We had the good fortune of connecting with Ann Ecklund and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ann, we’d love to start by asking you about lessons learned. Is there a lesson you can share with us?
There are so many lessons as a small business owner but one of the most important of my career is to trust people when they show me who they are. In interior design this goes for trades, vendors AND clients. Say a painter returns my calls, gets me estimates quickly, is respectful in clients’ homes and does good work – trust them. I’m going to call them for every single project I work on. On the flip side, if a potential client emails me 17 times from 9:00pm-2:00am (this actually happened!) – trust them. This isn’t the kind of client relationship I want. I think in the beginning we’re so eager to make everybody happy and win projects that we can compromise our standards for the people we work with. I absolutely had to learn this one the hard way but now that I do it, the quality of people I have around me is second to none.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Ann Ecklund Interiors is a full service interior design firm headquartered in Broomfield. We serve the north Denver-Metro and Boulder areas. AEI started out very small and has grown organically over the last decade, in large part from client referrals. We partner with our clients to create thoughtful, beautiful designs and execute the process in an organized and efficient way. We pride ourselves in remaining practical in the design world which doesn’t always happen. In 2024 already, we’ve completed 2 kitchens, countless consultation hours, another kitchen and primary bath are under construction and we just finished a year long project on a new build in Louisville. We’re incredibly proud of the projects we’ve completed to date and are looking forward to some amazing ones in the second half of the year!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m a Boulder native – born AND raised – so when my friends come into town that’s where we’re going! First we’re hiking with my dogs at Anne U. White followed by lunch somewhere on Pearl St. Bar Taco, Centro, and Illegal Pete’s are some of my favorites. No trip to Boulder is complete without peeping some of the beautiful architecture – The Hill, Spruce St., Mapleton Ave., Maxwell Ave. and the Newlands are absolutely beautiful. Being a designer, there is so much inspiration to be found in both the new and old homes in these areas. We could recoup at the St. Julien Hotel for a bit and then from there I think the perfect day wraps with a show at The Boulder Theatre or even Folsom Field. Live music is the best!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My first shoutout has to be to my husband who supported the idea of Ann Ecklund Interiors long before its inception. He wholeheartedly believes in me – even when I don’t. He pushes me to keep marching when things are hard and celebrates with me when things are good.

Second, I need to send a shoutout to my clients! The clients early on who took a risk on an unknown designer and trusted me to execute their projects. The clients who have shared my name with their networks to keep my business growing and to the clients who have called me back into their homes for second and third phases of their projects. Without my clients I don’t have a business and I’m so thankful for each and every one of them!

Last, but not least, shoutout to the trades! I work with the best in the business and am incredibly proud of the work we create together.

Website: https://www.annecklundinteriors.com

Instagram: @annecklund

Facebook: Ann Ecklund

Other: email – anncecklund@gmail.com

Image Credits
Headshot – Photography by Melinda Humphries
Bathroom – Build by Veron Builders
Kitchen – Photography by Libbie Holmes | Build by Christian Gonzalez | Cabinetry by Lydia Lard at Caruso Kitchen Design

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