How to Start Offering Custom Furniture as an Interior Designer

If you're an interior designer (or on your way to being one...) thinking about offering custom furniture but aren’t sure where to start, you’re not alone! It sounds great in theory—completely tailored pieces, a higher-end client experience, and better profit margins. But... if you don’t have a process in place, it can turn into a logistical nightmare. And it's not always the right fit for your client or project.

Custom furniture is a long game. It requires planning, budgeting, clear communication, and the right pricing strategy to make it worth your time. If you do it right, it can set you apart and give your clients something they truly can’t get anywhere else. If you do it wrong, you’ll be stuck managing unrealistic expectations, expensive mistakes, and profit margins that barely make sense.

Here’s how to approach it the right way.

Start with the Floor Plan & Scale

The first mistake I see designers make is jumping straight into aesthetics before locking in exact dimensions. Custom furniture means you don’t get a do-over. There’s no sending it back if it doesn’t fit.

Before you even start thinking about design details, you need:

A properly scaled floor plan
Measurements of everything around the custom piece
Walkway and clearance considerations
Clear understand of end user

If you don’t have these locked in, you’re already setting yourself up for issues.

Function Before Aesthetics

It doesn’t matter how beautiful a piece is if it doesn’t work for the client’s actual needs. Custom should solve problems that off-the-shelf furniture can’t.

What’s the day-to-day use? Do they have kids or pets? Do they need hidden storage? Are they looking for a statement piece, or something that blends seamlessly into the space? Custom furniture gives you full control over function, so make sure you’re designing with the actual user in mind.

Budget & Pricing Reality Check

A lot of designers go into custom furniture without fully grasping the pricing breakdown. It’s not just about marking up a manufacturer’s cost. You have to factor in:

Materials
Labor and craftsmanship
Freight and delivery (which is often much higher than standard furniture)
Your design fee
Your project management/purchasing fee

Custom furniture isn’t cheap, and it shouldn’t be. Clients need to understand that from the beginning. Surprises lead to frustrated clients, and unclear pricing leads to underpaid designers.

Lead Times & Setting Expectations

Custom takes time. If a client thinks they’re getting a custom sofa in six weeks, you’re in for a problem. Standard lead times range anywhere from 6 to 20+ weeks, depending on materials, complexity, and production schedules.

The best way to avoid timeline frustration is to set the expectation up front. Communicate it clearly in the beginning, put it in writing, and remind them again at key milestones. Clients can handle long timelines when they’re prepared for them. They don’t handle them well when they feel like they’re waiting longer than expected.

Making Custom Furniture Profitable

Custom furniture is not just about getting something unique—it’s a business opportunity. If you’re not pricing it correctly, it’s probably not worth the extra time and effort.

Here’s the pricing structure I recommend:

Base cost (materials, labor, freight)
Markup (20-50% minimum)
Design fee (because you’re not just picking something from a catalog - but this may be wrapped into your regular design/hourly fee)
Project management/Purchasing fee -because custom requires oversight and problem-solving. It's ok for you to roll this into your markup or fees elsewhere, but make sure you consider it. Remember, there are companies that solely handle procurement & project management...do not assume (or let your clients assume) this falls under regular design fees. Price accordingly.

This pricing structure ensures you’re getting paid for your time and expertise, not just covering costs.

The Pros & Cons of Custom Furniture

Before diving in, it’s important to understand both the benefits and challenges of offering custom furniture.

For designers—it differentiates your brand, allows for more complete design control, and increases profit potential. The downside is that it takes longer, requires more hands-on management, and leaves you responsible for quality control.

For clients, the benefit is that they get exactly what they want or something unique to only them, at a higher quality than mass-produced furniture. But it comes with a higher price tag and a longer timeline, which not all clients are willing to accept.

This is why vetting your client before offering custom is just as important as understanding the process itself.

This is a picture of custom pieces I did for a drug rehab project (Pictured before art & signage was installed). It was a huge open space that not only needed multiple seating areas, but some areas needed to be multipurpose & mobile. And given the nature of the space, and the experience the clients were going through, I wanted to provide a more playful, relaxed & comfortable environment. In this very rare case, it ended up being cheaper than ordering something similar from a commercial vendor. But this is because I took the time to work with my custom furniture builder, found really inexpensive but still durable faux leather & the project was local enough that it could be delivered by my custom furniture builder & we didn't need extra expensive freight costs.

Want a checklist to follow?? Love leaving these golden nuggets for you guys. If you found this PDF in the blog - it's free. But it will be up in Tools for purchase for everyone else who doesn't read the blogs :) See below.

XOXO

Custom Furniture Step By Step Checklist: