EP 437 | Visibility Is a Growth Tool: Why Interior Designers Need Clear Financial Systems with Will Leonard

July 15, 2025

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Financial visibility isn’t about being “good with numbers”—it’s about removing mystery so you can lead your business with confidence. In this episode, Kimberley Seldon gets candid about her own money management journey (including the messy parts) and why learning to truly see your numbers is one of the most powerful growth tools available to interior designers.

Kimberley is joined by Will Leonard, who introduces Zena, a pre-funded spending card designed to simplify expense tracking and make financial organization feel far less overwhelming. Together, they explore how centralizing purchases, categorizing expenses, and doing regular financial check-ins can turn bookkeeping from a dreaded task into a strategic advantage.

If you’ve been avoiding your finances—or managing them in a way that feels reactive and stressful—this episode will show you how visibility creates calm, control, and smarter decision-making across your entire business.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

  • How centralizing business purchases reduces chaos and increases clarity

  • Why a pre-funded spending card like Zena can simplify expense tracking

  • How organizing expenses by project saves time and mental energy

  • Why expense categories can actually improve profitability

  • How real-time tracking supports better decisions without added stress

  • A calmer, more strategic way to prepare for tax season

 

DESIGN INTERVENTION

You can’t grow what you can’t see. Visibility is a growth tool. If your financial systems are scattered or unclear, you’ll always feel unsure. But when you can see your numbers clearly, you make faster, better decisions—and feel more in control.

 

WATCH ON YOUTUBE

Meet Will Leonard

Will has spent his career in finance, sales, and customer success—helping businesses get control of their money and grow with confidence. More importantly, his wife and mother are both full-time interior designers, so he’s seen firsthand how creative work and business challenges collide. Now, Will is part of the team at Zena, where they are building tools that make it easier for designers to manage expenses, stay organized, and run a profitable business.

www.zena.com

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Thank you to our podcast sponsor, Zena!

Let us introduce you to Zena—the smarter business card for project-based businesses and built for interior designers.

If you’re tired of chasing receipts, guessing where your money went, or sorting spreadsheets at midnight. With Zena, every purchase and business expense is automatically tracked by project, budgets update in real time, and reconciliation? It’s done for you.

And the best part? You can sign up for free.  No credit card required. Try it with zero commitment.

Head to Zena.com and activate your Zena card in minutes. It’s that easy.

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Legal Disclosure | This podcast is for educational purposes only and should not be used for any legal decisions. Kimberley Seldon Design Group, Kimberley Seldon Productions Inc., Kimberley Seldon Design and Media, Inc., Business of Design™, or any of its affiliated companies or staff is not responsible for any errors or omissions effecting accuracy in any content, and they will not be held liable for the use or misuse of information, facts, details or any other aspects should there arise any defects, errors, omissions or perhaps inaccuracies. Extensive research has been conducted to put this podcast together for the purpose of educating our industry in order to better serve the public. Care has been taken to acknowledge ownership of copyrighted material. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is offered with the understanding that we do not render any legal, accounting or other professional advice. Seek the advice of a lawyer and/or other competent professional person in all matters of law. Further, listeners should be aware that internet websites mentioned may change or disappear between when this was recorded and when it was listened to.

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