Today we’d like to introduce you to Dan Rak.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’ve always been passionate about design and real estate. As a kid, my favorite pastime was walking through model homes with my parents. Looking at floor plans became an obsession. Shopping for furniture was my idea of a great Saturday afternoon.
At the time, I never thought about making a career out of this hobby. Instead, while attending Michigan State University, I followed the advice of the business people in my family and pursued a degree in accounting. The advice I received at that time was “learn how to understand the numbers”. From there, I was told, you could do anything. It seemed like good advice to me, so off I went.
I did well in the accounting program, but knew a career in this field wasn’t for me. After completing my degree, I continued with my education and enrolled in law school, also at Michigan State. I loved law school and really enjoyed the art of forming an argument. When I graduated in the spring of 2010, however, the economy was still in rough shape and the market for legal jobs was even tougher. Fortunately, my accounting background made me a great fit to practice tax.
After graduating, I moved to Chicago and began my practice with a large tax firm. The experience was great and really shaped who I am as a professional. I learned so much about how to run a business and how to interact with clients from my years in practice. Still, I felt something was missing from my professional life and couldn’t see myself practicing tax for the rest of my career.
While working in tax I had, simultaneously, been buying and renovating homes for myself. At first, I saw this as a hobby. Soon, though, I began to realize that I had a knack for design and that it could be a lucrative full-time venture were I to devote all of my energy to it. After a bit of thought, I made the decision to dive in head first. I left my tax practice and decided to begin a business renovating and selling houses.
Soon after I started my business, I started to receive inquiries from friends, family and acquaintances. They were about to begin projects of their own and wondered if I would be willing to help. It seemed like fun, so I said “Of course!”. I quickly found that I loved working with clients on the design of their homes even more than the work I was doing on my own properties. It was creative, fun and challenging all at the same time. Over the next few years, I devoted much of my efforts to cultivating a robust client business. I was fortunate to have great clients come my way and the business has grown quickly. My team and I are now working on several projects throughout the Chicagoland area as well as select projects in other areas across the country.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
For the most part, the road has been pretty smooth. I’ve had the opportunity to work with the best clients, co-workers and vendors over the past couple of years. That said, nothing is perfect and there have certainly been challenges along the way. I’ve found that, as a small business, learning how to keep the business operations running smoothly while, at the same time, making sure clients are taken care of and finding time to “do the work” can be tough. Having a great team has been so instrumental in allowing us to grow as a business.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Dan Rak Design – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Dan Rak Design is a full-service interior design firm. We specialize in high-end residential interiors and have recently started work on some exciting commercial projects.
As a designer, I describe my style as Midwest industrial-chic. To me, that means curating a deep mix of metals, woods and textiles and emphasizing the beauty of natural materials. I’m always looking to create a warm and welcoming interior that is both luxe and livable, with a slight hint of Midwestern industrial edge.
Apart from the stylistic aspects of our creative work, we are hyper-focused on client service and project management. My professional background helped me to see what five-star client service looks like, and how it should be delivered. With each new project we, as a team, discuss the individualized needs of the particular client and how we can best serve them. I’ve found that this is really a differentiating factor in the eyes of our clients as they consider interior design firms to help with their projects.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We have big plans for the future. Apart from growing our footprint in the Chicago market and continuing to serve our clients with their residential projects, we’re looking to take on some exciting out-of-state and commercial projects. We recently finished a golf cottage for a client in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Apart from getting to work with one of our favorite clients (for the second time), the design process was a blast and it was great getting to work within a different geography. We’d love to take on more of those projects.
We’re also working on developing a line of furniture – pieces that we feel are missing from the current marketplace. We’re working on lining up the right partner for that venture. We’ve also started looking into the possibility of opening a retail storefront/design studio. Stay tuned for more on that as well.
Contact Info:
- Address: 833 West Chicago Avenue, Suite 403
Chicago, Illinois 60642 - Website: www.danrakdesign.com
- Phone: 312-931-5581
- Email: dan@danrakdesign.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danrakdesign/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danrakdesign/
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