Chehalis-Based Interior Design Center Thriving During Trying Times

Despite Supply-Chain Disruptions and Difficulty in Finding New Quality Employees, Chehalis-Based Company Busier Than Ever

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Rick Fisher, owner and manager of Interior Design Center in Chehalis and Showcase Kitchens in Adna, is fighting against the now-familiar business problems of supply-chain disruptions and finding quality employees.

Thankfully, he has built up his company for decades and has a waiting list into the next year on taking on any new projects. He said when the pandemic hit the community in March 2020, he was unsure how his business would perform. He said the pandemic had people staying at home, but people continued to spend, especially on home improvement projects.

“We’re booked up until January 2022,” he said.

He started at the ground floor in 1976 helping build cabinets in a local shop. In 1987 he bought out a cabinet business in Chehalis with three employees. Today his company has 13 employees, manufactures its own cabinets in his Adna shop and both sells and installs complete interior home designs. The business is by far the largest custom design shop in Lewis County. A large part of the business is working directly with homeowners.

“Most of our business comes from word of mouth,” he said. “I’ve done three kitchens over time for the same family.”



While his business continues to thrive in these uncharted times, Fisher said it is difficult to find supplies and products on a timely basis.

“The supply chain is terrible right now. We try not to start things until all the product is in,” he said. “And it is hard to find help. But the good news is I’m busy — I’m busier now than in the past 40 years.”

Typically an employee of the business will make a visit to a house under construction, make measurements and then custom design the entire home via a computer-aided design software program.

“We look at each and every cabinet,” Fisher said about offering truly individual custom design. “Everybody is different in what they want in a kitchen. We offer 100% design to fit your lifestyle and needs.”

Fisher is a member of the Lewis Economic Development Council thanks to an assist from the LEDC. Fisher found himself a couple years ago needing a tenant to lease out 5,500-square-feet of extra space at his shop. He heard the LEDC might be able to help. LEDC Internal Relations Manager Eric Sonnenberg found a tenant — Evolve Graphics, which now is open in the space next door to Interior Custom Design.