On April 14, Business of Home and Dallas Market Center launched the Business Accelerator Series with a jam-packed debut that set an energetic tone for the installments to come in the new biannual event. Held during Dallas Design Days, the kickoff session—“Landing the Right Work”—drew a packed room of designers focused on building stronger, more intentional businesses.

“Dallas Design Days broke attendance records, and the first edition of the Business Accelerator Series was sold out,” said Ileana Saldivia, director of interior design at Dallas Market Center. “The number of attendees was strong, and the quality was excellent: We welcomed several of the industry’s most celebrated design firms. Our showroom-hosted events were also well-attended, and participants are already eagerly anticipating September’s Dallas Design Week, when we’ll host the next session in the Business Accelerator Series. We look forward to welcoming the design community to our summer events, including Design + Build Day at Lightovation.”

The daylong program combined candid panel conversations with actionable workshops, all centered on a critical inflection point in any design business: winning the right projects. Renee Bush, founder of design business consultancy Tandem, opened with a sharp look at how a designer’s digital presence shapes client perception before the first conversation even takes place.

In a lively panel moderated by BOH editor in chief Kaitlin Petersen, Javier Burkle of Burkle Creative, Jean Liu of Jean Liu Design, and Bryan and Mike Yates of Yates Desygn explored the foundational work behind clear positioning and long-term differentiation. Later, Petersen’s conversation with Arianne Bellizaire of Arianne Bellizaire Interiors offered a transparent look at structuring intake processes, managing expectations, and confidently assessing fit. Strategist Christine Woodward, founder of 19th & Co., closed the day with a focused session on defining—and landing—your dream clients.

“I’m so grateful to the Dallas Market Center for seeing the value in this type of workshop, and for their thoughtful partnership as we developed this series,” said Petersen. “It was inspiring to see designers in the audience taking notes, asking questions—and making meaningful connections too. This spring, we talked all about fine-tuning a firm’s pipeline and strengthening the intake process. I’m already so excited to turn my attention to the fall session, where we’ll dive deep into the next phase of a project: the design process.”

With record-breaking attendance for Design Days, engaging Q&A sessions, and strong participation across showroom-hosted events, the debut of the Business Accelerator Series signaled a clear appetite for deeper business education within the design community. April set the precedent, and the September 14 installment is already poised to draw another full house.