Designers set out to create a new standard for collaboration

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TOM Design Collective looks to build lasting long-distance relationships

If you’ve been in one, you know that long-distance relationships require trust, transparency and teamwork.

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Now expert designers Lindsay Mens, Tommy Smythe and Kate Stuart are using the same ‘three-T’ framework along with a progressive business model to nurture LDRs of a different sort: long design relationships for both clients and up-and-coming designers.

“We’re looking for an LDR, as kids would say. We want to get involved with families, couples and people who want to do five houses with us over the course of a lifetime,” said Smythe.

The aim is to set a new standard for collaboration, creativity and client satisfaction in global design through the TOM Design Collective, an agency they launched in 2020 with a business model that loosely mirrors the concept of a stylist renting a chair in a hair salon.

Each designer essentially runs their own “business within a business,” explained Smythe, and the collective provides the business infrastructure, taking care of insurance, accounting and billing, for example.

Transparency is essential to the model, which is based on strong client communication from initial discovery and proposal, through to design development, execution and project installation, with regular check-ins scheduled as a final step to address any concerns.

Designers are encouraged to bounce ideas off of each other and each team member is recognized for their individual contribution to a project.

The idea is to give designers time and freedom to spend time with clients rather than on running a business, said Stuart. “All too often you hear of people signing on with a firm, only to be disappointed and frustrated by the time and attention they receive from the designer they thought they were signing on with,” she explained, adding that getting to know and understand clients is an important part of the ethos at TOM.

“When the success of your business ultimately relies on the client relationship you’ve developed, I believe it is key that they have received the best of you,” she added.

As they continue to expand their offerings, TOM has attracted lead designers Laura Fremont, Jenny Dames, Tanya Bonus and Joel Bray, as well as associate designers Ashley Ylanko, Ayanna Augustine, Colin Baird and Haley Dermenjian.

Intellectual property is shared so that if a designer chooses to move on, they won’t lose their portfolio but must credit the collective.

“Individual stars are going to shine brightly no matter what you do,” said Smythe. “We thought, what if we focused on these individual stars and gave them a platform to achieve creatively and to provide excellent, very hands-on, very available client services without being bogged down by the rest.”

The TOM in their name stands for ‘traditional or modern,’ underscoring that there’s no limit to creativity in design and that each project should be as distinctive as the client vision. The goal is provide people with a range of styles to choose from to ensure they find the “most simpatico” design chemistry, said Smythe.

One of his favourite projects was when he teamed up with Fremont to bring Canadian singer-songwriter and author Jann Arden’s ‘happy place’ to life.

After months of pandemic lockdown, Arden was looking to “do something joyful” in her Toronto condo, he said, and wanted to explore the concept of a cruelty-free, vegan interior.

He recalled how she’d leave lilting voice notes on his phone as she made up songs to reflect her vision, which was all about how she wanted her home away from home to feel.

“Whether you’re an austere minimalist or a maximalist, there’s always someone in our group who will joyfully and enthusiastically help you get that look,” said Smythe, noting that clients get the best of both worlds. “We’re giving you all of the safety nets you need to feel confident and trust in the business side of the process and the money spending, but we’re also giving you the joy of working with somebody who can really articulate your own vision for the way you want to live.”