To-The-Trade Episode Summary
Kimberly Kerl has been practicing architecture and design for thirty years. She runs Kerl Design out of South Carolina, and she joins Laurie Laizure and Nile Johnson on To-The-Trade for a wide-ranging conversation about her client process, what’s shifting in the market, and the design trends she’s watching closely heading into the next cycle.
The episode opens with a shared enthusiasm for video content. Kimberly has been documenting a full home renovation at her own house, posting multiple times a week with unscripted, walk-and-talk updates from the job site. Her audience has become genuinely invested. When she skips a few days, people reach out wanting to know what happened. She and Laurie connect on the deeper reason this works: clients and potential clients don’t know what the construction process actually involves. Video is one of the best tools designers have to close that gap.
Kimberly gives a practical example. Her clients often ask for a pocket door as casually as if they’re changing out a doorknob. When she’s on a live renovation, she can document exactly what a pocket door requires: the framing, the electrical relocation, the wall prep. That kind of transparency builds trust and, over time, makes billing conversations easier. Clients who’ve watched the process are far less likely to question why something takes as long as it does.
From there, the conversation moves into Kimberly’s full client intake process. She starts every inquiry with a free 15-minute discovery call. The goal is simple: determine the scope, location, travel time, and whether this is likely to be a good fit. If it is, she schedules a paid on-site consultation, ranging from $375 to $600. That meeting is where she does her real evaluation, and she insists that both decision-makers be present. She’s watching how they communicate with each other, who leads, and where they might have conflicting priorities. Everything she observes goes into how she scopes and prices the project.
Within one to two days of that meeting, the client receives a detailed proposal. It outlines every phase, assigns a flat fee or range to each, and is attached directly to her contract. She does not collect a retainer. After three decades of carefully vetting her clients, she hasn’t been burned. Her view is that billing at the end of each phase signals mutual trust. If the project pauses for any reason, the client pays for what’s been completed, and she’s ready to re-engage when they’re ready to move forward.
One of the more interesting threads in the episode is the “love it or list it” dynamic. A meaningful portion of Kimberly’s clients come to her not fully decided. They want to know whether renovating their current home actually makes financial sense before committing. With interest rates sitting where they are, holding on to a lower-rate mortgage while renovating is a genuine financial argument, and she hears it often. She walks clients through what’s actually possible, helps them see the costs clearly, and lets the process answer the question.
Multi-generational living comes up as a related trend. Kimberly is living it herself, with an adult son back home while he searches for a place in the area. She’s also designing for it, particularly when adding to the primary suite. She thinks proactively about placement, acoustic separation, and how spaces need to flex as family dynamics change over time, even when the clients themselves aren’t thinking that far ahead yet.
On the trend side, outdoor living dominates the South Carolina market. Kimberly describes spaces that rival the interior in detail and investment: full outdoor kitchens with dishwashers, ice makers, multiple cooking surfaces, retractable screens, layered lighting, ceiling fans, and fireplaces. These aren’t afterthought spaces. They’re designed with the same intention as the living room.
Health and wellness are the other major thread. She’s seeing saunas everywhere on the trade show floor, from Kohler and others getting into the category for the first time. Home gyms have evolved into intentional, well-designed spaces. Even the equipment- kettlebells and dumbbells with beautiful finishes- is starting to look like something you’d display rather than hide.
The conversation turns to the current market, and Kimberly is honest. Inquiries have slowed. Contractors who were booked two years out are now calling her looking for work. Clients are taking longer to decide, doing more research, and running options through AI tools before committing. She’s not alarmed. She’s been through enough cycles to recognize this as a correction after an unusually long and active run. When political and economic uncertainty subsides, she expects the pipeline to be rebuilt.
The episode closes with a few personal questions. Kimberly’s most signature design move is a nearly 10-foot marble waterfall island with no sink and no appliances. Her kids call it the altar. Her design pet peeve is clients who have already drawn up their own plans but won’t share them with her as a test. And her one consistent luxury? Choosing quality over cost, every time.
Follow Kimberly on Instagram at @kerldesign and visit kerldesign.com to learn more about her work.
Timestamp Guide
00:01 – Intro: wedding recap, video content
02:18 – Filming a live home renovation and why audiences get hooked
06:26 – Using video to teach clients what construction actually involves
09:14 – Project management tools: Plaud, Miterio, Basecamp
14:32 – Client intake: discovery call, paid on-site consultation, proposal
17:38 – Phase-based billing and skipping the retainer
19:05 – Renovate vs. move: helping clients make the decision
22:09 – Multi-generational living and designing for flexibility
28:09 – Post-COVID trends: outdoor living, health and wellness
36:12 – Smart home tech and why a good integrator matters
42:40 – Market slowdown: cautious clients, contractors calling designers
45:14 – Why the cycle doesn’t worry her
46:36 – Fun questions: the marble altar island, pet peeves, quality over cost