To-The-Trade Episode Summary
Maria Khouri grew up in Beirut during Lebanon’s 15-year civil war, moving 12 times in 10 years. She has spent her career making homes in San Francisco that feel like exactly that: home. Her boutique firm handles high-end residential work across the US and into Europe, and her commercial clients hire her for the same reason her residential clients do. They want spaces that feel personal.
In this episode, Maria walks through the elements that define her practice. Every project includes one piece made by a Lebanese artisan, a signature Easter egg that connects her two countries and opens clients’ eyes to artists and art forms they have never encountered. Her onboarding process relies on a 20-slide visual presentation that shows clients exactly what working with her looks like, from mood boards through reveal day. She credits this tool with a measurable improvement in her closing rate.
The pricing conversation is one of the most honest in recent memory. Maria charges $300 an hour in San Francisco and argues that even flat-fee designers should know their effective hourly rate. Without that math, she says, you are likely leaving money on the table and will not know why. Nile and Laurie weigh in from their own experience, and the tension is productive. There are real reasons to charge both ways. The key is knowing what you are actually earning.
The highlight of the episode is the Hermes scarf story. A Los Altos Hills client asked Maria to translate a framed Hermes scarf into a foyer floor. The result was a custom marble mosaic made with 25 different stone colors, designed in collaboration with an Italian artisan who flew his team to California for the install. The client still talks about it.
Maria also shares how she uses AI for renderings and elevations without compromising her design process or her clients’ IP. She is thoughtful about what she will and will not give a platform access to, and that carefulness is a lesson for any firm. Trust your gut on clients, she says. The same goes for the tools you let into your business.
Quick-fire round: bouclé is overused, invest in antiques, wallpaper never gets old, and please pay attention to your outlets and plugs.
Visit Maria Khouri at mariakhouri.com and follow her work on Instagram at @mariakinteriors.
00:00 – Welcome and intro; New Hampshire weather, upcoming Design Edge trip to Florida
01:22 – Maria Khouri introduces herself: SF boutique firm, high-end residential and commercial
03:15 – Lebanese Civil War, moving 12 times in 10 years, and why she designs homes for a living
05:18 – The client fear of “living in a magazine cover” and what designers actually do
07:00 – Collaborative design approach: her vision and opinion, but ultimately the client’s decision
08:38 – Mixing styles instinctually and the Lebanese artisan Easter egg in every project
09:56 – What gives her work away: feeling and proportion, not a defined aesthetic
11:19 – Client onboarding: the 20-slide visual process presentation and how it improves close rate
14:10 – Knowing when a design is complete: instinct overrules; style vs. trend
18:29 – Designing across the US and into Europe; tools: Asana, Studio Designer, AutoCAD, AI
22:45 – AI, IP protection, and Muralink; Eleven Labs and content creation for designers
29:43 – Trusting your gut: wrong-fit clients and the cost of ignoring red flags
31:44 – Magic wand for the industry: unity, sharing, and the hourly vs. flat fee debate
36:26 – Maria’s $300/hr rate; US vs. international context; Laurie on charging under $100
42:00 – Managing scope creep and client communication: twice-a-month check-ins
44:38 – Collaborating with artists: the Hermes scarf marble mosaic floor story
47:52 – 25 marble colors, an Italian artisan flown to install, and a client who never stops talking about it
50:32 – Art should be personal, not matched to the sofa
51:37 – Lightning round: bouclé overused, splurge on antiques, wallpaper forever, fix your outlets