MANDY HO, MANDY HO DESIGN
Mandy did not grow up wanting to be an interior designer. She came from a family that values practicality. While she always had a knack for design, it was never considered a viable option as a career. In fact, Mandy had three different careers before she finally decided to pursue interior design.
Mandy trained as a biomedical engineer at Duke University. After two masters degrees, she realized working in a lab was a terrible fit for her personality. She had to find a job, any job, to get out of graduate school. Mandy ended up in the exciting world of finance in New York City and worked as a project manager and risk consultant. After 10 years in finance, she again realized that although it was a good match for her skill sets, it wasn’t a good match for her passion– her soul felt like it was dying an accelerated death.
“After 10 years in finance …. her soul felt like it was dying an accelerated death.”
In 2014, Mandy quit the cushy corporate job, and started her own business as a healing and mindset coach. This experience allowed her to meet people from all walks of life, with a myriad of experiences that she was never previously exposed to. She became fascinated by spaces. Mandy was particularly interested in the impact our physical space can have on how we feel, think, and interact with people.
Mandy has also been designing and renovating her own homes and giving advice to friends since 2008. While moving is typically considered one of the most stressful things one can do, it was always an exciting opportunity for Mandy because she jumps at the chance to decorate and transform a new place. She often hunted for the most run-down homes to buy so she could transform them into something unrecognizable and beautiful. When she lived in New York City, she designed her one-bedroom apartment to be a retreat from the bustling city where her friends would go to relax when they felt overwhelmed. When selling her home in New York City, the buyers loved the design so much that they offered to purchase all the furniture along with the apartment!
In 2018, Mandy fell in love with Portland and moved across the country with her husband and fur baby. They soon began the process of renovating their new home in Portland. After seeing how she lit up with every trip to Home Depot, Mandy’s husband encouraged her to explore Interior Design as her next career. A Google search led her to Heritage. Mandy quickly enrolled and, true to form, dove straight into taking 5 courses simultaneously.
Only a week after graduating from the Fundamentals Design course, she landed her first Interior Design client.
Mandy sets herself apart from other designers by leveraging her experiences as a large-scale project manager, engineer, financial risk manager, and life coach. Her unique approach incorporates coaching her clients through the process of finding what truly brings them joy, in order to create a home that is functional, beautiful, and nurturing.
Learn more about Mandy and her design business at mandyhodesign.com