Personal Reflection | How Corporate Roots Shaped Our Creative Studio: Clarity, Collaboration, Care

Every design studio has a story. Ours began long before Design & Curations existed, long before the first install, the first mood board, or the first client call. It began in conference rooms, brand strategy sessions, project plans, and years of leading teams and creating clarity inside highly structured corporate environments.

When we launched Design & Curations, we didn’t leave those years behind.

We carried them with us, intentionally.

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2024, January in NYC, Coke FoodMarks Project launch

Last week, after a design install, a client shared feedback that stayed with us. She reflected back the very qualities we built this studio on, reminding us that intention shapes experience, for us, and for our clients.

She shared that she appreciated how:

• Communication felt clear, precise, and timely.

• She always knew what to expect—what was next, when it was coming, and what her role was.

• Multiple spaces felt cohesive and connected while still serving their own unique purposes

• Her voice was heard, and reflected back through the Design & Curations lens—not through a cookie-cutter approach.

What she described wasn’t accidental. It came from the skills we intentionally transferred from 15+ years in corporate leadership, brand building, and program management.

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A Personal Backstory: Corporate Writing, Clarity, and the Left–Right Brain Balance

During my years at Coca-Cola, I became almost obsessed, in the best way, with clarity.

I was keen on having meeting minutes, outlining next steps, and making sure every stakeholder walked away aligned. It wasn’t just a responsibility; it became something I genuinely enjoyed mastering.

At one point, my colleague Nisa (whom I have known since university days) and I even developed and delivered business-writing training for our teams. We taught how to write recommendations, memos, information summaries, and brand briefs.

We walked through everything from:

• the difference between strategy and plan

• how to structure a recommendation

• how to write a basis-for-recommendation separately

• how to avoid ambiguity and communicate with precision

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Those years shaped how I think: balancing left-brain structure with right-brain creativity. And today, that

balance is at the heart of how I design. Bringing structured thinking into a creative world feels like the chapter I was always meant to step into.

And that is exactly what our clients feel.

Early in our Design & Curations journey, with Alper joining:

1. We re-defined DnC values and brand architecture—drawing from years of building and stewarding strong brands.

2. We REFINED our process and agreements—thanks to Alper’s expertise in program and operations management.

3. We created our Design Brief Scope—inspired by the brand briefs I used to craft, ensuring deep listening before bold design.

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This structure is what allows interior design experience to feel effortless.

It’s what allows our clients to feel guided and supported, not overwhelmed. It’s what allows us to design with intention instead of assumption.

And our client in #projecthilpine , sharing the feedback on the spot, reminded us that our clients don’t just notice that intention—they feel it. We will keep refining, listening, evolving, and elevating. Because the work we do is personal.

It’s rooted in our past experiences, the values we set early on, and the belief that homes deserve thoughtful design supported by clear communication.

If you work with us, you can expect exactly that: clarity, communication, care (deep listening)

Also, going into the Thanksgiving week, we want to Thank you for being part of this journey with us, and for inviting us into your homes with trust and openness. Being welcomed in this way was truly humbling.

With gratitude,

Burcu