A full-service interior-design project takes a home from an initial brief through concept development, coordinated design information, specification, procurement and agreed involvement during construction and installation.
The phrase full service is not a standardised package. One studio may include furniture and finishes; another may coordinate kitchens, lighting, fitted joinery, technical information and site-stage reviews. The written appointment should define the actual stages, deliverables and responsibilities.
This guide explains a typical sequence for a substantial renovation, new-build interior or complete home. Individual projects may combine, overlap or omit stages depending on their scope and team.
A comprehensive interior-design commission commonly moves through these stages:
These ten steps are a reader-friendly outline, not the official RIBA stage numbering or a fixed Meiger service package. The RIBA Plan of Work uses eight stages, numbered 0–7. An interior-design appointment does not automatically include an architect’s, engineer’s, quantity surveyor’s, contractor’s or contract administrator’s services.
The first conversation establishes whether the studio, project and client are likely to be a suitable fit.
Useful initial information includes:
This is not yet the detailed brief. It allows both parties to understand the likely scale, dependencies and next step.
Before design work starts, the studio should issue a written proposal or professional-services agreement.
It should identify:
The term full service should never replace this detail. Clients need to know which work is included and which professionals remain separately responsible.
The design team gathers the information needed to understand the property and document the brief.
Depending on the project, this may include existing drawings, a measured survey, photographs, planning information, structural records, services information and reports from appointed specialists.
The client brief should cover more than visual preference. It may record:
The British Institute of Interior Design describes the brief as a developing document. Recording it gives the client and designer a shared basis for evaluating later decisions.
Concept design establishes the organising idea for the interior.
The work may include:
The purpose is to agree direction before detailed specification begins. A concept should respond to the building and brief rather than assemble isolated visual references.
Clients should understand which decisions are being approved at this stage and which remain provisional.
The agreed concept is tested and developed against dimensions, architectural information, services and specialist requirements.
This stage can resolve:
Realistic 3D renders can help communicate volume, materials and views through connected rooms. They remain decision tools and should be reviewed alongside measured information, samples, drawings and manufacturer data.
Changes made here are generally easier to manage than changes made after manufacture or construction begins.
Read about Meiger’s architecture-led approach
Once the design is sufficiently coordinated, the team develops the information required for pricing, approvals, manufacture or construction.
Depending on the appointment, interior-design information may include:
The issue status and intended use of each document should be clear. Design intent does not automatically replace fabrication drawings, engineering, regulated design or specialist technical submissions.
A responsibility schedule should identify who prepares, checks, approves and issues each item.
The route depends on the project and contract structure. The client may purchase directly, appoint the designer as an agent, buy through the design studio or use a combination of routes.
The appointment should explain:
For bespoke cabinetry, stone and other manufactured components, final site information and approved fabrication drawings may be required before production can begin.
The lowest quotation is not automatically the best value. Compare scope, exclusions, quality, programme, experience and contractual responsibility.
The designer’s role during building work must be agreed in advance.
Depending on the appointment, activities may include:
This does not automatically mean the interior designer manages the contractor, certifies building work, controls site safety or assumes the duties of an architect, engineer, principal designer or contract administrator.
Construction responsibilities, inspection frequency and the authority to issue instructions must be stated in the contracts.
The final installation may include furniture, decorative lighting, rugs, window treatments, artwork and accessories, depending on scope.
Handover tasks can include:
Snagging is not the same as a guarantee that concealed or specialist work is technically compliant. The responsible contractor, consultant or certifier retains the duties established by their appointment.
After the home has been used for a period, a review can identify adjustments, outstanding defects and lessons for operation or maintenance.
Questions may include:
The duration and content of aftercare depend on the designer’s, contractors’ and suppliers’ agreements.
There is no reliable universal duration. Programme depends on:
A proposal should distinguish the design programme from the construction and installation programme. It should also identify decisions that sit on the critical path.
Ask for a project-specific programme that identifies the work included, dependencies and client decision dates rather than relying on a generic completion estimate.
Professional design fees are normally distinct from construction, cabinetry, appliances, furniture, lighting, installation and specialist-consultant costs unless the proposal explicitly combines them.
Meiger’s interior-design fee is £60 per square metre, excluding VAT, based on the agreed area and scope. Clients should confirm the measured area, included stages, revision allowances, procurement treatment and any additional services before comparing this with another proposal.
Read Meiger’s luxury interior-design cost guide
Meiger works on luxury kitchens, connected living spaces and complete home interiors from its Alderley Edge studio.
For some projects, Meiger begins working with clients one to two years before construction starts. Clients may be planning a legacy home: a place shaped around family life, built to last and intended to be enjoyed by future generations. That ambition calls for a trusted design partner who takes time to understand the brief, explains decisions clearly and helps coordinate the interior with the wider project team from the outset.
Depending on the agreed appointment, its scope can include spatial planning, kitchens, bespoke cabinetry, material specification, lighting intent, realistic 3D visualisation and coordination of the interior design through selected later stages.
Your written proposal should identify the stages Meiger will deliver, the information you will receive and its involvement during procurement, construction and installation. Services that belong to registered architects, engineers, contractors or other specialists should remain clearly identified as separate appointments or responsibilities.
Explore Meiger’s interior design service in Cheshire
The answers should appear in the written appointment, not only in a sales conversation.
If you are considering a substantial renovation, new-build interior or connected kitchen and living space, prepare the property information, intended scope, working budget, target programme and existing consultant details before the first discussion.
Meiger is based in Alderley Edge, Cheshire. Use the stages above to prepare a brief and compare appointments wherever your UK property is located; confirm project suitability and the proposed delivery arrangements with the studio.
Review selected Meiger projects, explore the interior-design service, or contact the studio to discuss your property and proposed scope.
It may include agreed design reviews during construction, but the phrase alone does not include a building contract or contractor management. Confirm who appoints the contractor, issues instructions and reviews the work.
They can form part of the design scope. Design work, product supply, procurement and installation are separate responsibilities and costs unless the proposal explicitly combines them.
For a new home or substantial renovation, discuss the interior brief before important room layouts, services and fitted elements are fixed. Agree the timing with the architect, engineer and other appointed professionals.
The team can agree how interior and architectural information will be coordinated. Record the interfaces, deliverables and responsibility for each decision in the appointments rather than assuming that either professional covers the other's work.
Duration depends on the property, agreed scope, approvals, design decisions, manufacture and construction. Request separate design and installation programmes with key dependencies and approval dates.
