The route to becoming a successful interior designer is full of challenges; it requires a rare level of passion and an eye for the future. Karin Hepp (Founding Partner, ANYSCALE Architecture Design) is one such passionate, creative and futuristic architect & interior designer who is on a mission to bring brand-new designs to Asia and beyond. Her experience in architecture and interior design spans over a decade ranging from residential villas and museum exhibitions to warehouse showrooms and office space across three countries. She masters the art of discovery and has built a reputation founded on her ability to evoke an emotion simply through innovation. Prior to founding ANYSCALE in 2011, Karin worked with querkraft architects, Tony Fretton Architects, and with Baumschlager & Eberle Architects. Apart from being an astounding business leader, Karin is also an excellent mother thereby adeptly balancing family & work. Let’s hear it from her.

Tell us about the initial journey of the establishment of ANYSCALE.

ANYSCALE is the brainchild of three partners coming together from three different regions of the world - China, Germany, and Austria. I have always aspired to work independently and have been excited to create and shape my independent projects. But at the same time, it has been quite a challenge for me to foray into the Asian culture after being brought up in Austria. I realized the importance of not only understanding the culture I come from but also the culture I was living in. Hence, it took us some time to establish our independent practice. However, we finally dared to open our company because of our link between Western and Chinese cultures. Interestingly, our initial clients were from Europe who wanted to have their showrooms, training centres, offices, and coworking spaces in China. And we were successfully able to design spaces that showcased a translation between the two countries.

"Work and family mustn't be seen as a contradiction; the two aspects can be effectively knitted together ; it can be challenging but it is possible"

Tell us about the various responsibilities you shoulder as the Founding Partner at ANYSCALE.

Since the company is driven by three leaders, when a project comes in, we bifurcate our responsibilities; we decide which of us will guide the project and who has the design that is needed in the project. For many projects, we collaborate to develop designs to find the right mood and the right direction. However, one of us is usually leading the project throughout and is in constant touch with the project architects. But beyond that, each one of us also has to cover the field of management. I am associated with handling the whole gamut of financing, HR, and management of staff in the organization.

Throw some light on the most critical challenges you face as a designer. What steps do you take to overcome them?

The design industry is constantly under change; this is mainly because of the evolution of circumstances and surroundings. Therefore, in this constantly changing ecosystem, it is vital to be able to look into the future. And I have always found it exciting to explore new possibilities, read, look at artists, understand people’s perceptions about the future and how they think the future could be shaped. Taking this knowledge as inspiration, I try to design projects and find innovative answers to upcoming challenges. Being a multi-continental company gives us the advantage of constantly understanding the challenges persisting in each sector and replying to these challenges faster than other companies in the industry.

What are some of the most significant milestones that you have achieved throughout your professional journey? What has been your success mantra?

Moving to a new country, adapting to a completely different environment, understanding its culture, and successfully being able to establish an independent design firm in a foreign land has been my greatest milestone. However, I believe it is a constant learning process and we can never say that we have mastered it fully because it keeps on developing. During the course, for the three of us, the design awards and the international recognition of our work have been a gain because they show the quality of work that we do here.

Along the journey, my mantra has been to do every project with authenticity following the right path. I focus on doing my job most appropriately and then look at its gains. Secondly, I never compromise on perseverance; I believe that one needs to have a lot of perseverance to make a project successful.

What would your advice be to young women who aspire to become business leaders in the future?

As business leaders, it is extremely important to find the perfect balance between work life and family life to master their careers. I believe that this is even more important for women than for men because we as women need to focus on our business, but at the same time have to focus on our family. Work and family mustn’t be seen as a contradiction; the two aspects can be effectively knitted together; it can be challenging but it is not impossible. If you do it rightly, you can be a successful businesswoman and at the same time be an excellent family member.

Karin Hepp, Founding Partner, Anyscale Architecture Design

Having a master's degree in Architecture from the university of vienna and more than a decadeof  experiencein the interior designing industry, karin is currently the founding partner of Anyscale Architecture Design which is focusing on designing innovative and sustainable interiors and Architecture