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Profile: LMB Design

As part of a summer job placement at Furness Enterprise, Chelsea Peters has written a series of profiles of local business people. Second in the series is a profile of Laura Barnett at LMB Design.

Laura and her partner Derrick run LMB Design, based in Ulverston. The company is an interior design consultancy providing advice to individuals and other businesses on issues related to furniture, interior decoration and accessories.

After qualifying and following a career in engineering for many years, Laura found herself work at BAE Barrow where she met Derrick. Laura decided that since she had always wanted to be an interior designer she would make a major change in her life and do just that. She enrolled on an open learning course and four years later, after working nearly seven days a week, set forth on a new career. In her final year she won the Designer of the Year Award, sponsored by Channel 4’s Grand Designs magazine, an accolade she had single-mindedly set out to win from the very beginning.

Laura’s determination is obvious as soon as you meet her. Her programme was to gain experience working for a couple of different, but specific types, of business and eventually to start her own practice. Prospective employers seemed almost frightened to give her a job and following some advice from a couple of very close friends decided to set up on her own.

She had thoroughly researched where her business was going to be based and chose this corner of Cumbria to bring much needed creative consultancy to businesses and to home owners.

Her instincts have been more than proved correct and the business has continued to grow. The assistance from Furness Enterprise that came from the beginning included an initial business start up course, an award for marketing, assistance through the Market Towns Initiative.

Laura and Derrick have recently expanded the business base and opened part of their premises as Bleach House Gallery, showcasing the creative talents of artists and crafts people from both here and further afield. Furness Enterprise have recently decided to sponsor two of the exhibitions later this year, which is going to allow the gallery to provide catering and live music at the opening events.

Their retail shop and the gallery are packed with a wide selection of stunning items – all of which you might have associated with stores in London or Manchester. Laura believes implicitly that Cumbrian’s should not have to travel to other parts of the country to source these unique items.

Their desire to develop their business means that Laura and Derrick are constantly looking at ways in which they can ensure that the name of LMB Design is seen as the first port of call for anyone looking for exceptional design advice and interior fittings and fixtures.

Posted by Phil Powell on 16th September 2008