Design LACED, PLLC, located in Nevada is now certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE). WBENC is the largest certifier of women’s business enterprises in the U.S. and a leading advocate for women business owners, leaders, and entrepreneurs.
ABOUT Vanessa Fuller, NCIDQ, RID, LEED AP
As a dedicated and creative design professional with over 25 years of work experience in architectural and interior design, Vanessa has gained expertise in establishing rapport with clients and consultants and a proven ability to generate fresh solutions for the renovation of internal spaces.
Growing up in Las Vegas, Vanessa has had the unique opportunity to work for highly acclaimed architectural and interior design firms working with properties such as MGM, Bellagio and Treasure Island.
Vanessa graduated from the University of Nevada Las Vegas with a Masters of Architecture, is a licensed Interior Designer certified by NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification) and is a Registered Interior Designer with the State of Nevada. Vanessa attained her LEED AP certification specializing in Commercial Interiors.
We recently had a chance to speak with Vanessa and asked her the following questions:
- What prompted you to obtain your WBENC certification through WBEC-West?
Vanessa: In researching the benefits of becoming a certified WBE, I learned that a business that achieves this certification is considered more credible when dealing with corporations. In addition to using the certification as a marketing strategy, it also provides access to a global network of support, increasing visibility amongst corporate members to provide potential opportunities to grow my business and expand my clientele.
- Since being certified, what benefits have you/ your business experienced?
Vanessa: It would have been impossible to have participated in certain RFPs and contract opportunities if we had not had the opportunity to meet key people in various organizations, build relationships, demonstrate our solutions, and describe our model. Being M/WBE certified provides an expanded network of advisors, friends, partners, and customers.
- How do you useyour certification? (i.e., through online marketing, social media, print media, website, business cards, in stores on my product, etc.)
Vanessa: I’ve posted these certifications on my company website, Business-related social media (LinkedIn) and have been able to advertise them on websites
- What advice would you share with a fellow Women Business owner who are looking to become WBENC certified?
Vanessa: I thought I knew a lot about the opportunities that being WBE certification before I joined because many of my friends and acquaintances had been encouraging me to be a part of the organization. But I was not fully aware of how thoroughly committed some companies are to supporting, encouraging, and working with women-owned businesses. I would encourage a new business owner to certify their company as soon as possible.
About Women’s Business Enterprise Council-West (WBEC-West)
WBEC-West is a regional partner of the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), a coalition of corporations, WBEs, and regionally focused women’s business organizations. As an affiliate organization, WBEC-West implements the certification standards of WBENC throughout Arizona, Colorado, Southern California, Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, Hawaii, and Guam. WBENC certification is nationally recognized and accepted by more than 10,000 major corporations. We also support corporations in their efforts to include WBENC Certified WBEs in their supply chain. To learn more about the organization, visit www.wbec-west.com.
