We had the good fortune of connecting with Juanita Fotheringham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Juanita, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I had been working for Interior Space Design, Inc. in Newport Beach for almost 10 years when Frank Renn, the owner of ISD, was ready to retire. At the time I wanted to start a family and work part-time from home. Frank wrote letters to his main clients informing them of his retirement and encouraged them to continue working with me. Part-time grew into full-time then into overtime. For 31 years, I have been the sole proprietor of Spectrum Space Design, Inc. providing Space Planning, Design Development, Construction Documents and Construction Administration.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I have been blessed to still have the privilege of working with many of the clients Frank connected me to back in 1992. By the grace of God, I have survived the economic downturns of 2010 and 2020. My daughter Amy Fotheringham attained her bachelor’s degree from the Interior Designers Institute, and after 3 years working for another prominent firm, she joined me in January of 2022. One of our favorite clients calls us the Dynamic Duo. We collaborate extremely well and emulate similar design styles. We are fueled by bouncing ideas off one another and occasionally surprise each other with identical design visions. Our first collaboration was intended to be a onetime assist, but the results were so amazing we couldn’t imagine designing anything else without each other.

Building the company over the last 31 years has taken a lot of hard work, over-time hours and determination to provide the best results for our clients. Though there are many challenges dealing with Building Authorities and unexpected site conditions, when we get to the end result, the victory is worth the fight. The greatest lesson we’ve learned along the way is that there are no shortcuts to success.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Frank Renn believed in this Puerto Rican girl, took me under his wing and helped me develop remarkable space planning abilities. Frank gave many opportunities to interact with clients, developers and building authorities. I am forever grateful to this great, generous man.

I worked well with my brother, Radames who was with me for about 12 years before he retired in 2022. The continued growth of Spectrum Space Design is due to the many clients who have referred me to other clients. In 2018 I was introduced to Wild Thyme Restaurant Group. We have completed 16 locations with them, with two of our most favorite designs being Kai Japanese Bistro in Huntington Beach, Ca and Mole Fine Mexican Cuisine in Palm Desert, Ca.

Website: https://www.spectrumspacedesign.info/

Instagram: SpectrumSpaceDesign

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=spectrum%20space%20design%2C%20inc

Image Credits
Kai Japanese Bistro by John Haverstick Studio

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutSocal is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.