To-The-Trade Episode Summary
Rhobin DelaCruz has been designing for over 18 years and runs his firm, Rhobin DelaCruz Designs, across residential, commercial, and vacation rental projects. His path to High Point Market didn’t start until about 2.5 years ago. The turning point was business coaching, specifically understanding that designers who build direct vendor relationships and become the retailer themselves can capture 20 to 100 percent profit on goods, compared to the 10 to 20 percent they earn by sending clients to retail. That math changed his priorities. He joins Laurie Laizure and Nile Johnson on To-The-Trade to walk through what that evolution looked like in practice, how his market strategy has shifted with each visit, and what he’s learned about building relationships that genuinely redirect a business’s course.
His first market was about observation. He leaned on friends who had been before, soaked in the environment, and treated it as a scouting trip. His second market was a completely different operation. He arrived with a clear mission: meet the right people, make a lasting impression, and leave with contacts who would remember his name. That strategic mindset, paired with a background in marketing and advertising, gave him a framework for showing up with intention rather than just showing up.
Rhobin is also a member of Vacation Rental Designers, the community founded by Jessica Deuce. One of VRD’s less-talked-about features is its collective vendor negotiation. Members keep their own direct accounts with brands, but the group negotiates on their behalf, bringing the leverage of volume purchasing to individual designers. Rhobin describes it as empowering both collectively and individually.
This spring, Rhobin steps into the role of High Point Market Style Spotter. His strategy for the role is deliberate: rather than staying in the high-traffic center of campus, he plans to work from the perimeter in, highlighting brands that most first-time and returning attendees tend to miss. For his Saturday tour, he chose just two showrooms, Classic Home and Sunpan. The goal was to give attendees real time to engage and learn, rather than a sprint through a packed schedule.
His practical market advice covers what actually matters: download the app, group your showroom visits by building so you don’t crisscross campus all day, and wear shoes you’ve already broken in. Fashion is genuinely a thing at High Point, but statement footwear belongs in your bag for the evening, not on your feet during a 12-hour walking day. And if you’re going for the first time, connect with someone who’s been before. The learning curve compresses quickly with a guide.
That spirit of connection led to the Design Besties and eventually to something much larger. Rhobin met Whitney Atkinson, Laurie Johnson, and Nikki Watson at the VRD Summit, just before his second market. The four bonded further on David Cohen’s showroom tour, and Rhobin started a group text after the trip ended. Two years later, they talk every day and function as each other’s informal board of advisors, sounding boards, and collaborators.
Out of that group came something no one anticipated. When Nikki suggested skipping her own backyard project to design a teacher’s lounge for a local school, the group immediately said yes. What followed was an emotional reveal that shifted the direction of all four designers’ work. The teachers’ response to walking into a professionally designed space built specifically for them produced tears that none of them were prepared for. That moment became the foundation of the Teachers Lounge Movement.
The Movement is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and the Design Besties are actively scaling it. They’ve partnered with High Point by Design, Jane Dagme’s nonprofit, and High Point School Partnerships, led by Raven Jefferson, to deliver teachers’ lounge makeovers to Title I schools nationwide. Their most recent High Point project brought in more than 20 brands and over $50,000 in donated furniture, based on only half of the total contributions.
The conversation also gets into what it actually takes to earn visibility in this industry. Rhobin is clear that the path to becoming a Style Spotter, getting on a panel, or being seen as a resource in the market community is not pay-to-play. It comes from consistently showing up, following through on commitments, building genuine relationships over time, and having a clear point of view. Brands and event organizers want to know you’ll deliver before they put you in front of an audience. For designers who’ve been watching from the sidelines, his closing message is direct: reach out before you go, connect with people you already follow, and don’t navigate your first market alone.
Find Rhobin at rhobindelacruz.com and on Instagram at @rhobindelacruzdesigns. Also check out his first appearance: Rhobin DelaCruz: Designers Supporting Designers (To-The-Trade).
00:00 – Intro and Rhobin’s background
01:00 – VRD and collective vendor negotiation
02:55 – Rhobin announced as High Point Market Style Spotter
03:02 – Saturday tour: two showrooms, Classic Home and Sunpan
07:55 – Style spotting strategy: working from the perimeter in
10:30 – Market navigation tips: the app and building grouping
12:08 – High Point staff and Southern hospitality
13:35 – Fashion, footwear, and the 313 space
14:59 – How High Point can transform a designer’s business
15:15 – The retailer model: 20-100% profit vs. sending clients to retail
19:17 – First market vs. second market: from observation to intention
21:07 – Arriving with a mission: meeting the right people
22:05 – VRD Summit and meeting the Design Besties
23:42 – David Cohen’s tour and how the bond formed
25:09 – Collaboration over competition and finding your people
28:52 – Teachers Lounge Movement origin story
30:45 – The emotional reveal and the birth of a nonprofit
32:15 – 501C3, High Point by Design partnership, $50K in donations
40:45 – Follow-up and follow-through as networking superpowers
45:56 – Debunking pay-to-play visibility and earning the spotlight