This pandemic has forced many of us to have new experiences, and a person that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions writes Krish Kothari, Founder, KKD.Studio.

Life as we knew it, doesn’t exist anymore. Now we are challenged to create meaning between ourselves and the four walls that surround us. From going to local stores to purchasing groceries online, or from visiting our doctor’s clinic to calling them via telemedicine services. Most of what we need is within our four walls. Be it a dance instructor or a banker, whatever a person’s disposition during these testing times, we must acknowledge that we’re becoming increasingly dependent on our homes and what they have to offer us. As a part of this, we envision that clients will start transforming their spaces of function to spaces of experience.

In order to best prepare for this change, we need to start setting up structures with our clients, contractors and colleagues.

Taking each day at a time

If we’re lucky enough to have on-going projects, we need to reach out to all its stakeholders, i.e. clients, contractors and colleagues. Communicating with them to not only reassure them but also to present an honest and transparent picture about delays to their project and provide them with an adjusted timeframe.

Further, this is an excellent time for us to learn. Encourage your colleagues to invest time in sharpening their skills or developing new skill sets. Spend time in analyzing business practices and try to improve on them.

The show must go on… we still have to design and produce new ideas

Moving past the lockdown, we will need to restructure how we conduct business - Here are a couple of pointers which can help your business to get back on track and excel.

• Site Hosting -
  One straightforward solution to jumpstart projects is to host contractors onsite until completion. Site hosting might not be the most viable solution given that you will need to limit the number of people per sq. ft. However, if structured correctly, one can benefit from it from a perspective of safety and project timeline.

• Gold standard - The yardstick for hygiene and contracting in this country will need to change. Since contracting is an unorganised sector, we will need to refine these to match up to international standards and train the contractors accordingly. We will also need to strictly follow the BMC norms on hygiene standards and any new potential rules that come in, i.e. people per sqft, medical testing, rosters etc.In addition, hiring a third-party contractor who periodically disinfects the premise during the construction process and after to ensure optimum hygiene standards should be a protocol. Furthermore,for the ease of business it will be essential to have a ready database and a repository of raw material samples within their studios/offices to ensure that your client can shop indoors.

• Automation—Using automatic doors, voice-activated elevators, cell-phone controlled hotel room entry, and hands-free light switches should be the way to go.

• Technology- Tech-based interaction between various stakeholders should become a go-to model where you can access every project/site remotely. E.g. Using a CCTV to communicate directly from your office, giving you much better control over site progress, and saving time and energy, you would have spent on the travel.

The future is bright

This pandemic has forced many of us to have new experiences, and a person that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions. On this note, we, as interior designers, are tasked with identifying and understanding the empathy gap of our client’s changing relationship with their home. While this lockdown has forced a lot of us to develop positive habits it will entail a higher degree of focus on a client’s daily activities in our approach to design. Being able to deliver on their experiences will be one of the key determinants of design success.

To conclude, while there is a paradigm shift in every industry, we see things from a vantage point. And I firmly believe that this crisis is only going to enhance the sector and pump-in a new lease of life.