For Neisha Crosland, the secret to success as a designer is to take an active part in the whole business

With a shop in Chelsea, a design studio in Battersea and an enviable international reputation, Neisha Crosland's wallpaper and fabric company can hardly be described as a cottage industry. But as she remains so resolutely close to the business, that is very much how it feels.

On the pinboards that line the walls of her office she displays a range of materials: scraps of fabric that she has found on her travels, photocopies from books and photographs she has collected of anything interesting that catches her eye, from paving stones to carved doors. She distils elements from these random sources of inspiration into the succession of drawings that eventually form the basis of new designs. “In order to get it right, I have to be involved in every aspect of the process,” says Neisha, as she explains the lengthy business of correcting numerous design proofs before her papers and fabrics can be produced. “It's in my nature to be very hands on.”

It could all be much simpler, of course. Neisha could, like many other designers with a similarly high profile, just create collections for other companies. But, however much easier that might be in the short term, she worries that it would leave her with less control. There is also no doubt that she gets a real buzz from seeing her designs at every stage of production, which includes visits to the fabric mills and wallpaper printers.

Having such a hands-on approach is undoubtedly more time-consuming and means that Neisha has had to streamline other aspects of her life; for example, her children's school, her office and the showroom are all within ten minutes' reach of her home, which she is currently remodelling. Less time spent on the school run and commuting to work means that she has more of it to devote to both her business and her French husband, Stephane, and their two sons, Oscar, ten, and Samuel, seven, who are both at the local Lycée.

Neisha's first collection was launched 20 years ago by Osborne & Little, whose owners spotted her work at the Royal College of Art degree show, and it was her Romagna Star that became one of the best-known wallpaper designs of the late 1980s. She later went on to set up her own business producing a variety of designs: not just textiles and wallpapers, but also fashion accessories under license for companies such as Hankyu Department Stores in Japan. She has created a collection of bags with Bill Amberg, produced designs for an exhibition of Mario Testino's photographs of the Princess of Wales at Kensington Palace and designed scarves and ties for employees of Reed Recruitment. Earlier this year she was proud to be made a member of The Faculty of Royal Designers for Industry.

Neisha loves collaborating with other designers, but one also senses that she is never happier than when working on her own projects. And because she has only herself – and her small team – to rely on, she finds it all the more gratifying when she watches customers happily leaving her showroom with her latest designs.

Neisha Crosland, 8 Elystan Street, London SW3 3NS, (020) 7584 7988; www.neishacrosland.com.

WORDS GILES KIME
PHOTOGRAPHS SIMON BROWN
JANUARY 2007