Whether you’re just starting out in the interior design industry or you have been operating for a while – having the right legal foundation for your business is crucial. Having the right legal framework in place will help to build business credibility and trust with your clients and customers and also hopefully avoid any time-consuming legal disputes in the future. Getting your legals in order means you can keep moving to focus on the things that you love and the things that you do best!
Here at Cherrypicka we have taken the guess work out of it and have set out below some of the essential documents that every interior design business needs:
| What is it? | Why do I need it |
| Interior Design Terms | If you have an interior design business, then having a clear set of legal terms and conditions is essential to protect your rights and business. These terms cover essential legal terms including: fees and payment; cancellation and termination; amendments to scope; intellectual property considerations regarding your designs as well as a limitation on your liability. If your Interior Design Agreement is well-crafted, it can protect your business from ugly legal disputes and manage your client’s expectations, so you avoid any potentially expensive misunderstandings. |
| Website Terms and Conditions | This document is the unsung hero of every website. It sets out the rules about how visitors to your website can or cannot use your website, prevent users from posting abusive comments or copying content. |
| Privacy Policy | Use it to tell customers, clients, visitors to your website and even employees, how you use, collect, store and share their personal information. It is best practice to have a Privacy Policy on your website regardless of whether your business is legally required to have one. |
| Non-disclosure agreement (NDA) (aka Confidentiality Agreement) | Use it to protect your valuable ideas and commercially sensitive business information from misuse. For example, you are looking to engage a contractor to perform some work for your business but before you formally engage them you need to share sensitive business information about your business to enable them to provide you with a fee estimate or quote. Use a NDA to ensure that the contractor can only use that information for the purposes of preparing a quote. |
| Independent Contractor Agreement | Use it to appoint service providers and independent contractors, freelancers or consultants to help your business with a special project for times when you need “more hands on deck”. For example, you are bringing on a freelance designer to help you with some marketing materials. Or you are hiring a digital marketing agency to help grow your brand. Defines the key roles and responsibilities between your business and the contractor. |