Senior Interior Designer

Vestahome; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Time Off

401k

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Job summary

Vesta Home in San Francisco seeks a Senior Interior Designer to lead luxury residential projects, serving as creative lead and accountable project owner, overseeing design vision, client relationships, scope, fees, sourcing strategy, schedule, budget, and on-site execution.

You will mentor junior designers and collaborate with sales, sourcing, operations, logistics, and production to deliver exceptional finished spaces, maintaining Vesta’s high design standards.

Qualifications

• 5-8 years of professional interior design experience, luxury residential work.
• Experience leading projects independently from programming through closeout.
• Portfolio showing a clear point of view and mastery of layout, color, lighting, and materiality.
• Direct ownership of client relationships and ability to present design decisions.
• Experience scoping and pricing work and setting fees.
• Experience mentoring junior designers.
• Proficiency in AutoCAD for drafting and documentation.
• Strong presentation and board-building skills in Canva and Adobe Creative Suite.
• Fluency in space planning and millwork documentation; able to read architectural drawings.
• Bay Area based, able to travel to client sites, showrooms, and installations.

Responsibilities

• Creative Direction and Design Development: own the design vision from concept through installation.
• Client Leadership and Presentation: serve as trusted design advisor and manage expectations on budget, timeline, and scope.
• Scope, Fees, and Commercial Ownership: qualify opportunities, prepare proposals, discuss fees, and protect profitability.
• Sourcing, Specification, and Procurement: specify furniture, lighting, textiles, and finishes with vendors and production teams.
• Project Management and Delivery: manage schedule, budget, and quality from concept to installation and closeout.

Skills

Luxury residential design

Project leadership

AutoCAD

Adobe Creative Suite

Canva

Presentation skills

Team leadership

Education

Degree in Interior Design or related field

Tools

AutoCAD

Canva

Adobe Creative Suite

InDesign

Photoshop

Illustrator

SketchUp

Revit

Job description

Vesta Home is redefining how homes are marketed and furnished. Founded in 2017, we provide interior design, luxury staging, furniture rental, and custom furniture production, supported by our own inventory, logistics, and technology. We are the largest home staging business in the country, with studios in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and South Florida, and our designers work on residential, commercial, and hospitality projects for leading developers, realtors, and the design trade.

Core Values:

• “Get it done!” We take action, overcome challenges with creativity and grit, and believe no problem is unsolvable when tackled together.
• “Design excellence” We relentlessly improve, always raising the bar for aesthetics, process, and outcomes.
• “Execute in partnership and with pride” We succeed as a team, obsess over quality, and celebrate collective wins.
• “Invest not spend” We measure ROI on every investment of time and money, and act with discipline to create long-term impact.
• “Embrace a growth mindset” We believe profitable growth creates opportunity, and we empower our people to deliver world-class results

Why is this job a big deal?

The designer in this role will shape some of Vesta’s most visible work in one of the most discerning design markets in the country. They will take complex residential projects from the first client conversation through installation, making the creative decisions that give each home a clear point of view while holding every detail to a high standard. Their impact will extend beyond any single project. The relationships they build will create future opportunities, the designers they mentor will strengthen the studio, and the body of work they produce will define what Vesta design means in Northern California.

Summary of Role

The Senior Interior Designer leads luxury residential projects in the San Francisco market. This person is both the creative lead and the accountable owner of each engagement, responsible for the design vision, client relationship, scope and fees, sourcing strategy, schedule, budget, and quality of execution. They lead a small team of junior and associate designers and work closely with sales, sourcing, operations, logistics, and custom production to turn ambitious concepts into exceptional finished spaces.

Success in this role requires a designer with a strong point of view, sound commercial judgment, and the confidence to guide discerning clients through complex decisions. The right person can move easily from developing concepts, plans, palettes, and custom pieces to presenting ideas, negotiating fees, resolving issues on site, and coaching a team.

The salary range for this role is $100,000–$120,000, with variable compensation and on-target earnings (OTE) of up to $160,000.

Key Responsibilities

• Creative Direction and Design Development:
  Own the design vision for your projects from concept through installation. Develop mood boards, space plans, furniture layouts, elevations, lighting plans, and full material and finish palettes. Direct the CAD drawing sets and installation documents that carry your intent into the field, and design custom pieces with Vesta’s furniture production team, reviewing shop drawings for accuracy. Hold the finished work to a standard you would put your own name on.
• Client Leadership and Presentation:
  Serve as the trusted design advisor for every client on your projects. Establish goals early, translate them into a clear design direction, and present ideas with the reasoning behind them so clients can decide with confidence. Guide selections, revisions, and approvals, and manage expectations on budget, timeline, and scope from the first conversation through the final walkthrough.
• Scope, Fees, and Commercial Ownership:
  Qualify new and referred opportunities for fit, scope the work accurately, and prepare proposals with the Director of Interior Design and the sales team. Discuss and set fees with clients directly. Expand an engagement when the additional scope genuinely serves the project, and protect profitability through disciplined scope management and honest tracking of design hours.
• Sourcing, Specification, and Procurement:
  Specify furniture, lighting, textiles, rugs, art, accessories, and hard finishes that serve the design and respect the budget. Build relationships with vendors, showrooms, artisans, and galleries, and use Vesta’s owned inventory and custom production capability where they strengthen the design. Own the accuracy of your specifications and stay ahead of lead times, working with sourcing and procurement on purchase orders and schedules.
• Project Management and Delivery:
  Hold the schedule, budget, and quality of every project you lead. Set the milestones for concept, presentation, procurement, production, and installation, and coordinate contractors, trades, and installation crews alongside operations and logistics. Lead installations on site and style the finished result. Detailed budget accounting, invoicing, purchase orders, and inventory records are completed in partnership with the operations, procurement, and finance teams.

Team Building and Leadership

Direct the daily work of one to three junior and associate designers. Set priorities, delegate drawings, specifications, and sourcing research, review what comes back for quality and accuracy, and give feedback people can act on. Develop their judgment as well as their output, and contribute to the standards and workflows the San Francisco studio works from.

What Success Looks Like

• Completed projects that meet Vesta’s standard of design quality and that you would show as your best work.
• Clients who trust your judgment, stay engaged, and refer you to others.
• Projects that perform financially, through accurate scoping, fee discipline, and controlled hours.
• A growing body of photographed work that strengthens Vesta’s reputation in Northern California.
• Junior and associate designers who visibly grow under your direction.

Requirements

• 5-8 years of professional interior design experience, concentrated in luxury residential work.
• Experience leading projects independently from programming and concept through procurement, installation, and closeout.
• A portfolio showing a clear point of view and command of layout, color, lighting, scale, and materiality.
• Direct ownership of client relationships, including private clients, and the ability to present and defend design decisions.
• Experience scoping and pricing work, setting fees, and managing a project to a budget.
• Experience directing or mentoring junior designers and reviewing their work.
• Proficiency in AutoCAD for drafting and documentation.
• Strong presentation and board building skills in Canva and the Adobe Creative Suite, including InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator.
• Fluency in space planning, construction and millwork documentation, and the ability to read and comment on architectural drawings.
• Attention to detail and follow through across several concurrent projects.
• Based in the Bay Area, with the ability to travel to client sites, showrooms, and installations.

Preferred Experience

• SketchUp, Revit, or rendering software such as Enscape.
• Working knowledge of a design business platform such as Studio Designer, Design Manager, or Ivy.
• An established trade network in the Bay Area, including vendor, showroom, and artisan relationships.
• Experience developing custom furniture or millwork with a fabrication partner.
• A degree in interior design, interior architecture, or related field

Benefits

• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• 401k
• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance

This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm you are authorized to work in the U.S.

Vesta is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace and welcome candidates from all backgrounds. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by law.