

This episode is sponsored by Jaipur Living. If you like what you hear, subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.