Ramsey Bearse is a leader in the home renovation industry, known for her meticulous attention to detail and unwavering commitment to excellence. As a driving force behind a thriving renovation company in West Virginia, her expertise in interior design has redefined countless living spaces, combining aesthetics with functionality to achieve impeccable results. Her dedication to her craft has earned her a reputation for consistently delivering exceptional work. Outside of her professional endeavors, Ramsey is also an accomplished musician and a woman of faith, balancing her career with her love for the outdoors, music, and community involvement.
Where did your passion for home renovation come from?
My passion for home renovation came from my mom and grandmother. They were not interior designers, but the three of us spent a lot of time together on the weekends, and we were either watching a home renovation channel show, or it played in the background for whatever we were doing. Both of these amazing women kept their homes tidy and beautiful in ways that reflected their personalities.
My work aligns with these tenets as I help customers who are looking for design ideas that reflect themselves. I don't just push trends or cookie-cutter ideas. My mom and grandmother were also avid about repurposing items they owned already for something different. This is something else I try to bring into play when doing design work.
What problem have you identified in home renovation?
The main problem I have identified in home renovations is the lack of listening. I feel that some people in my business think about the here and now, what’s trending and will sell quickly. My intent is to get to know the customer and learn the important bits of their aesthetic – what colors they like and dislike, if they are easily overwhelmed by shapes and patterns, etc. Getting to know the client as a person is the perfect way to help them choose what renovation styles and products will truly exude their character, as well as elevate their space(s).
What lessons have you learned from a failure in your career?
At some point in life, everyone is new in their career field. Within the first three months of my career, I made a mistake by not asking my customer to get a certain measurement before we ordered her product. She had a kitchen floor she loved – a rustic travertine – and also had it in the bathroom across her hall. She decided she wanted to do the hallway in the same stone.
This customer brought pictures of the existing floor, I selected a sample from the products we had, and after she took our sample home and checked how the color matched up, she ordered the size she wanted in her space. But, I did not cover the thickness of the tile. Her existing tile that was already set to the floor was much thinner than the new product from us. She was outraged, and my company ended up paying for the tile we supplied to her. Because installation had already begun before we noticed the discrepancy in thickness, we were unable to salvage it and resell it to a future customer.
Lesson learned? Look over ALL data on spec sheets and if you feel like you still have questions, contact the production company to see if there are any other available materials before selling a product to your customer. Additionally, making great connections with all local contractors is a game changer. If I had conversed with the contractor for this customer a bit more, prior to the job, I could have found out the thickness of the old tile before ordering the new.
How did you overcome your failure and progress forward?
For a while, the incident mentioned above circulated in our industry and throughout our town. People would ask me if I 'knew for sure' that the products I marketed would work for them because they didn't want to waste time or money. I stayed very humble and was honest about what had occurred. I explained that I learned to check all facts before supplying products and/or placing orders for people.
I continued to study all aspects of materials that circulated through our business until I could fully explain and point out where others could find all this information for themself if they needed that for confidence in their choices. This new depth of understanding has begun to frame me as more of a well-educated employee at my business now.
What motivates you to continue doing what you do?
I’m continuously motivated by the 'accomplished' look customers get on their face after a visit to our design showroom. It is an honor to work with every one of our clients, and I am truly grateful to serve individuals, even the ones who have been frustrated with finding the perfect products for their current project, and provide them with many options that are chosen by their specific requests and ideas.
I love to pull together options based on the client’s ideas and help to curate what they see in their mind's eye in a physical display so they can truly envision it all coming together. When a customer is happy, their joy lights up their faces, and this is a reward I carry with me even after their visit. My job is rewarding in front-facing ways but internally as well. Every day, I am learning and growing in my craft and continuing the legacy that started with family, sitting down each weekend to appreciate proper aesthetics in home decorating.
