ABOUT STELLA DESIGN CO
At Stella you should feel looked after and listened to.
Stella design co was born out of wanting to create a design experience for clients that was not only about creating excellent design and spaces that will look beautiful now and well into the future but also about making the design process a positive one. At Stella you should feel looked after and listened to.
The design of your interior spaces should be exciting and enjoyable. Stella Design Co is a boutique design service that is client and collaboration driven, full of fun and laughs and of course at the base of everything fantastic, well thought-out design of your homes and businesses.
“I throughly recommend Sophie to anyone looking for a designer.
With consultation and my personal input, she planned and designed my fabulous new kitchen. Sophie is a personable young woman who listens and cares for her client. She acted and delivered the project with thought and understanding.”
MARY AUGUST | PALMERSTON NORTH
ABOUT SOPHIE
Sophie is the co-founder and operator of Stella Design Co, she owns the business with her farmer husband Cam. Herself, Cam and their daughter Charlotte live and manage a Sheep and Beef farm in rural Whanganui.
Sophie is a multi award-winning designer and took out winner and highly commended in the ‘First time entrant category at the Kitchen Studio awards in 2020. She also was the runner up in Best Small space in the 2021 awards.
Soon after this she entered and won the prestigious CDS (certified designers society) scholarship, where she was picked along with 2 other designers amongst hundreds who entered across New Zealand to receive the CDS Student Scholarship for 2020.
Sophie is sponsored by Blum New Zealand and was awarded free tertiary fees to study the BCITO and NKBA Diploma in Kitchen Design and become a certified designer – Sophie is still currently studying and in her 2nd year and will finish her final papers later this year.
Sophie’s approach to kitchen design specifically has always been about creating harmony between making spaces beautiful but also practical.
“For me its always been about making something beautiful, but it also needs to be practical – it is a kitchen after all, you need form and function. Kitchens are becoming even more of a hub than ever before, it’s a multi functional space. Its everyday living and its entertaining, its making the feasts and eating them. Every aspect of how you function in your kitchen needs to be thought through so that we can deliver a space that works for you!”
Stella with her daughter Margaret shopping in central Whanganui
Who is Stella?
I get asked a lot about why I have named my business Stella Design Co and who Stella is...
“Stella is Stella Wills my great grandmother on my mothers side and my business is named in honor of her. She was a fiercely strong woman for her day and an enormous influence on my mother and all the woman in our family. I remember being scared of her as a young girl because she was such a presence, everyone did as they were told when ‘Gran’ was around. She always looked fabulous, and was an all round good lady. I feel her presence all the time. Stella means Star and it also means excellent, the best – something I will strive for everyday”