WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) has released its 2025 Economic Outlook report, offering a strategic analysis of how today’s uncertain economic environment is reshaping demand for interior design services. Despite moderate growth in consumer spending and employment, the report offers an uneven growth forecast, driven by high interest rates, rising material costs, and widespread tariffs. Labor shortages, paused infrastructure funding, and high housing prices add further complexity, underscoring the need for designers to stay agile, cost-conscious, and attuned to new areas of opportunity—from adaptive reuse projects to aging-in-place design solutions.
“As the economic landscape evolves, it presents new opportunities for the interior design industry to innovate, diversify and grow,” said Khoi Vo, chief executive officer, ASID. “Through this extensive research, ASID is proud to provide designers with insights that help them adapt strategically, embrace change, and identify new opportunities for growth.”
Authored by economist Bernard Markstein, Ph.D. and ASID Research Fellow S. Dawn Haynie, Ph.D., with contributions by ASID Director of Communications Lindsey Koren, the report is the second installment in ASID’s three-part Outlook research series, sponsored by Sherwin-Williams. It delivers actionable data, trend analysis, and sector-specific forecasts to support long-term planning and strategic decision-making across the design industry.
New additions to this year’s report include:
Expanded coverage of tariffs and trade-related inflation and their impact on materials and product pricing.
Insights into stalled infrastructure and healthcare construction due to shifting federal policy.
Analysis of employment and wage trends specific to interior designers, offering guidance for workforce planning.
Spotlight on growth sectors such as build-to-rent housing, adaptive reuse, and senior living.
Key insights from the report explore the economic impact on employment, trade, recession, hospitality, the workplace and more:
Construction labor shortages remain widespread, with immigration restrictions expected to further tighten the labor market.
Office vacancy rates are improving modestly as more organizations implement return-to-office policies, but new construction remains limited. Renovation and office-to-residential conversions offer new potential for interior designers.
Federal funding for healthcare construction is on hold, leaving state and local governments to fill gaps—resulting in slower growth and fewer short-term design opportunities in this sector.
Many hotels and motels are due for renovation, but economic uncertainty and high costs are slowing activity. However, conversions of outdated hotels into housing are gaining traction.
High home prices and interest rates continue to dampen demand for single-family housing, but build-to-rent and senior living communities are seeing increased development activity.
The retail sector remains under pressure, yet interior design opportunities persist in restaurant renovation and adaptive reuse of malls into mixed-use developments.
The 2025 report also includes sector-specific outlooks for education, entertainment, multifamily housing, senior housing, and home improvements. While the baseline forecast avoids a full recession, the probability of slower growth remains high, with tariff-driven inflation, labor costs, and interest rates weighing on construction activity and capital investment.