{"id":14545,"date":"2025-09-19T16:31:22","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T09:31:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cstc.vn\/blogtsk\/design-leader-jolie-founder-franky-roussell\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T16:31:22","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T09:31:22","slug":"design-leader-jolie-founder-franky-roussell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cstc.vn\/blogtsk\/design-leader-jolie-founder-franky-roussell\/","title":{"rendered":"design\/leader: Jolie founder Franky Roussell"},"content":{"rendered":"

Franky Rousell is founder and CEO of interior design studio Jolie<\/a>. It has offices in London, New York and Manchester and works with clients like The Nest restaurant in Frankfurt and Victoria Riverside in Manchester.<\/p>\n

Design<\/h4>\n
What would your monograph be called?<\/h5>\n

Common Sense.<\/em> Sensory science is at the heart of what I do, as a designer and entrepreneur. The title comes from a moment of clarity I had in a coffee shop, when I realised that the way we feel in any space isn\u2019t something we consciously control \u2013 it\u2019s shaped by the subtle, continuous input received through all five senses.<\/p>\n

The craft of sensory design lies in understanding and tailoring those subconscious experiences, and for me this was \u201ccommon sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

I love that this phrase originated from Aristotle who used the Greek term koin\u0113 aisth\u0113sis (\u201ccommon perception\u201d or \u201ccommon sense\u201d) to mean the internal faculty that pulls together input from the five senses into a single, unified experience.<\/p>\n

Later, in medieval philosophy, thinkers like Thomas Aquinas carried this idea forward, still treating it as an inner sense that coordinated perception.<\/p>\n

This is exactly what we do at Jolie, we awaken people\u2019s \u201ccommon sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

What recent design work made you a bit jealous?<\/h5>\n

Anything that Es Devlin touches, makes me quietly jealous but so inspired. Congregation really gets me though.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

What\u2019s an unusual place you get inspiration from?<\/h5>\n

I actually find a lot of my inspiration in an unusual place \u2013 my perfume drawer. If I\u2019m having one of those flatline days where nothing seems to spark, I\u2019ll open it up and choose a fragrance that matches what I need in that moment.<\/p>\n

Whenever I\u2019m conceptualising a new project or moodboarding a creative direction for a client, I\u2019ll pick a scent that aligns with the feeling or aspiration I\u2019m trying to evoke.<\/p>\n

Wearing it on my body means I catch little wafts of it throughout the day, and it always seems to trigger the creative side of my brain.<\/p>\n

I also collect fragrances from the places I\u2019ve travelled \u2013 from New York to Marrakesh \u2013 and each one carries its own story.<\/p>\n

Reaching for them is like instantly dipping back into those lived experiences, and it gives me a shortcut into a certain mood or energy I want to channel.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an unconventional practice, but scent has become one of my most powerful tools for inspiration.<\/p>\n

Name something that is brilliantly designed, but overlooked.<\/h5>\n

Utterly unassuming, yet remarkable \u2013 the contact lens. While not \u201cliterally\u201d overlooked, for the millions of us who wear them daily they\u2019ve become such a seamless part of our morning ritual that we rarely pause to consider their brilliance.<\/p>\n

Imagine how groundbreaking they must have felt at first \u2013 almost space-age in their innovation. The idea was first sketched by Leonardo da Vinci in 1508, yet the modern soft lens only came into being in 1961.<\/p>\n

I honestly can\u2019t imagine life without mine, and anyone who has ever faced the panic of running out before the next supply arrives knows exactly what I mean.<\/p>\n

What object in your studio best sums up your taste?<\/h5>\n

The melting pot table \u2013 sustainable, bold, brave, innovative and beautiful.<\/p>\n

Franky Roussell\u2019s melting pot table<\/p>\n

Leadership<\/h4>\n

What feedback felt brutal at the time, but turned out to be useful?<\/h5>\n

In Jolie\u2019s early days, I remember pitching to a mentor four different spin-off ideas we could explore. He paused, took a deep breath, and said, \u201cI think you just need to focus on this one first.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the time, it felt deflating, like the wind had been knocked out of my sails-but looking back, it was the best advice I could have received. Over the years, countless shiny, \u201centrepreneurial\u201d opportunities have come up that could have easily pulled me off track.<\/p>\n

But choosing to stay focused, and putting my energy into making Jolie a stable and viable business, is exactly what\u2019s brought me to where I am today.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s an underappreciated skill that design leaders need?<\/h5>\n

Vulnerability and honest emotional expression matter. Employees connect with a human story, and it\u2019s absolutely ok to share how you feel without hiding behind rigid professional barriers.<\/p>\n

The ability to share genuine emotion is an often overlooked yet powerful way to build trust and buy-in, both with employees and clients.<\/p>\n

What keeps you up at night?<\/h5>\n

What keeps me up at night are the visions I hold for where I want to be in five years, and the constant questioning of whether I\u2019m truly on the right path to get there.<\/p>\n

What I\u2019ve come to realise though is that you rarely know if you\u2019re \u201con track\u201d in the moment. It only becomes clear when you finally arrive at that place you once imagined, and can look back and say, \u201cOh, we did it.\u201d<\/p>\n

What trait is non-negotiable in new hires?<\/h5>\n

For me, emotional intelligence is a complete non-negotiable when it comes to new hires. One of the biggest reasons I started my own company was to create a workplace built on trust \u2013 a space where people feel safe to share ideas openly and think differently.<\/p>\n

That kind of environment is what sparks true innovation.<\/p>\n

But trust is fragile. Without emotional intelligence \u2013 the ability to listen, empathise, communicate clearly, and manage yourself under pressure \u2013 trust can be lost quickly.<\/p>\n

Technical skills are important, of course, but they can be taught. Emotional intelligence is what allows people to work well together, to respect differences, and to lift each other up when things get tough.<\/p>\n

When someone brings that level of awareness and empathy to the table, it doesn\u2019t just make them a better colleague, it makes the whole team stronger.<\/p>\n

Complete this sentence, \u201cI wish more clients\u2026\u201d<\/h5>\n

\u2026truly trusted the design expertise they\u2019ve invested in and allowed us to take the lead. The best outcomes happen when clients are open to seeing something fresh and original \u2013 exactly what they asked for at the start \u2013 rather than falling back on familiar references or competitor work.<\/p>\n

Too often, projects drift into \u201cdesign by committee,\u201d where multiple voices dilute the vision, leading to safe, predictable, and ultimately less effective results.<\/p>\n

\nWhat to read next: <\/strong>design\/leader: Boyle&Perks co-founder Elaine Perks<\/a> | design\/leader: Outlaw co-founder Elissa O\u2019Brien<\/a> | design\/leader: TEMPLO co-founder Pali Palavathanan<\/a> | design\/leader: NewTerritory founder Luke Miles<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Franky Rousell is founder and CEO of interior design studio Jolie. 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