Interior Design Product and Networking Fair sees stellar growth, continues to provide College of Human Sciences INDS students with valuable opportunities

Dr. Anna Ruth Gatlin, Assistant Professor of Interior Design and coordinator for the INDS Product and Networking Fair, spoke to the growth of the event in recent years.

“I’m able to use my practice background when I worked in Facilities Management that really helped with sourcing a lot of these industry partners because I worked with them when I was a practicing designer,” said Gatlin. “That kind of created momentum. Since then, we have expanded into a networking fair as well as a product fair so you will notice that this is a mix of people who sell furniture, tile and other finishes, fabrics, wall coverings and things like that. For the career fair side, there’s interior design firms who are looking for summer interns, so they are all mixed into this together.”

Familiar companies like Interior Elements and Business Interiors have attended the INDS Product Fair going back several years and were back on campus again as participants. Representatives from the companies spoke about the importance of the product fair and the benefits that come out of it.

Tyler Peterson, Vice President of Talent & Culture at Interior Elements, attended on behalf of the commercial furniture dealer to connect with Auburn students. In the past, Interior Elements has hired several Auburn students for internships and full-time positions—in large part because of the preparation students get in the INDS program.

“A lot of what I’m doing here is not as much showcasing product but it’s just connecting with awesome design students and getting to know them,” said Peterson. “They go through the ringer in the INDS program. Gatlin and just the faculty as a whole are really simulating real world scenarios. Let’s say your client is at a certain company located in a specific city. Students figure out how to create the design that that client might need. What is their inspiration behind it? Really every single detail that you would need to think about that most college programs don't go into that depth. The commercial program in general just does a great job and they really leave no stone unturned.”

Debbie Caldwell, client advisor for Business Interiors and current Interior Design Advisory Board member, is a longtime supporter of the College of Human Sciences and the INDS Product Fair. In addition, she is a 1974 Auburn alumna who got a degree in Family and Child Development with a minor in Interior Furnishings.

“It is a mix for us because we are looking for interns but it is also good for us to give the students exposure to our product line because eventually, they are going to be in the workforce and specifying furniture so that is why we love for our students to know our product plan so when they have very specified projects they will think about us,” said Caldwell. “To mix with the students and interact is the most important thing about this product fair for me. We have a lot of students that do internships with us so it’s good experience for the students but it’s also good for us because we also represent a lot of these other companies that are here today, so it gives us the chance to see those colleagues.”

Sophia Ashford, a senior in the INDS program who will graduate in May, interned with Interior Elements in the summer of 2024 and the product fair gave her a chance to meet with company representatives in person. Overall, the product fair allows her to make the important connections with company representatives, while also familiarizing herself with industry products.

“It gave me an opportunity to talk to other people working in the company and a chance to keep putting my name out there,” said Ashford. “I think there’s two sides to it. A big reason I'm here now is I have my resume and I’m trying to make connections, grabbing business cards and things like that. I think my junior year was a little bit about trying to find a place I might want to intern, but also you are in the middle of doing so many projects, it’s also just nice to know what products there are to use in your projects. Our junior year, we do a commercial project, and we partner with Interior Elements and Allsteel to use their furniture as projects. That kind of familiarized me with the company and who they are and what they do. I would say during the actual internship the biggest thing I learned was the different aspects of a furniture solutions company.”

Gatlin echoed much of Ashford’s sentiments when it comes to the value the product fair can have.

“In all, I think it’s just incredibly valuable because what they are doing here is not just learning about different products on the market, they are getting to feel and test things that they would normally see on a computer screen,” said Gatlin. “They are also making connections and building that network because regardless of if they are talking to someone repping furniture or working at a design firm, they are building that network of people that they can add on LinkedIn, connect with and follow-up with.”