Interior Design Project Inquiry Quote: How to Price Each Phase in Your First Reply

BOTrento Team13 November 20267 min read

Why a single lump sum loses the enquiry

Most buyers write something like “we are refurbishing our office and want a new look”. They have no brief, no fixed budget and often no idea which part of the work costs the most. If you reply with one total, two things happen: the number looks too high because it bundles design time with furniture and labour, or it is too low because you guessed and now you carry the risk.

A phased quote fixes both problems. The buyer can say yes to the first phase without committing to the whole project. You are paid for thinking time, and you only price later phases firmly once the scope is known.

The five phases and how to price each

Adapt the names to your studio, but keep the logic: each phase has an output, a pricing basis and a point where the client decides to continue.

Fixed fee for phases 1 and 2

These are the phases you can scope yourself. Quote them as fixed amounts so the buyer can approve quickly.

Ranges for phases 3 to 5

Later phases depend on the concept and the building. Give a range, say what it assumes, and say when it becomes a firm figure (for example, “after concept sign-off”). Keep materials separate from your fee so the buyer sees what is design and what is product.

State what is not included

Planning permission, structural work, specialist trades, delivery to site and VAT are the usual surprises. One line each prevents most disputes later.

What to ask before you quote

You do not need a full brief, but five answers let you place the project in the right phase structure:

1. Type and size of space. One room, a floor or a whole building?
2. Starting point. Empty shell, occupied space or full strip-out?
3. Budget indication. Even “below or above X” helps you choose the level of specification.
4. Deadline driver. An opening, a lease date, a trade show or no fixed date?
5. Decision process. Who approves, and is there a landlord or a board involved?

If the enquiry already answers some of these, do not ask again. Ask only for what is missing, and ask for photos or plans to be sent by email. For more on this approach, see how architects and engineers send a phased quote in the first reply.

A first-reply template you can adapt

Keep the reply short. The detail goes in an attached quote; the email should make the structure obvious.

Subject: Your office refurbishment – proposed approach and first-phase fee

Hello [Name],

Thank you for your enquiry about [space / project]. Projects like this normally run in five phases, and I have priced each so you can see where the cost comes from.

Phase 1 – Discovery: site visit, measurements and a written brief. Fixed fee: €[amount] excl. VAT.
Phase 2 – Concept: layout options and material direction, with [number] revision rounds. Fixed fee: €[amount] excl. VAT.
Phase 3 – Detailed design: indicative range €[from]–€[to] excl. VAT, confirmed after concept sign-off.
Phase 4 – Materials and procurement: priced from the final specification; I will show supplier costs separately.
Phase 5 – Installation: indicative range €[from]–€[to] excl. VAT, depending on trades required.

Not included: planning approvals, structural work and delivery to site unless we agree otherwise.

If you would like to start, I can visit on [two dates]. To firm up the later phases, could you send floor plans or photos and tell me your target completion date?

Kind regards,
[Your name]

Follow up between phases, not just after the quote

A design project has more waiting points than a simple sale: the client waits for the landlord, the board, the budget. Set a follow-up at each one.

• After the first reply: a short check-in a few working days later, asking if the phase structure makes sense.
• After the site visit: send the written brief within a day while it is fresh.
• After concept presentation: note the decision date the client gave you and confirm it in writing.
• Before price validity ends: remind them that the later ranges are tied to the current specification.

Write every promise down (“I will send the revised layout by Friday”) and put it in your calendar. The routine in how to stop forgetting quote follow-ups covers the basics, and the guide to event production quotes when details keep changing shows how to number versions when the scope moves.

How BOTrento keeps phased quotes moving

Phased quoting means more documents, more versions and more promises than a one-off price. That is where enquiries get lost in Outlook or Gmail, or in a Pipedrive or HubSpot deal nobody has touched for weeks.

BOTrento Chief of Staff is a managed process for enquiries, quotes and follow-ups. It watches your mailbox and uploaded data, and each working morning it shows a “Today 1+3” overview in the app and by email. It prepares draft replies, quotes and follow-ups in four languages, and it picks up promises such as “I will get back to you by Friday” and reminds you. Your own phase structure stays yours: you decide the wording and the numbers.

Nothing is sent without a person approving it. BOTrento does not send emails itself, does not confirm dates or bookings, does not read attachments (it works from the email text) and does not replace your CRM or accounting. AI is included in the plan within a monthly usage limit. Commitments, deadlines and meetings can be pulled into Outlook, Google Calendar or iPhone through a private iCal link. See the process demo, or read about B2B services use cases.

You can test it on your own enquiries: the trial lasts 14 days, needs no card and no API key of your own, and starts when you first upload data. Start the 14-day free trial. Our team contacts you within 24 hours on working days to help connect your mailbox. For how data is handled, see the GDPR checklist for AI sales tools.