LBD Interior Textiles Magazine Discusses the Foundations of Nikki Chu’s Success
Home Style Sensation: Nikki Chu
Nikki Chu, Guest of Honor at the
LDB Interior Textiles/295 Fifth Avenue
N.Y. Market V.I.P. Party on Sept. 11, 2017,
discusses the foundations of her success.
Toronto-born Nikki Chu is capturing the attention of today’s young consumers with her fresh, modern style. She launched her design career in Los Angeles, creating interior designs for stars such as Tyra Banks, Nick Cannon and Gabrielle Union. She also appeared on television herself, sharing expertise on cable networks including HGTV, Fine Living, Oxygen, VH1, Lifetime and E! Entertainment. The Nikki Chu brand includes licensed partnerships with Allied Home, Ellison First Asia, Heritage Home Fashions and Jaipur Living as well as other home furnishings companies. Here, Chu reveals her design philosophy and approach to growing her brand.
Is there a vision or philosophy that carries through your designs?
“My vision is to design an aspirational and attainable assortment of elevated, livable furniture, textiles and home décor that asserts style and comfort, while offering amazing value. My philosophy is to create spaces that are personalized, comfortable, yet stylish, with touches of glamour. My collection of décor mixes modern lines with updated and simplified ethnic patterns to create my own unique vision across all licenses.”
Who are your primary customers?
“My primary customers are Millennials (18 to 35). The young professional designing her home for the first time or buying her first apartment. My products and colors are trend forward with elements of metallic and glamour that she loves.”
How important is social media in promoting your brand?
“Social media is KEY. This is where all of my Millennial customers ‘live’. I use it on a daily basis to update my followers on new designs, tips, trends and inspiration. You can create an avid fan base this way and promote products before they even hit the market.
“I recently did a social media campaign (#designerbedmakeover) promoting my new bedding collection and the entire process was covered on social media. It certainly makes brand recognition much easier today. I am often surprised by people who come up to me to say they are fans of mine from Instagram. No company should be without this form of marketing in today’s world.”
From where do you draw your inspiration? Do you keep up with trends?
“I absolutely keep up with trends. As a designer, I must always be on the forefront or pulse of what is trending in the market. I travel all over the world to pull inspiration for my line, attending trend shows, museums and galleries abroad. I research for weeks before I design any collection, pulling together a mood board based on future trends, creating my globally-inspired aesthetic collected from all of my journeys.”
