Welcome to the Interior Perspective, where luxury real estate meets timeless design. I'm Nicole Fisher, a Hudson-based interior designer working with the region's most exclusive properties. Each week, we sit down with top brokers to explore the stories, insights, and inspirations behind the most remarkable homes on the market. This is your front row seat to the art of elevated living. Let's get started. Welcome, everyone. It is the Interior Perspective. And today I am here with a personal friend of mine, Ashlei De Souza who actually works for one of the most recognized brands in the industry, Surhant. So Ashlei, thanks I am so pumped to be talking to you. Brief backstory, Ashlei and I met at Yeah, that was, you know, how to not kill a when we were both like eight months pregnant and looking for any last resort. And we became fast, fast friends. Our boys are like two weeks apart. And now six, can you believe it? Oh my gosh, now there's six. Yeah, and it's been a wild journey with, you know, me in design and you in real estate and how our kind of worlds just have always meshed. And I'm so pumped to be talking to you today. I'm a little bit more on I am actually in New Canaan at one of my listings. I have an appointment right after this. So I set up right here in the dining room. Smart girl. So we're going to take it a little bit back. What drew you to real You know, real estate just kind of happened to me. It wasn't the other way around. I was kind of on a gap year, I guess, after college, which I know is normally supposed to be before college, but I was figuring myself out. I was originally from Kentucky, came to New York City and met somebody who said, you should work with me in real estate. I don't know if he was flirting. I don't know if that was his pickup line, but ultimately 15 years later, So I met Ryan because one of the girls that worked with me, we were at a boutique firm that was originally based in Miami and she had Florida background. She was working with me in the New York office and she left to go work with Ryan Serhant and a couple months went by and we were friends and she's like, I miss you. You have to meet Ryan. It's so fun working with him. So she set up a meeting and I sat with him in his office for a couple minutes and he's like, I'd love to have you join. Let's do it. And I said, yeah. It's been now Oh man, we were probably, we were in our Tribeca office. No, our Soho, they were in the Soho office. 12, 15 max. Oh my gosh. Thousands. Yeah. We're now in multiple states now that he has his own firm. And, you know, at the time we were, you know, a small team out another company. And then during COVID, he Followed suit. Yep. Totally. And I do. I have a team of four. We're a really nice small team. And I think it was really important. I was kind of at a place where I knew I needed for me to be able to grow. I was going to need support. And because I was working now in multiple markets, I can't be everywhere at once. And I'm a mom. So, you know, that was something that I Oh man, that's, that's incredible. It's so awesome when you can get in on the ground level somewhere and I tell anyone who's really like starting to work for me now that you're coming in right before things are going to like blow up. I feel it in my heart and my soul. And so you're getting in on the ground level. Like there's so much that could be done. You are able to see so many ins and outs of a brand and see the ins and outs of really an industry that you wouldn't if you joined Surhant today. So it's, it's so valuable to feel so passionate about, you know, what you're doing and who you're working for because you never Right now he's got a new second show. Maybe there'll be a owning Connecticut, maybe. That's right. So your team is based in Yeah. So now I'm mostly based in Connecticut. I live in New Canaan. I've been here for about five years, you know, but started in New York city and built my, my brand there and really, you know, my business for so long. So I would never give that up. And now similar to my trajectory going from New York city to Westchester briefly, and then, Connecticut, a lot of my past clients who I started helping them with a rental in college, now they're starting a family and they're doing the same thing. So it just makes sense for me to keep that New York City thing going and help everyone with that kind Smart. How does the client change from New You know, every location, even though they're so similar, they're so different. So a lot of my specific position is having to kind of educate them on the differences. If they're coming out of the city, they might think they want Westchester, but I'm like, oh, have you considered Connecticut? Here's some reasons why, or vice versa. Because I do think as an agent, it's not just about, getting a quick sale. It's about finding the home that they're really going to have the right fit and the right lifestyle. And as you hear more about what they're looking for, you can kind of help open extra things Right. And do you feel like you've had to alter your your brand in a way when you moved from you know, I think that's kind of the moment that I decided I really needed to have that brand once it wasn't just me. And of course, we all try to be on, you know, social media and LinkedIn and all of those things. But when I was going to be building a team and having to trust other agents to go and do showings on my behalf, it was important for me to know that my clients were going to understand I was still very involved. They were still going to have my network. They were still going to have, you know, my, my hands-on approach and that I was still going to be connected to that, that It wasn't being passed off to someone else. So I think that's when I really started to focus on the brand building aspect and trying to make the Ashlei Victoria D'Souza team, you Right. That's smart. Do you feel like you've had you had pushback from It was an adjustment and there are, I will say there's been some some clients that I worked with in the city and they still love me and I still you know help them with suburb stuff, but I know that they have also some of them have listed with other agents now because they didn't understand they thought that I was now gone and now. that they understand, like, I'm still very much involved. I mean, I was in New York City yesterday for showings. So now that they understand that, that's happening less and less. But yeah, there was that transition period of like, oh wait, didn't she move away? But it just, it actually, I expanded and I'm doing more. It's not that I left. Right. No, that makes sense. What do you think is some, a misunderstanding of Real estate was one of three jobs I had when I first got my license. And it took a couple years where I was still doing rentals and doing everything that I could to build the clients, but you gotta get that snowball effect. And yeah, it was a long time where I was doing more than just this. But once I was able to make the transition, which was great and everything was perfect in New York City, I moved and then I moved again. And every time you move to that new market, you kind of start from scratch. Right. So that's not easy. It's really not easy to find your people again, to find the network, to get to bring that trust with you and grow that and make a name for yourself in Right. And then the grind you're referring to, is that that shift into a luxury market or is that shift from like rentals to purchases or what do you think that shift was? I think all of the above, I think evolving and adapting, there's always gonna be that period where it's extra intense, right? So yeah, I mean, it's something that, as Ryan always says, expansion always in all ways. You have to keep growing, otherwise you get stagnant. And yes, it is gonna be tough and you are gonna have to take some risks and work extra hard until that gets moving again, Right, I mean, you're speaking my language. There's nothing more, I don't know, unappealing to me, maybe that's not the right word that is complacency and being stagnant and one noted there is just. what are you working on? What are you working toward? What are you living for? I mean, come on, we need something. Yeah, we need that. Same, same. And I think too, that's why I think it's so exciting that I get the opportunity to be in multiple markets and work with different types of clients, whether it be buyers, seller, investor, rentals, anything from a $450,000 co-op that we just did in New York City to a $9 million house that I'm sitting in, right? Being able to do something different to work on and focus on keeps it from getting, I don't want to say boring. Real estate is never boring. There's always curveballs. It's always Yeah, well, people with money are usually crazy. And, yeah, okay. I find, you know, especially at a certain income threshold, people are just nuts. So, and they are, they want to be told yes. They are not often told the word no. That is what I find a lot with, with some of these people. So, I want to talk to you about kind of this shift in luxury market and what that means for like the property itself. So when we're talking about a luxury home, for example, what are some like feature or design elements that tells you this is going to sell clients are going to love this. This is Yeah. Well, to tackle the second part of that, I think when you go into a house, regardless of whether it's luxury or typical standard, whatever, I think you're just looking for that moment. And it doesn't have to be extraordinary double-height ceilings or epic views. But if you're walking into, say, the primary bathroom, and you're like, wow. I could see myself sitting in that bathtub with a glass of wine all night. Like when you see those moments where you can see yourself or that you know you would enjoy, that's going to translate. Because ultimately when you're shellowing a property, you're on stage, right? You are telling the story. You're not just like turning on the light. And there's a Mila. stove. Like, no, this is where you're going to entertain. And this is where your caterers are going to bring the food out from the, you know, for the dining room and no one's going to see the mess. When you're telling that kind of stories, that's the moment. And we want to look for that in a property. And if you find a property that doesn't have a moment, it might be a little trickier. You might have to get more creative with maybe pricing or strategy, or maybe I'm not someone who is gonna collect listings that aren't gonna sell, or if I have an unrealistic seller that I'm trying to pitch, I would rather say, thank you for the opportunity. Best of luck. I will keep this in mind for buyers that might be a good fit for you, but I'm not the right fit for selling this home. So I'm gonna Did I miss that? The idea of like what are, Are there specific features or design elements that you look for that... And when you're trying to It's really about the feeling. I mean, there's, everyone's going to have a different taste. You have to look for what it does have going for it. And also, you know, you do need to think ahead. Hey, if there's something that's not right or that people aren't going to love, what's that objection? How am I going to approach it? What are the solutions? Because there's always a solution, right? You can pretty much fix everything. Money fixes everything, right? That's what it is. Are those solutions often from a design perspective, do you think? Or like thinking about it from a different lens or giving them ideas for Yeah, absolutely. And sometimes I will work with designers or architects or have something in mind that needs to be done and already kind of have that legwork done so that when it's up, I can say, you know what, so-and-so had this idea, you know, for this amount of money, we can X, Y, Z. So yeah, I do think that's helpful to have. Yeah. So tell me about that process. Is that a, when you get the listing, then you talk to a designer or an architect and then you show clients or is that simultaneous or It really depends on the property and how big the issue is. And sometimes, to be honest, I might do a couple showings before I even realize the problem. And then hearing the feedback, I'm like, oh, this is something that we need to work through. So sometimes it's actually the other way around. I get that from the buyer. But if you're doing this for enough time, I am able to kind of walk in and That's smart. I think that's a really, really interesting way of thinking about it. If you're getting the same feedback from three or five buyers, you're like, okay, this is a problem I need to be able to solve and solve in a creative way. Exactly. Hmm. Okay. I never thought about that. Do buyers today want to see a lifestyle already taking place or do they like these kind of blank depends on the buyer, but I think so many people lack vision and they lack understanding of space, or maybe they just don't have the confidence that they can do it. So really painting that picture is certainly helpful on moving a property faster, which is the goal for every seller and most money. So if you can paint that picture and that aspiration is added in for that buyer, they're gonna pay more and you're gonna have more people wanting it, is Yeah. Do you ever do any virtual staging? I Right behind me, I have a rendering. So this property did not have a pool. So not only do my virtually staging, do I virtually stage inside when I need to, sometimes I virtually stage outside. So while we were launching this listing and the pool wasn't completed, I needed to be able to say, hey, this is what it's gonna look like. Ignore the bulldozers and the dirt and the piles of gravel. This is what you're gonna get. And that goes back to painting that picture and that aspirational, You know, this is the experience you're going to get in this house. So, yeah, absolutely. Of course, real staging is always going to go further. It's not always possible. Budget, timing, logistics. Sometimes you need to rely on virtual. They are, but you know, the virtual is really a first look and it's great as a marketing tool, but when they get in, they suddenly forget what that picture looked like, which is why I have printed out on an eagle, like here it is. You remember this from the listing? It's right there, right? So in this particular house, I have a few of those around, but you know, sometimes if that's not the right approach, you know, I'm also working on, there's another good example, I'm working on a new development, the mill in Westport, and there's a lot of units. We can't have them all staged. We can't photograph every unit because every unit there is unlike the next. So I virtually staged the ones that I'm listing that aren't really staged. And then I actually went in with painters tape and taped out the corners where the bed, where the king size bed is going to be. So when you're standing in that empty unit, Oh, look how much room I still have to walk around. Right. So. You gotta really have all the layers and hold their hand a lot of Man, she is creative. I love that. That's amazing. I would never do that for someone. I'm like, trust me or get out. Those are your two options. Oh my God, love it. But that's, I mean, yeah, we're in different markets, you know, you are, you're almost building a relationship with people from scratch. I am, you know, we already starting somewhere and then building that relationship. So, but that's, that's You're already committed to what you're designing for them, right? Like, look, this can work. And then you say, look, how great it's going to Right. You know, I find that when we do some realistic renderings like that, it's almost to a disservice for me because if it doesn't look exactly like that in the end, they question it. Sure. we have pivoted into more of a hand-drawn sketch for our rendering so that it's not exactly going to be that way, And I do that because you have a fashion background, right? So you probably had that idea because drawing a fancy outfit, right? And it's got the little, you can see it in my head, it's got a lady and everything. And it gives them the vibe, right? And then you give them the vibe, the look and the textures, and you're Definitely. Yeah. No, I love that you have them right out for them to say, remind them, this is what you're doing. Do you have an example of where something like that virtual staging, like sealed the deal for you on a You know, you never really know what was it, right? Having the assets, having the right marketing materials, where someone's going to look online and then pick up the phone, right? If I had had an empty unit, might not have gotten the call. Right. having it out there as this is what it looks like finished, certainly it was gonna bring more traffic, right? So I'm sure that's been the case, but Yeah. Does Surhant do We have an outside vendor list that we partner with a lot. These ladies that did this for me, they're actually in Greece. I love them. Cool. Yeah. Actually, this photo was in Greek Vogue or something. Amazing. Yeah, but Sirhan does have a lot of in-house things with studios and videography and that type of thing, photography, but we do, there's a lot of us. We have a lot of listings. Yeah, yeah. We got Yeah, no, that totally makes sense. Do you see when you're working on a house or trying to sell a house, really, are there trends or design features that people either love or Yeah. You know, people are luckily are going back to like old wallpapers and bold colors. And for so long, everything was so white. Yeah, yeah. And I'm seeing that people are embracing boldness Yeah, I mean, same. That's what we do, so. Yeah, I love that. I wonder if, do you feel like if the property is already done in such a bold way, it limits the buyer that's coming in there? Or Necessarily limits the buyer, but I think it it changes the focus away from what I want to do. I want them to come in and see themselves being there and see their style, so I do want things to be exciting. And I want things to be memorable right, so you know some of the stages, I work with are really great because they'll pick one or two really funky pieces. And the rest is going to be pretty tasteful and approachable for people because you don't want them to get distracted. And same with when I have someone who's not staging and they live there. You don't want them looking at all your wedding pictures and your collection of beer steins from when you were abroad in college. You got to put that stuff away, right? So it's distraction and then what is elevating the space. But also I want people to remember when they're looking at 10 houses in a weekend, oh, you remember that one with that really cool zebra chair or whatever, you know, I think those memorable pieces, but not overwhelming the space with two particular, it's a nice balance. Yeah. No, I think that's awesome. And I think your approach and your insights are so, so valuable for for brokers really because I have never heard someone talk about it in that way and having those kind of strategies around. selling it so much more than a beautiful home. It's really being very strategic about what you're doing, how you're doing it and putting yourself out there in the right way. So what kind of like advice would you have for brokers trying to build visibility without maybe losing their authenticity Yeah, I think embrace it, right? Say yes to everything. When you asked me to be on this, I didn't even think, I was like, yeah, I'll Oh, that's good, I got to, I made it easy. But, you know, just not shying away from opportunities. And I think also, you know, beyond that, something that I've never stopped doing the small things too, Doing the rentals keeping those relationships because ultimately that owner that needs you to rent it they're going to sell it. And if you've rented it for him for the last five years, who are they going to call you right, so I think also just remembering yeah you're not you're only as good as your last deal but yeah of course but. every opportunity leads to something else. Whether that means a new connection, a new follower, a new whatever, you don't know where it's gonna lead. So just saying yes to everything is going to naturally make you more visible and have a wider audience, which Yeah, especially in 25 when everybody's an Instagram star. I know. I know. It's very, very interesting. Totally. It's so much pressure. You inspire me. You remind me to be more So much work. How do you balance being present Well, Sirhan, we have Sirhan Simple and they're able to do a lot of the background stuff for me, right? So that takes a lot off my plate. So whether it's preparing a postcard mailer or something like that, I can kind of put in this request and know that it's working on the backend. I can have as little or as much interaction with that as I want, but then it alleviates some of that stress and gives me extra time to have to dedicate that. And I do need to get better at time blocking. I know I need to like really focus and put those in on doing more, Right. Well, we can't do it all. That's just, we just can't do it all. Is there anything on the media side of your world that you You know, I've always, I've always liked kind of acting and doing those kinds of things. I did that a lot in college. And so for me, I was excited about the opportunity that I get to give these tours and I get to, you know, and it's been great working with Ryan and having some of that visibility, you know, being able to go to for filming with Million Dollar Listing and now Only Manhattan and things like that. So I think that's been like a really cool bonus. But Yeah, I think that's a really interesting idea about you and your personality. And it's so cool that we're given a platform to be able to do it, right? So to take these interests that we have and put it out in the world and it's exciting. So what's next Yeah, well, I still do want to stay a small team. I'm very excited to say that, you know, after being in Connecticut as an agent, really for only four years, my team is top 50 small teams statewide. And we were a top 50 team across Surhant for our brokerage across all team sizes and states and locations. So I'm very proud of that. So I would just want to keep doing that and keep growing. So as I said, I do want to stay, still stay a small team. So five or less, but I, I'd love to bring on another agent, maybe someone that's in Westchester, help me have some, a little bit more presence there. So, Instagram, email me, Google me. I have my team website, ashleyvictoriadistruza.com. You can go there and get in touch. What's Absolutely. Perfect. Well, Ashlei, this was so fun. Thank you for being here. I am so glad we got to chat. This half hour flew by because It was just great combo. So find us on Instagram, Nicole R. Fisher. This has been the Interior Perspective, where luxury real estate meets timeless design. Until next time, keep seeing every space through a more elevated lens. Ciao. Thanks for listening to The Interior Perspective. If today's conversation inspired you or you're a broker with a story worth telling, connect with us on Instagram at NicoleFisherInteriorDesign or visit NicoleFisher.com. Until next time, keep creating beauty, living with intention and seeing every space through