Member Article

How gut instinct and pursuing her passion, led one Yorkshire interior expert to her dream career

From working in the construction industry to launching an interiors brand at one of the most prestigious showrooms in the north, interior expert Georgina Ward, seems to have done it all.

With such a thriving brand to her name, most would rightly assume that interior was something Georgina had pursued her entire life. But her career path has been quite the opposite.

Aged 25, Georgina found her hectic schedule to become a little too much so decided she needed a project that would help her unwind and free herself from the stress.

For most people, winding down often includes taking up a new exercise, or reading their favourite book. For Georgina, this meant renovating her entire home.

She said, “My brain was already working overtime on everything else going on so to free myself from these thoughts, I knew I needed something else to concentrate on. It was a huge task but for me it was a sort of escapism.”

Interior design had always been an interest of Georgina’s but never did she think that she could turn her passion into a career.

But, after witnessing two fatal crashes on the motorway in the space of a few days, Georgina, who was at the time driving 2000 miles each week up and down the country as a regional sales manager in construction, decided to pack it all in and pursue her passion.

She said, “I had no experience at all. But I was really good at it and most importantly, I enjoyed it. I think that when you’re really passionate about something, you’ll commit everything to making it work.”

Georgina began by opening a small shop in Barnsley but in just 10 months, the limited space couldn’t hold enough stock for the demand and she knew that it was time to broaden her horizons.

Within four years, Georgina had gone from having one small store in Barnsley, to having five stores in different locations, one of those being in the prestigious Redbrick Mill.

21 years of successful business later and Ice Interiors, which is now solely located at Redbrick Mill, has built upon an impressively loyal customer base to whom they sell furniture of all shapes and sizes as well as artwork and home accessories.

Georgina recalls working with entire generations of families on the renovation of their homes.

She said, “People often think that working in interiors, you wouldn’t have regular customers because once someone finishes their renovation, why would they need to come back for 10 or 15 years. But one of the best parts of my job is seeing the same people return time and time again as they look to switch up their space.”

She continued “In fact, I’ve even had experiences where children that once came in with their parents have since grown up, bought a house of their own and returned, this time to shop for their own furniture. For me, that is very special.”

As Ice Interiors continue to stay ahead of evolving trends, it’s their loyal following, and quality pieces, that has secured their status as one of the leading independent interior brands in the north.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Laura Robinson .