Taxi Share “I got into a taxicab to go to the airport and the driver told me that we would have to stop to pick up another passenger. I groaned, but what could I do? The other passenger and I had a nice chat on the hour-long ride tothe Providence airport. When we arrived, both of us ran off to our separate flights. Three years ago, I got an email from him which began with the line, ‘You might not remember me but I met you in a taxi cab eight years ago.’ I remembered immediately; he was extremely nice. As it turns out, he wanted to build a house five miles away from the town I’ve spent every summer since I was 10. We ended up doing a beautiful shingle-style home for him and his family.”
—Thomas A. Kligerman, Ike Kligerman Barkley
Wrong Assumptions “I was bicycling around Central Park and I saw two guys having their photo taken on the steps tothe Conservatory Garden. They were dressed very well and I made assumptions ... probably a wedding announcement photo, I thought. The next night I was out to dinner at Trattoria Dell’Arte and the two were at the next table. I politely asked if they had been having their photo staken for a wedding. They said no, that it was for an HGTV show theys tar on called Selling New York. We traded business cards that night and a couple days later they invited me to redesign Joan Collins’s New York apartment to sell on the TV show. That was a great set of events.”
—John Lyle, John Lyle Design
Helping Hand “A number of years ago I found myselfin the paint department of a Brooklyn Home Depot where I was eavesdropping on a conversation between an enthusiastic paint salesperson and awell-dressed woman who was unsure of which color paint to purchase. I felt this advice was misguided so I gently inserted myself and my opinions into their conversation. She thanked me, asked for my card and was on her way. Less than three weeks later I received a call from the lovely lady asking if I would take a look at her new apartment. The place was spectacular and after a short discussion she hired me on the spot. It’s always good to lend a helping hand (and always have a business card on hand.)”
—Alan Tanksley, AlanTanksley Inc.
The Gamblers I had a meeting with a couple to discuss ideas about upcoming renovations. As the two went back and forth, I told them no decision had to be made right away. Iwas gathering my belongings to leave and the wife said, ‘Let’s just flip a coin and be done with it.’ The husband, being ever so competitive, took out a quarter. The woman called ‘heads’ and ‘heads’ it was! The wife did a fist pump and screamed ‘Yes!’ I half expected them to laugh and say they’d be in touch, but the wife said, ‘How soon can you start?’ and that was that.”
—Jody Myers-Fierz, ColorConcept Theory
Ready to Serve “Friends visiting us in San Miguel invited a couple over for cocktails. The wife of the couple mentioned that her decorator had vanished and wondered if I knew where he was. As it happened, I had heard that he was in jail for defrauding his clients. I hated to say it—I once met but didn’t know the man—but I gently told her what I’d heard. She was flabbergasted. Months later she called to say she had confirmed that he was indeed in jail, and could we take her on as a client?”
—Jeffry Weisman, FisherWeisman Design
Style Spotter “I sat next to a woman on a plane and we did not talk the whole flight, but were definitely checking each other’s style out. By the end of the plane ride she asked me who made my handbag, which I had designed. I showed her the Talia bed I designed recently for Savoir and she took m ycard. Cut to her contacting me about her new house that she just bought in the Hamptons. I came out the next day and the rest is history.”
—Nicole Fuller, Nicole FullerInteriors