HomesScope.com connects UAE homeowners with a horde of interior and building design professionals.

Its founder, Dubai-based entrepreneur Kashish Sajnani, told us more about the start-up…

When did you set up HomesScope?
I’ve been working on the idea for two years but we started one year ago. The idea just came up when my family and I first came in to Dubai and we wanted to build our own house; we couldn’t find the right architect or interior designer. We had the idea of creating a platform where we could pull in all those people and allow the homeowner to source them out.

What did you do previously?
I have an interior design qualification – a diploma from a college in London. But my main educational background is in business. I have a bachelor’s degree in commerce and an MBA in marketing and branding. I chose interior design out of passion. After I completed my course, I did a few freelance projects but I never wanted to establish a proper set-up for what I was doing, since I had a family I was taking care of. Whenmy kids grew up, I realised this was what I wanted to do and decided to make the switch from being a full-time mother to a full-time interior designer. I had moved back to India for a while and did a few residential schemes there, but when I returned to Dubai I had the idea of combining my design and marketing expertise.

Why did you launch a website?
I had gathered a lot of data about interior designers and architects I got to know through various trade fairs in the UAE. I realised that this data needed to be shared with people and things started to fall into place. We now have a professional directory that people can check. It gathers architects, interior designers and 11 more categories of professionals underneath one platform.

We don’t only promote UAE-based companies but also some based abroad – we have members in Germany, Italy and France that are ready to offer their services here but aren’t really well-known. We target residential clients as opposed to commercial – we’re focusing on a niche audience – but the service is for anyone.