Welcome! This week on The Lounge, Nick spends some quality time with New York-based architect, interior designer, and vintage Rolex watch collector Neal Beckstedt, who boldly launched Neal Beckstedt Studio in 2010 in the depths of the recession, landed his first project two weeks later, appeared on Architectural Digest‘s “Ones to Watch” list in 2013, and has never looked back.

“Call me an architect, interior designer, a decorator—it’s all about problem solving, and I love it,” says Neal, whose portfolio of warm, modern interiors includes everything from intimate residences for two to a 40,000-square-foot office space for 500 employees and his own 1890s weekend house.  Nick and Neal talk about how the designer keeps the lightning-paced operations at his 12-person shop running smoothly, the ONE ESSENTIAL THING every designer must invest in, the marketing tool he can’t live without (“Instagram, Instagram, Instagram”), and much more on this inspiring episode of The Chaise Lounge.

So pour yourself a Casamigos on the rocks (Neal’s go-to cocktail…and George Clooney’s, too, of course) and find out how this Midwestern boy raised “on a farm in the middle of nowhere” found his way to the top of one of the country’s most competitive design markets while maintaining his reputation as a gentleman, his integrity, and his deep affinity for all things beautiful, pure, custom, and meticulously crafted.

You can learn more about Neal and his work at Neal Beckstedt Studio (and on Instagram, at @nealbeckstedt).