Mick Fox, co-founder of Fig + Nash, shares a few actionable tips for redecorating at home and lets us in on the design trends his team is most excited to explore in 2022.
Mick Fox and Dino Raimondi love helping people create living environments that allow them to be their best selves. That’s why in 2016 these design afficionados and life partners decided to go into business together and launch Fig + Nash, a full-service interior design firm and décor/furnishings boutique.
“I like thinking that we’re really helping, and giving people permission to be their best self, which is hugely rewarding,” says Fox, who moved to the area 10 years ago after meeting Raimondi at a local jazz club. Both have backgrounds in design and share a passion for curating artful spaces that spark conversation.
Today, their firm is the premier vendor for Toll Brothers in Greater Palm Springs — two of their model home designs for the building company have won Southern California Builders Association awards. And with two retail boutiques, Fig + Nash is the exclusive Coachella Valley distributor for brands including Christofle silver serveware and Lalique crystal; they are also developing their own product lines.
“The Coachella Valley is having a moment,” Fox says. “There are so many different influences, and people from all over the world are moving here. They believe in the Coachella Valley. There’s a lot of new energy, and new generations are discovering it. It’s really exciting to be part of it.”
The new corner location on El Paseo boasts 20-foot ceilings and large windows on three sides, perfect to showcase the firm’s sophisticated style statements and high-end retail offerings. Shown here: a brass-and-enamel coffee table from Lebanon and a custom bouclé sofa.
The flagship Fig + Nash boutique is located in the Uptown Design District of Palm Springs. In November 2021, the pair expanded with a second storefront on El Paseo in Palm Desert. “We obviously knew the reputation El Paseo has as a world-class shopping destination and the level of retailers it’s already attracted,” Fox shares. “We knew that it was the right fit for us.” The central location brings the designers closer to their clients who live in prestigious residential communities such as Bighorn Golf Club in Palm Desert, the Vintage Club in Indian Wells, and the Madison Club in La Quinta.
Coincidentally, their Palm Springs space is housed in a historic 1920s Spanish Revival complex known as “El Paseo Building.”
We caught up with Fox, who serves as the brand’s chief creative officer, to hear his take on the design trends leading into 2022 and to get some advice on DIY decorating in a way that lets your best self shine through. Here’s what he had to say.
Fig + Nash partners Mick Fox (left) and Dino Raimondi (right) pose with managing designer Gabriela Helesicova in the El Paseo store’s Assouline reading room.
With everyone spending so much more time at home over the last two years, how have your clients’ design needs evolved?
A lot of people are officing out of the home, so we’ve had a huge request for either a primary home office or a secondary home office as well as meeting space. Outdoor space in the home has become extremely important. People are just really into all things home.
This custom floating banquet in Pierre Frey fabric, set against matching Pierre Frey wallpaper, was designed by two students at the National School of Decorative Arts in Paris. Marble-top bistro table by Arteriors.
Palecek chairs with Fortuny accent pillow; Arteriors coffee table; hand-painted white vessel by Gabriela Helesicova; Aurosi backgammon sets; indigo grass-cloth wallpaper from Phillip Jeffries.
What design trends are you looking forward to exploring in the coming year?
I’m really big on what I call “barefoot elegance.” It’s the intersection of the high and low, which is how a lot of people live nowadays. They want their spaces to feel special every day, but in a casual, elegant way. Here in Southern California, we’re fortunate that we get to enjoy a real alfresco lifestyle. The entertaining reflects that, and I think that’s conducive to barefoot elegance — they don’t want it too casual or too stuffy, just that sweet spot, where we feel our best self.
The El Paseo showroom also houses the Fig + Nash interior design studio, where managing designer Gabriela Helesicova oversees project planning and client meetings.
Can you offer a few actionable tips for redecorating a space at home?
Declutter, and really let the pieces that you have breathe. Having a few actual, live plants is always nice. I know it’s higher maintenance, but it changes the vibration, the oxygen in the room. And just have a few personal things out that evoke a fun, happy memory for you.
At Fig + Nash, your tagline is “Live Well With Good Design.” What does that mean, to you?
That the space that you’ve designed supports the lifestyle choices you’ve made in a simple yet elevated way.
Now that you’ve settled into the new Palm Desert location, what’s next?
We want to continue with our product development. We see a void, and we’re exploring ways of filling that. We currently have 12 projects working, and we’re booked through July 2022. So, life is good at Fig + Nash.