A few years ago, when Lorena McDonald was taking a course at the University of Calgary in a virtual classroom, she experienced her aha moment.

The owner of Home Link Design, an online interior decorating company, was in the teaching profession at the time.

“I did a program called program planning at the University of Calgary,” says the 36-year-old. “What I was really excited about was that I had never been in a classroom which was in a way virtual and distant delivery where people from all over were actually taking the same course, learning about the same type of things and talking.

“We would actually have classes online and we would all take time sharing, explaining, giving presentations online. So it was at that moment I had that, wow, OK, this is fun and neat and I can take this concept and really adapt it to something I really had a passion for and make a service that is different and that is not really out there.”

It was the genesis of a new business venture for McDonald, who was born in Indiana but grew up for most of her life in different parts of Canada.

Her family is from South America and she lived there as a young child, but they eventually moved to Edmonton, then Vancouver and Calgary. Her father was a chemical engineer and her mother was a stay-at-home mom who started her own interior design company.

“That’s where I came out with my passion, as well. The neatness of being in home decor came from my mother’s background, my mother’s influence,” says McDonald.

But before starting this business, she had chosen a different career path, as a teacher. She graduated from Nickle Junior High School in Calgary’s Lake Bonavista neighbourhood, then went to Dr. E. P. Scarlett High School.

After graduating, Mc-Donald took bachelor of education courses at the Uof C. She completed her degree at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. It was there that she married and had her first child. Since her first child was a preemie, she decided to stay home to care for her.

Her husband, who is in the financial services industry, was transferred to Calgary and McDonald had her second child here.

With two young children, she decided to stay at home and not work. But after a few years, she went back to get her master’s degree at the U of C in the graduate division of educational research, where, ironically, she got the idea for her current business.

“I saw potential there,” says the mother of two girls, aged 10 and 12.

The business took over a year for development and research as she brought in web developers to help her with the whole process of building online sites.

Home Link Design began in September 2008.

“In the beginning, I thought it would be really simple and easy, but it actually turned out much more complicated because I thought building a website would be easy,” says Mc-Donald.

“But the way I wanted it to be built was where people could just go right onto the site, upload photographs and then we do all the research, packaging and provide it back to them online. Not through e-mail. Not through postal mail. What we have is a customer download page where they get all their information.”

Customers are able to see their portfolios with the capability of having audio implemented with it, if they choose.

“Pretty much it’s just a way for people to come in and get online room makeovers through the Internet and through distant delivery. And the reason is that, number 1, a lot of people want cost-effective ways of getting advice or ideas without having hourly fees where a designer comes in. Also, the time constraints. People are working constantly. They don’t have that time,” says McDonald.

Her target market is quite broad–anyone able to go right on the website at www.HomeLinkDesign.com.and check several packages offered by the company. When she did her research on the business, she realized it was a unique concept. The online concept saves time. The process takes five to seven days for a whole portfolio. At the beginning, she had no expectations about the business. But it has evolved with good traffic on the website–at least 4,500 page views a month.

And it’s not only for makeovers. Mothers have checked out the website for ideas for their nurseries. College students looking for ways to decorate their dorms. Realtors looking at ways to tweak homes to improve their chances for a sale.

“The biggest challenge was trying to get all the information, the research, the money involved with creating a business like this,” she says. “Initially, because it was a dot-com type business, . . . I didn’t realize the components that were all involved in the development stage. But I think that is like any business. You learn it as you go. And finding the right people to help you out with it.”

That took time. And patience.

“I’m the type of person who would like to see things happen,” says McDonald. “And I like to see results. But the thing is I had to learn there was patience, because for something to grow and be good, there’s a lot of energy and I realized that I’m not alone. There’s a lot of other mothers who are doing great ideas. You have to believe in your ideas and go with that.”

Her business came out at a time when the economy was slowing. But there was a benefit with that because she was providing a cost-effective way for people to get advice about anything from minimal things like paint selection to large projects. It was also a realtor tool for people looking at selling homes and wanting to put something extra into a place.

Her advice to aspiring young entrepreneurs is that before you begin, do the background and research. Find out who your competitors are and what kind of resources you need, the capital you need to start and run the business. Also, build a business plan.

“And just have faith that you’ll do it. A lot of times there’s a lot of skeptics out there and they’re going to tell you it doesn’t sound like anything, but the more you talk about it and the more you talk to people and you make them understand, the better you know that your business will make sense and work.”

Interior decorating and design have become a natural passion for her. Growing up, McDonald lived in 14 different homes and every home went through a makeover. When her mother started her own business in the 1980s, she was contemporary back then, says McDonald.

“For me it was a natural thing. I’ve always had that where people come to me or ask for advice,” she says.

Tara Przybylski, a client, was one day researching online trying to decide if she wanted an interior designer or an interior decorator to come in and help her with her home. She found Home Link Design and called McDonald, who visited her for a consultation.

Packages were done for her living room and dining room.

“We were able to download it from her site. I still have it on my computer so I can look at it any time. I’ve got all the information, but we’re doing it slowly. So it’s nice that I have it right there and I can look back to see what she suggested,” says Przybylski.

“I like it a lot because it was really convenient. It wasn’t as expensive as, say, getting a designer to come in do the same sort of thing for you and your house and having some sort of design work done. It’s really economical and it’s really good. It gives you a lot of good ideas and it helps you get started.”

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Young Entrepreneurs: From Vision To Reality

For the month of August, the Herald will feature a series about young entrepreneurs who are making a name for themselves in Calgary’s business community.