Design & pre-construction
Books and taxes for interior designers.
A design fee, a client's funds for a sofa order, a trade discount from the showroom, and a freight bill that shows up weeks later. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September came in at $10,700. The Ashford client's furniture funds moved through your account, so I kept that out of your design income and tracked it as a client hold.
- Ashford project design feeDesign fees
- Ashford furniture order fundsClient purchasing, held
- Circle Furniture, trade orderFurniture procurement
- Southeastern FreightFreight and delivery
- Studio Designer subscriptionSoftware
Why your books are different
An interior design business's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business collects a client's money to buy their sofa, earns a trade discount you get to keep, and bills freight that lands two invoices after the furniture does. When the books do not separate those, you cannot tell what the design work itself actually earned.
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1
Client purchasing funds look like income
A client sends $18,000 to cover a furniture order you are placing on their behalf. Booked as design revenue, it makes the month look enormous and hides that most of it is owed straight to a showroom.
What we doHolds client purchasing money separately from your design fee, so only what you actually earn on the order shows as income. -
2
The trade discount margin gets buried
You buy a sofa at the trade price and bill the client retail, keeping the spread. Lumped in with the design fee, you cannot tell whether the fee or the furniture markup is what is actually paying your bills.
What we doKeeps furniture markup in its own line from your hourly or flat design fee, so you can see which side of the business is carrying the month. -
3
Freight and delivery bills land on their own schedule
A sofa ships in August, the freight invoice arrives in September, and the client reimbursement lands in October. Read month by month on its own, each one looks off.
What we doTags freight the moment it is billed and matches it to the client reimbursement, so the timing gap does not read as a loss. -
4
A restocking fee eats into a project's margin quietly
A client changes their mind on a fabric after the order ships, and the showroom charges a restocking fee that comes straight out of what you expected to keep on that piece.
What we doLogs the restocking fee against that specific order, so it does not get mistaken for a routine cost of doing business.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an interior design business.
Set up once for how you bill and how you buy. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Design feesHourly, flat, or per-room fees billed for design work itself.
- Furniture and fixture markupThe spread between trade cost and what the client pays.
- Client purchasing, heldFunds a client sends to cover an order you are placing on their behalf.
- Vendor rebatesVolume rebates or commissions paid by showrooms and manufacturers.
- Staging and styling feesOne-time reveal day or photo shoot styling work.
Money out
- Furniture procurementWhat you pay showrooms and manufacturers for client orders.
- Freight and deliveryShipping, white glove delivery, and receiving fees.
- Design softwareStudio Designer, Ivy, or similar billing and procurement tools.
- Showroom and trade membershipsAccess fees for to-the-trade furniture lines.
- Professional liability insuranceThe policy that covers a design recommendation gone wrong.
- Sample and material costsFabric swatches, finish boards, and presentation materials.
- Restocking and change feesCharges from vendors when a client changes an order after it ships.
What we watch for you
- Design fee margin
What your hourly or flat fees actually clear after time spent, separate from furniture markup.
- Furniture markup rate
The average spread you keep between trade cost and client price across recent orders.
- Client funds held
Money collected for purchases not yet placed or delivered. Keeps a big order from looking like a big fee month.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things interior designers ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
No, I held it as client purchasing funds. Once the order is placed and your markup is set, only your actual markup and fee move into income.
A freight bill for the Ashford order hit this month, but the client reimbursement lands in October. It is a timing gap, not a loss.
Usually not for furniture purchases, since those are goods, not contract labor. If it is a close call for a specific vendor, I flag it for the accountant.
The tax side
The tax side of an interior design business.
Most of what goes wrong here is what counts as your income versus a client's money passing through. Getting that split right changes what your profit actually looks like on the return.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Client funds are not automatically your incomeMoney a client sends specifically to cover a furniture order is not the same as a fee you earned. Only your markup and design fee are taxable income once the split is clear.
- The pass-through deductionMost owners can take up to 20 percent of qualified business income off their taxable income. It comes out right when design fees and furniture markup are tracked separately all year.
- Contractor 1099sA stylist, photographer, or install crew member paid $2,000 or more in 2026 who is not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
- Inventory and cost of goodsIf you hold furniture in a warehouse before delivery, its cost is tracked as inventory until it sells, not expensed the day you buy it.
Deductions interior designers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Studio Designer or Ivy subscription
- Fabric and finish samples
- Trade show admission
- Professional liability premium
- Showroom membership fees
- Presentation boards and materials
- Portfolio photography
- Website and portfolio hosting
- Client meeting mileage
- Delivery coordination fees
- Continuing education courses
- Business insurance for a studio space
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
An interior design year, kept every month.
New projects sign year round, but furniture lead times and reveal dates set the real rhythm. Your team keeps you ahead of the calendar and the taxes both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the contractor 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, with design fees and furniture markup already sorted apart all year.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and how this year's markup margin compares to your fee income.
- October
Before year end
Gus looks at any equipment or software worth buying before December and flags client funds still sitting unresolved.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for interior designers. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions interior designers ask first.
I collect client money to buy furniture. Does Gus handle that correctly?
Yes. He holds client purchasing funds apart from your income until the order is placed, so only your actual markup and design fee show up as revenue on the books.
Do I need separate bank accounts for client funds and my fees?
It is not required for Gus to sort it, though many designers find it simpler. Gus tracks the split either way, from one account or several.
How does Gus handle a trade discount I keep as markup?
He books it as furniture markup, separate from your hourly or flat design fee, so you can see which part of the business is actually earning.
Freight bills come in late. Does that throw off my numbers?
No. Gus tags freight the month it is billed and can flag when a reimbursement is still pending, so a late bill reads as timing, not a loss.
My books have never separated fees from furniture money. Can Gus fix that going forward?
Yes. Send your recent bank statements and Gus starts sorting fee income from client purchasing funds from there. An accountant checks the work as it comes in.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
More in design & pre-construction
We keep books for the business next door too.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever