Bilal Rehman: Fearless Interior Designer Redefining Spaces & Captivating Social Media

Bilal Rehman, the 23-year-old interior designer, is making a splash on social media with an impressive following of 484.9K on TikTok with 4.6M likes and 133K on Instagram. Fearlessly unapologetic, he candidly shares his insights, while sprinkling profanities in his approach. Hailing from Houston, Texas, Rehman spearheads Bilal Rehman Design Studio & Gallery, where he crafts luxurious interiors for a diverse range of commercial and residential projects.

Over four transformative years, Rahmen ascended the ranks from an intern to a distinguished senior-level designer. With a rich blend of Pakistani and Lebanese heritage, he fearlessly pursued his passion, and in 2022, he took the bold step of launching his own namesake studio, captivating audiences and designing spaces with his authentic and original voice.

We caught up with Rehman to discuss his social rise to prominence while also learning about his design practice that the world is finally getting to see.

Bilal, have you ever been to the Hamptons?

No, never. I was just in New York maybe a month ago and we talked about it. We wanted to sneak over to experience it.

We’re sure your design mind would explode. Your work specifically aligns to the modern design builds that have taken off on the East End. It looks like you did some major renovations to your own showroom, gallery, and office. We love the arched doorway and the light airiness of it.

When I first walked into our showroom, it was brown and had rubber flooring because it was used as a production facility before. It was a very commercial space in terms of production and it did not focus on the beautification of anything.

Are you following a certain aesthetic or discipline?

It’s more guts than anything. The idea is to have a studio and gallery sector to it, plus the store. For the visitor, there are options instead of hiring us for an entire project, as some may not be prepared for that. They could just take home a stunning vase or something like that. With the showroom, it felt like a mix up of our aesthetic. There’s a lot of modern, there’s a lot of Greek, plus a Mediterranean vibe in it. It’s about 5,000 square feet.

How would you describe your design style?

I think my style is the perfect combination of traditional and contemporary — as if you were to take them and merge them together. I have such an appreciation for some of the more traditional things. I love moldings on walls or really detailed doors — things like that. But then I will take that element and I’ll modernize it by painting it magenta or doing something arresting to it.

I feel like the only word that encompasses my design aesthetic is dramatic. There are a lot of conversational items in the spaces, like a giant hand on a table, or something that sparks a conversation compared to just doing basic vases.

We read on your website that your designs are to give you a total body sensory experience. How does a person live in a space that is always putting one in that kind of all-encompassing experience?

After the project is done, they often say, “I have no idea how I was functioning in this house before you came in.” When you focus on the total body experience, you’re focusing on not just the way things look, but also the way the room smells, the way that the room is lit, the way that you look in that lighting. The way the speakers are placed in the room so that the sound is balanced. There are a lot of other elements that go into that sensory experience. When it’s perfectly done and well curated, it’s hard to go back to a space where the speakers don’t sound as good or you look tired in this lighting.

Our favorite series is, This Not That. There’s a value that you’re giving to your audience which is nice, but in a funny way.

Honestly, it’s my sister. She is my marketing director. She’ll see us working on a project or I’ll show her something that I saw on Instagram or in a magazine, for example. She’ll say, “oh my God, that’s a really good piece of information, we need to share that!” We take that little spark of inspiration and build an entire concept for a video around it.

 

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Do you have other series in the works or is this a very organic process for you?

It started out in the very beginning as a more organic flow, where we did whatever we were feeling that day. Now I put a lot more thought into what I’m producing because I really want to create content that feels authentic. That is my number one thing. I don’t want anybody to come across the video and say this feels fake — that’s the number one thing. The second is that I want to provide useful information to my audience that has not already been done 100,000 times by other people on the platform. Now we really look at the content that we’re creating and if I’ve seen a similar video on this topic 10 times by other creators, we say let’s not do that.

We saw that you are inspired by certain designers like Kelly Wearstler.

Definitely, Kelly Wearstler. I had the privilege of meeting her at Art Basel last year and it was a life-altering moment for me because I had grown up idolizing her and her work. Watching her expand her career and company then getting to meet her was incredible and it really sparked so much inspiration for me that I decided to leave the company that I was working with to start my own studio. Yes, it was a pivotal moment for me.

Who or what else inspires you?

I’m inspired heavily by fashion. Fashion has always played a role in my life. Versace, I love, especially the archival pieces. You know that in the very first video that I ever went viral I was wearing a vintage Versace leather jacket and people were ripping me to shreds because it looked so beat up. It’s my favorite piece. 

 

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That’s an interesting point, that interiors can obviously incorporate art, but fashion is a very interesting aspect. Do you follow interior trends?

Not really in our work. They come and go so fast, by the time you hop onto the bandwagon, first of all, it’s already been done a thousand times over and it’s not original anymore. And number two, by the time everybody hops onto it, a new trend has already replaced it.

Do you work a lot with homeowners, the architect or both? What’s the process for you?

All of the above and it depends really on the scope of the project. We take a list of all their wants, their needs, their wishes. I even ask them the most personal questions — I have to ask. How do you like to live in your house? Do you want a room to make you feel sexier? Do you want a room where you can have a little date night with your husband, or your wife, or whatever the case might be? We’re going to produce the best thing for your lifestyle because it’s not only about the house being pretty. It needs to be something that you can actually live in. So that’s where I really like to go with residential clients to find out more about their lives and how they live to make better educated decisions when it comes to making selections.

You definitely do an in-depth discovery with them.

Absolutely,

What happens after that? Do you start presenting mood boards?

I would say nine out of ten times we end up creating the mood boards. We, every now and then, get the client who’s like, I don’t even care what it is. I trust you to do it. Most people aren’t like that because it’s their home and it’s their money. So we’ll show them mood boards of a concept that contains inspiration, images, or maybe some items that we love. We get their approval on the mood board(s) before we move on to the final floor plan and design. We break it in two phases.

You must work with the architects and builders, too, if you have to knock a wall down.

Some projects are way more in-depth and we do a lot of  construction or have to remodel the space. Working very closely with builders or the architects has been nothing but great experiences.

Your website encompasses the different facets of your brand, even e-commerce.

The website has been officially launched and new products are going up every single day because that’s how much inventory there is. I have personally curated every single item for the gallery and for the online store. It was years in the making of all my travels. I’ve been to different markets, different antique fairs, different vendors all over the world to curate these pieces.

We do have Bilal Rehman branded products as well, such as a collaboration with FAO for faux florals that I’ve designed. They’re luxury faux florals called the Avant-Garde Floral Collection. It’s impossible to tell that they’re not real.

We also have a trade program that is set up for designers to be able to purchase and get a percentage off so that they can mark it up and resell it to their clients.

Do you have other partnerships coming up. What else are you working on?

I’m working on a lighting collection, a furniture collection, a rug collection. I’m in talks right now to do dishware. Ultimately, I see us as a lifestyle brand, not just an interior design studio.

There is a synchronicity happening between creators and followers where they are building your brand up. Have you found clients through it?

Totally. If anything, I think social media has been so vital in filtering out clients who may not have been a good fit from the beginning. Now I get clients who love the way that I talk, the raw and open way that I am when and if it comes to telling them that their house is ugly as sh*t. It’s like we’ve met me before we’ve actually met. So, if they don’t like the way that I talk, or the way that I handle situations, or my aesthetic, they already know that in advance. But now with people who are reaching out, they almost sign up instantaneously. Our salesperson will get on the phone with them and within 20 minutes the contracts are signed.

Social media has been pivotal. It was in January when my sister took over and it pivoted — then started exploding.

Wow, you built your interior design brand on social media in seven months. What were her methods?

She grew up heavily on social media. I wasn’t strategically planning anything. I really, really put an emphasis on putting on this persona of what the world thinks a designer is. You know, very prim and proper, we don’t cuss, acting a certain way — and it just wasn’t working. People were seeing right through it. It was like that for years until I brought her on and she had the brilliant idea of saying, why don’t we just make a video of you talking the way you talk to me or to your client, or in real life? You know, which is me, telling them that their house is ugly.

What’s interesting is that you’re leveraging your social media presence into something so much bigger.

Absolutely. We’ve built such a strong community. The people who follow me, they’re not just followers, they talk to me as if I’m like their friend, which I love. They’ll randomly send me pictures of their house — I wake up every morning with a DM box full of photos, such as a sofa that they just bought or that they’re thinking about buying. They’ll ask what I think of it. You don’t know me and I don’t know you, but I love that. You feel comfortable enough to send it to me. These people are so much more now.

To learn more about Bilal Rahmen and his work, visit www.bilalrehmanstudio.com.