Exploring Life & Business with Kristin Drake of Smith + Drake

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristin Drake.

Hi Kristin, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always had an interest in art. When I was little I used to draw characters from the Sunday comics. I loved drawing cartoon characters. When I got to high school I began taking formal art classes and flourished, so I decided to go to college for Fine Art. I loved art school and hoped to be a professional artist after graduation.

When I graduated from college the economy took a nose-dive, making the already difficult career path of being an artist even more difficult. I pivoted a few times after college before finding interior design. I went back to school for a degree in interior design and have been designing full-time now for 20 years. Design and art are a combined passion. I don’t feel like I settled with a career in interior design. It has been a wonderful industry to be a part of.

I put art on the back burner for quite some time, and then the pandemic hit which resulted in more time at home. I spruced up the studio and began painting and drawing pretty feverishly. In two years I created over 150 pieces and gained artist representation with a design showroom in the Denver Design Center; MOD Design. They have been a wonderful source of support over the last few years.

Concurrently, during the pandemic, I started my own design firm, Smith + Drake. My business partner, Kieu Nguyen, and I had worked together previously at another firm and decided we wanted to venture out on our own. It was the best decision we could have made. Despite the pandemic being a very scary time, it actually helped me launch both art and design careers.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Life is full of bumps and challenges. I had been rejected many times by galleries, experiencing many letdowns along the way. I was afraid after the pandemic to experience those rejections again, but I felt like the work needed to be seen. I felt like I had grown as an artist and I wanted to share it.

Art is meant for sharing, even if people may not understand it. Unfortunately, many artists are not famous while they are alive. It is later that their work can be understood and appreciated to its fullest. I don’t have any expectations of fame, I just want to share my work with those that appreciate it.

In design, I have had plenty of difficult times as well. There are hard clients, difficult builders and subs, and a plethora of supply chain issues… It takes many people to design and build a home and that equals many personalities that need to get along and communicate well. That is never easy. Sometimes I wish I had gone to school for psychology, it might have made my job easier!

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are a full-service interior design firm, specializing in luxury, high-end residential design. We are a small company with two owners/partners, one design assistant, and a marketing manager. We have done many full-scale remodels as well as new builds from the ground up. We work side by side with the architect and builder, making sure the design needs and wants are met.

We specialize in turn-key homes with furnishings, and accessories, even down to the dishware and towels if the client wishes. Our company prides itself on superior attention to detail and we excel at providing our clients with the best design solutions the market can offer.

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
I think the important takeaway from Covid was that life can change in an instant and you have to be able to pivot. You have to try to find the positive. Try to find a door opening when one is closing on you. We had to find ways to continue to communicate efficiently and effectively through digital and online channels.

In hindsight, it actually prepared us to take clients out of state when the pandemic was over. It was a necessary learning tool to be able to expand our business. It also gave us day-to-day organizational and communication tools that we still use to this day. Though a difficult time, a lot of growth came from it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kdrakeart.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kdrakeart/?hl=en and https://www.instagram.com/smithanddrake/

Image Credits
Dru Smith and Brandon Lopez