Interior design clients start with Pinterest boards and a feeling. Six months later they are choosing between two shades of white, waiting 14 weeks for a sofa and asking why the electrician moved the pendant 30 centimeters. Somewhere in between, you have produced floor plans, sourced 80 items, chased three suppliers and talked a contractor out of a shortcut.
This template gives that journey a structure that the client signs up front. It lists the rooms in scope, breaks the work into design phases with clear deliverables, explains how procurement and markups work, sets out what you coordinate with contractors and what you do not, and stages the fee so you are paid as each phase is approved.
TL;DR
The interior design proposal template covers a room-by-room scope, five design phases from concept to installation, deliverables such as mood boards, floor plans and renders, revision rounds, procurement terms and markup disclosure, contractor coordination, timeline and staged fees. Send it after a site visit and measure. The key practice is collecting full payment for furniture orders before you place them, because made-to-order pieces are rarely refundable.
What's inside
- Project summary: the home or space, the brief and the style direction.
- Rooms in scope: each room with the type of work, from styling to full renovation.
- Design phases: concept, design development, documentation, procurement and installation.
- Deliverables per phase: mood boards, floor plans, elevations, renders, specification schedule.
- Revisions: rounds per phase and how changes after approval are handled.
- Procurement: how items are ordered, paid for and marked up, plus lead times and returns.
- Contractor coordination: what you do with builders and trades and what remains their responsibility.
- Fees, timeline and acceptance: design fee, payment stages, hourly rate for extras, signatures.
When to use it
Use it for residential or small commercial projects where you are designing one or more rooms and possibly managing furniture and finishes. It works for full-home renovations, kitchen and bathroom design, single-room refreshes, short-term rental fit-outs and small offices.
For a paid consultation of an hour or two, a short freelance quote is enough. For e-design packages sold at a fixed price online, a simpler package list may suit better. Changes during the project should go through a change order form rather than a new proposal.
Procurement, markups and lead times
Procurement is where interior design projects make or lose money and trust. Spell out the model you use.
How you price procurement. Options include a markup on trade price, a procurement fee as a percentage of the cost of goods, passing trade discounts to the client and charging hourly for sourcing, or letting the client buy items directly from your specification. Each is legitimate. What causes disputes is a client discovering a markup they did not know about.
Payment before ordering. Ask for full payment, or a large deposit if the supplier allows it, before you place an order. Many custom upholstery and made-to-order items cannot be cancelled once production starts.
Lead times. Furniture lead times of eight to sixteen weeks are common, and some items take longer. The proposal should say that lead times are set by suppliers, that delays are outside your control, and that installation dates depend on delivery.
Receiving and inspection. Decide who receives deliveries, where items are stored before installation, and who inspects them for damage. Receiving warehouses charge fees. Put that cost on the client's side of the ledger.
Returns and damage. State that returns follow the supplier's policy and that restocking fees, if any, are passed on.
What you coordinate with contractors
Interior designers often work alongside builders, electricians, plumbers, joiners and painters. The proposal should separate design responsibility from construction responsibility.
You typically provide drawings and specifications that show design intent, attend site meetings, and answer questions from trades. You do not usually hire, pay or supervise contractors, and you are not responsible for their workmanship, structural decisions or compliance with building rules. If the project needs structural changes, permits or engineering, say that the client will appoint the right professionals.
A line on site visits helps too: include a set number, then bill extra visits hourly.
Customize it in your COLO workspace
Set the design phases up as line items in a saved proposal template in COLO Proposals, and add procurement as its own line with your fee or markup terms written in. The client accepts in the client portal, and the accepted proposal converts into the first invoice. Later invoices can take partial payments for large furniture orders.
Running the project in COLO project management, you can keep a task per room and share renders, floor plans and specification files with the client. Record supplier deposits and delivery fees as expenses linked to the project, so recharges are easy to check.
Common mistakes
- Scope by house, not by room. List every room and the type of work.
- Ordering before payment. Custom pieces are rarely refundable.
- Undisclosed markups. Explain how procurement is priced.
- Unlimited site visits. Include a number and bill extras.
- Taking responsibility for builders. Coordinate design intent, not construction.
FAQ
Q: What should an interior design proposal include?
The project address and rooms in scope, the design phases (concept, design development, documentation, procurement, installation), deliverables such as mood boards, floor plans and renders, how procurement and markups work, contractor coordination, timeline, fees and payment stages.
Q: How do interior designers charge?
Common models are a flat design fee, an hourly rate, a fee per square foot or square meter, or a design fee plus a markup on furnishings bought through the designer. Many designers combine a flat design fee with procurement priced separately.
Q: Should interior designers disclose their markup on furniture?
Being clear about how you price procurement builds trust. State whether you charge a markup on trade prices, a procurement fee, or pass trade discounts to the client, and how you show it on invoices.
Q: Who pays for furniture and finishes?
The client. Most designers require full payment for orders before placing them with suppliers, because many custom and made-to-order pieces are non-refundable once ordered.
Q: Does the designer manage the builders?
Usually the designer coordinates with contractors on design intent but does not supervise construction or take responsibility for the builder's work. The proposal should say who hires and pays contractors. More on running projects in solutions for interior designers.