NEW PROVIDENCE, NJ - Rachel Kapner had a vision. As president and interior designer of Creative Wallcoverings & Interiors (CW&I) in New Providence, she wanted to bring a little piece of New York City to the suburbs. "I wanted to open a design center that had a New York City "loft" feel to it while still having a warm showroom." That vision became a reality with the opening of CW&I’s new location in New Providence last November.

The showroom, located at 560 Central Avenue, was created from a full build out of an old warehouse. This gave Kapner and her design team a great deal more room than the previous location in Summit, to showcase services they offer their clients. "We now have more space and more ability to show what we can do," Kapner says.

CW&I has been in business for 38 years and was started by Kapner’s mother, Dorothy Goldberg. Kapner, who states she has "always been surrounded by a realm of creativity," had been interested in art and textiles so following in her mother’s footsteps seemed like a natural progression. Kapner, who has been in the industry for over twenty years, stated, "My mother asked if I wanted to pursue this and everything else just fell into place."

Although the business began as a wallcoverings service, CW&I has expanded its capabilities. "Through the years we have merged a wallcoverings specialty into a full-service interior design company. From construction to design, we can encompass everything that needs to go into recreating a room," Kapner states.

And by "everything," Kapner mean anything that falls under the umbrella of design including wallcoverings custom window treatments, custom furniture, custom upholstery, lighting options, rugs, and cabinetry. "There really is no project too big or too small," Kapner states. "We have completed projects ranging from a single service all the way to designing the interior of homes from the ground up. We can run the gamut in terms of the scope of projects."

When asked if the business has a "specialty," Kapner is reluctant to use the term. "We don’t want to limit ourselves in what we can do and we want each project to be unique. We focus on each customer so that each has an individual look so you won’t see it elsewhere. It is our goal to make each client’s project stand out."

In addition to Kapner, CW&I has five interior designers on the staff. "There is always a member of our staff ready to greet you when you walk in the door. We want our environment to be warm and welcoming," Kapner states. The design team is made up of Lois Darling, Kirsten Jensen, Mary La Vecchia, Virginia Liberato and the most recent addition, Rena Pisauro.

Kapner says that the design team tries to stay on top of what’s new and fresh in the industry and often frequents New York City to visit many design showrooms. Moreover, the design staff receives training from various vendors every Tuesday morning.

The design showroom has several different room layouts aimed at relaying different visuals to customers. Additionally, there is a section of window treatment options and an impressive reference room which features what Kapner claims is the largest library of fabrics, wallcoverings and trimmings in New Jersey. "Every client’s project is most important to us and we really go out of our way to focus on the client. We can work with any client’s tastes whether traditional or contemporary. We really zone in and listen to our clients in order to incorporate what they want into our project. Our pride is using our ability and vision to pull it all together."

Complementing their local business, Kapner and her team have extended their business to other regions. "Anything I can do in New Jersey, I can do remotely." Kapner said that many of her local clients also have her team design second homes in and out of state.

Kapner commented that the recessive economy has not had a huge effect on the business. "We are shifting what is being shown so we can accommodate any budget."

In order to market the business, Kapner relies on promoting CW&I at tradeshows, business card shows, trade magazines, mailings and word of mouth recommendations. The designers also have their own Facebook account geared towards promoting their design services. In the future, Kapner hopes to continue to "cultivate clients and cultivate the business."

The web site for Creative Wallcoverings & Interiors can be found at http://www.creativewallcoverings.com

Creative Wallcoverings & Interiors is located at 560 Central Avenue in New Providence and the design team can be reached at (908) 665-7997.

Kerry Law can be reached at Njkerry@yahoo.com  Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/njkerry  Check out her podcast at http://njkerry.podbean.com, which has audio versions of many of the events she attends.