Interiors Firm Grows After Move to Main Street

Can a better space mean better business? Royal Oak-based ISCG, an award-winning design group, thinks so.

After gutting, renovating and moving into the former Royal Radio building at 612 N. Main St. in 2012, the award-winning ISCG design group immediately noticed a bump in business, said Mary Ann Lievois, CEO.

[Read: Check Out Design Group's Royal Makeover of Former Appliance Store]

"The move gave us a physical presence on Main Street," Lievois said. People saw the firm's new sign and they began wondering about the commercial interiors firm.

"Searches on our website got higher after the move and we began to notice handprints on our windows," said Bob Martin, president. "People were walking by and putting their hands up to the glass and looking at our showroom. We got more walk-in traffic."

ISCG's new space is able to better showcase what the firm does, which is create inspired workplaces. Additional floor space allows the company to have a large showroom and host events.

"Our marketing is much better at this location," Lievois said.

ISCG recently hired six new employees to assist with the increased demand for commercial interior design projects.

Sarah Brooks and Danielle Hardy join ISCG as interior designers; Nives Mandich serves as a workplace consultant; Phil Newman joins as a project manager; Devon Cooley as a client service representative; and Angelica Nolff serves as controller. 

All six team members are based out of the firm’s offices near the Central Business District.

"Our employees love the new location," Lievois said. 

Being able to walk to lunch and shop is a big plus, she said. The staff is also looking forward to new developments slated for north Main Street, which include a new hotel complex at 400 N. Main, credit union at  528 N. Main and the renovations of the former Harper Furniture and Royal Music Center buildings.

[Read: North Main Street Makes a Revival in Royal Oak]

"Taking a vacant building and doing an adaptive reuse is very hard work but it's also very rewarding," said Greg Cooksey, managing director at Royal Oak CG Emerson Real Estate Group, which owns the ISCG building. "It's fun to be a part of it."

The benefits of older buildings can be high ceilings, open floor plans and cheaper rent, depending on the building's prior use, Cooksey said.

Last year, ISCG won a 2012 Business Beautification Award from the Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce for the "time and energy (it put) into improving the aesthetic appeal of their facility."

To learn more about ISCG, follow the firm's Pull Up a Chair blog on Royal Oak Patch.