Interior designers and architects shape and transform spaces to give them meaning and purpose. With fast changing lifestyle trends and environmental concerns, the industry has been at the forefront of creating innovative yet functional designs. One such name is Archimist, a Kolkata based interior design and architecture firm. Leading the design team at the firm is Debesmita Sinha, Strategy & design Head and founder of Archimist. The ace designer has been creating waves in the industry with her strong sense of aesthetics, and creativity.

In the midst of a highly competitive industry, where entrepreneurs often struggle to run the business successfully, Debesmita along with her co-founder Shib Roy has been rendering customized and well thought out designs to home owners on a budget. Incorporating the lifestyle and personality of clients into their designs, Debesmita ensures that clients have the best experience while working with the Archimist design team.

In an interview with the Woman Entrepreneur Magazine team, Debasmia speaks about her professional journey and the various facets that make Archimist a cut above the rest. Here are choice excerpts from the conversation.

Take us through your educational journey. What factors led you towards the field of Interior Design.

It is quite an interesting story. As a child, I was interested in art. Painting and dancing have always been a part of my life. But my academic background is completely different from the design field. I completed my post-graduation in Zoology and was in the research field. From there I shifted to the banking and insurance sector where I worked as a project manager, leading coordination and strategic management. I also obtained exposure in training and human resources. But I felt a lack of creative expression in life. I always wanted to pursue a field where I could express my creativity and my way of management. I was also keen on being an entrepreneur from an early age.

The designing field aligned well with my thoughts. I pursued a certificate course in design from London School of Trends. I turned my passion into my profession and founded Archimist.

Give us an overview of Archimist. What are some important facets about the firm's services and growth journey?

I met my business partner, Shib Roy, who is an alumnus from IIT Kharagpur & London School of Economics; our partnership led to the birth of Archimist. He currently functions as the Senior Architect & Co-Founder of Archimist. We started as a design boutique in Kolkata; following great response from clients we transformed Archimist into an architecture and interior design company. The company is still expanding and we are launching an office is Bangalore soon.

Our motto is `Simple is extraordinary', and we adhere to it throughout. Not only do we provide interior design services but also ensure interior styling. Now we don't restrict our work to interior design only, we work on heritage projects as well.

Instead of providing clients with a run of the mill design, we ensure that every house we work on incorporates the residents' personality, lifestyle and outlook on the world. Though we incorporate modular furniture and other designer products, yet we try to add small details and customizations to suit their personality.

The company was recently selected for NSRCL 10000 Women Entrepreneur program which is quite a big achievement for me. The program was sponsored by Goldman Sachs and was conducted at IIM Bangalore. It provided an added growth in network and mentorship from potential investors.

Throw some light on your areas of expertise as an interior design. What are some design philosophies that influence your work?

Firstly it's important to understand the target audience. We focus on young professional couples who don't have the time and known-how to design their home.

Architecture and interior design are highly unorganized sectors in India. Dealing with various laborers contractors and laborers can be a hassle for people with limited time. Lately there has also been a rise in the amount of exposure in terms of design through social media platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest. However, what works for their home and how it works is knowledge that our clients lack.

“The ambience we create matters a lot. When clients come back home at the end of the day they should feel like it's their cozy corner”

We begin the process with counselling them about the requirements and how to make a cohesive design which is also functional. While working on every project we leverage a custom build design software which reduces the margin of errors significantly while lending effectively and efficiency to the project. Anther concept we follow at Archimist is `Simplicity'. We don't go for any over the top designs or a lot of lighting. The ambience we create matters a lot. When clients come back home at the end of the day they should feel like it's their cozy corner.

As a creative person where do you draw inspiration from? Also, how do you balance your creative aspirations and your role as a business leader?

I believe that nature is the best designer and we draw inspiration from it while designing. All the elements that you find in nature are taken as inspiration for our designs. Everyone designs their wardrobes and kitchen but we add a touch of greenery to it as well. This kind of openness is what we try to imbibe in all of our residential designs and commercial designs.

Nowadays, designs are more minimalist and linear, so we customize it as much as we can. We personalize the designs based on individual's passion and lifestyle to make it feel like home.

Instead of picking products from a random store, we prefer to collaborate with artisans and artists. We collaborate with nurseries and landscape artists where they tailor their gardens, balconies and terrace gardens. However, all of this is done keeping the clients' budget in mind.

We are also increasing our collaborations so that we can have people working from both Bangalore and Kolkata. We also have a carpentry team that works exclusively with us for installations etc. this way we are learning and restructuring.

What would your words of advice be for other young women aspiring to become entrepreneurs and business leaders?

The primary objective for an entrepreneur should be to take care of are your clients and this is lacking in our field. A lot of people are first time home buyers and it's important to understand their requirements because it is their dream home. It's our responsibility to make this an enjoyable experience for them.

My advice for anyone looking to start a business is to ensure that your clients have a smooth and good experience. If you do that, no matter what mistakes you make in the process, they will definitely come back to you.

Debasmita Sinha, Head Of Design, Archimist

Debasmita comes with rich experience of over 12 years across functions of project and portfolio management, client relationship and design. Debasmita has learnt design from London School Of Trend in the UK.  She has been chosen for the prestigious GS 10K womens program by IIM Bangalore in association with NSRCEL.