With an eye toward expansion and longevity, successful companies and respected design firms alike have implemented major changes to ensure a solid future. We delve into the thinking behind some of the industry’s headline-making deals.

Climate change is a term that could easily be applied to the home furnishings market. The yo-yoing of the economy. The industry’s shift to a much more open, accessible model. Businesses growing quickly—or shrinking unexpectedly. And principals getting older. Keeping pace with these shifts can require some pretty fancy footwork, and as most design industry executives know, there is no clear roadmap for weathering the storm. Sell to investors, raise capital, hold tight for one more year—the design business is subject to the same ups and downs as any other sector, but in a tight-knit industry replete with legacy companies and family-run outfits, what happens when Wall Street gets in the mix? We ask those in the trenches who have made the journey—or passed entirely—to find out.

Growth Spurt“I have three deals on my desk right now and, I hope, two of them are going to close,” said a New York lawyer close to the design industry. The deals he is referring to are acquisitions rather than capital-raising. The latter can be a strategic move, but only under certain circumstances. “If it’s simply that you want to pay your rent for another two years but don’t anticipate sales getting any better, why beat your head against the wall,” he said. “Will throwing money at it do something? If it won’t, don’t.” Reasons capital would make sense, he said, include using it to build better internal systems, a more efficient distribution network, etc.