My Career: ‘People think my biggest stress is choosing between velvet or linen’

Name: Mairead Collier

Lives: Inniscarra.

Job title: Owner and Founder of Mairead Collier Interiors

Salary bracket: In line with industry standards, senior interior designers range from €55,000 - €68,000+

Describe your job in five words: Designing your home and life.

Describe yourself in five words: Intuitive, globally-minded, resilient, intentional, and warm.

Education background: My training pairs a Food Science degree from UCC with credentials from London’s KLC School of Design, combining rigorous logic with creative theory. However, my true education came from moving 12 times in 10 years and personally managing intense structural renovations. Degrees provide the foundation, but that real-world grit is what teaches you how to execute a premium vision flawlessly.

How do you spend your free time?

My free time feeds my creativity. I travel constantly, explore galleries, and study design to bring a global perspective to my clients.

To balance that analytical side, I stay entirely grounded, you’re just as likely to find me cheering at a Leeds United match as you are to find me enjoying excellent coffee and unfiltered conversations with close friends.

How did your career journey lead you to where you are today?

My path was a masterclass in accidental preparation, shifting from a UCC Food Science degree into design through a decade of international relocations.

Moving 12 times in 10 years and personally managing renovations from a 1600s grammar school to a raw barn taught me how buildings actually work. After formalising my training at London’s KLC School of Design, I returned home to Cork. Today, my studio grows entirely by word-of-mouth, specialising in high-end residential builds for clients who value a trusted, logical guide to handle heavy-duty logistics and elevate their homes.

How many hours do you work a week?

On average, 45 to 50 hours. A standard 9-to-5 doesn’t exist when balancing creative direction with heavy logistics. Around 30 hours are spent on-site meeting clients and managing trades, while the remaining time goes into early-morning drafting, late-night sourcing, or international travel to deliver a premium service.

What personality is needed for this work?

You need a dual-sided personality that bridges high-level artistry with military-grade logistics. This requires being empathetic yet assertive enough to guide stressed clients while commanding respect on muddy construction sites.

Above all, you must remain unshakably calm amid chaos, worldly enough to understand global lifestyles, and meticulously organised to deliver absolute certainty.

How long have you been doing this job?

Seven years running my own studio, but a lifetime in the making. Those seven years distill a previous decade of managing intense historic renovations, global relocations, and formal training in London into a refined, full-service design practice here in Cork.

Do you work with others or on your own?

I run a lean, highly efficient studio as the principal designer and main point of contact, backed by a trusted, specialised network. I collaborate with a weekly design assistant and outsource social media, website management, and complex technical drawings to dedicated experts. This hybrid model keeps me agile while ensuring every detail is handled by a professional.

When do you plan to retire?

No plans yet, there is too much to do! I hope to always work with discerning clients who value original, enduring design over passing trends. Personally, I never want to stop travelling the world to discover new cultures and architecture; curiosity is my greatest source of inspiration, and I never want to stop learning.

Do you need particular qualifications or experience?

Yes and no. To operate at a premium level, technical training (like London’s KLC School of Design) is essential for handling spatial planning and structural changes, alongside ‘boots-on-the-ground’ experience to manage intense construction logistics.

However, the title isn’t legally protected in Ireland. A degree alone can’t teach you the emotional intelligence needed to handle stressed clients or the grit required for complex sites.

Technical skills get you through the door, but real-world problem-solving keeps you there.

Describe a day at work:

I stop humans from having existential crises over paint and wires. In reality, I am a visual translator, logistical air-traffic controller, and client shield.

My day starts in the studio, drawing 2D layouts and digital mood boards to transform dark, historic properties into light-filled sanctuaries. By mid-morning, I’m on a dusty construction site translating complex blueprints for contractors, electricians, and joiners so the client doesn’t have to face the chaos. Afterwards, I’m scouting suppliers to personally inspect marble slabs and custom furnishings. I don’t just pick cushions. I orchestrate the entire high-stakes construction puzzle.

Is your industry male or female-dominated?

Female

Does this affect you in any particular way? No

Is your job stressful? Rate it on a scale of 1-10.

A solid 8.5 out of 10, but it’s an exhilarating 8.5, not a miserable one! People see TV shows and think my biggest stress is choosing between velvet or linen. If only! The aesthetics are pure joy; the actual stress comes from the invisible mountain of logistics and the massive financial and emotional stakes involved in creating a client’s forever home.

Best bits:

The absolute best part is seeing a client’s reaction when they walk into their finished home for the first time; that moment of pure delight never gets old.

While I love the creative thrill of sourcing global artisans and solving complex layouts, the satisfaction comes from making a family’s daily life both more beautiful and significantly easier.

The best projects aren’t a showcase of my personal style; they are the ones where the house becomes the absolute best version of itself, and the client feels completely at home.

Worst bits:

The daily practical challenges. Rising material costs, supply chain bottlenecks, and the constant hunt for elite tradespeople who share my uncompromising commitment to quality. Managing these high-stakes logistics and co-ordinating the moving parts of a luxury build is an exhausting science, but it’s exactly what is required to shield my clients from the chaos of construction.

Advice to those who want your job?

Master the business of design, not just the beauty of it; a gorgeous mood board won’t keep you afloat. First, get comfortable with chaos: you must be as happy analysing technical lighting sheets on a muddy building site as you are choosing fabrics.

Second, develop thick skin and high emotional intelligence. Renovation is stressful for clients; you need to manage human emotions, navigate decision fatigue, and always remain the calmest person in the room.

Any other comments?

Business is rarely a straight line. Expect highs, lows, and mistakes - if you aren’t making them, you aren’t pushing hard enough. The key is to adapt, communicate with crystal clarity to build trust, and back yourself to dream big. Don’t wait until you feel completely ready; start now, stay resilient, and be willing to pivot. The best opportunities always come from being open to new directions.