Judith Todd, Founder of Homestyle4U Property Styling

Specialising in personal styling and interior design for your home

I never expected to be moving back in with my mother and relaunching my business at the age of 56, but I honestly couldn’t be happier!

I quit my job as a sales negotiator last August and sold the house I loved in January this year. It’s all part of a wholesale lifestyle change, which includes hunting for the perfect renovation project and getting my property styling and interior design company off the ground.

My background is in law. I was a solicitor for over 20 years and, up until I got made redundant in 2011, it was the only job I’d ever known. Specialising in families, I worked hard to avoid people having to go to court to fight over things – especially children.

By 2003, the job had become stressful and I wanted a change, so I looked to my own interests for a clue about the next step. I’d owned several properties over the years, and I enjoyed decorating and accessorising, so I decided to undertake a City & Guilds in Interior Design at night school.

I first heard about home staging on Channel 5’s ‘House Doctor’. I found a course in property styling and even set up my own website, yet I still carried on working full-time in law. Being made redundant was my original impetus to make the leap, but I still said yes to a part-time job at an estate agency. That ‘little digression’ soon evolved into a permanent career. Seven years later, I found myself back in a familiar position: working a stressful corporate job and dreaming of going it alone; last summer, I finally broke away.

I don’t regret any of my choices. Working at the estate agents taught me how to get out there and win business – plus, I’ve learned about house buyer behaviour. Without staging, people struggle to visualise how a property could work for them. It’s all about helping homeowners appeal to the widest number of people within their target market. For those who don’t want to move, I use my interior design skills to help them fall back in love with their property!

Finally, I’m doing something that I love and really believe in.

Homestyle4U