Fit Out Conference 2026 Speaker Sara Cosgrove on Why Design is a Commercial Asset, Not an Aesthetic Choice

Sara Cosgrove, Creative and Managing Director of Grove & Co, will take the stage at the Fit Out Conference 2026, and her message for the sector is direct: design is not decoration, it is a commercial strategy.

Cosgrove joins 22 confirmed speakers at the inaugural forum, where she will deliver a presentation titled Beyond Aesthetics: The Commercial Power of Design. Ahead of the event, she shared her thinking on where businesses consistently get design wrong and what it costs them.

"Businesses often undervalue design by treating it as a necessary layer rather than a commercial strategy," she said. "Design is brought in too late, after key operational and financial decisions are already fixed. The result is interiors that look acceptable but underperform commercially."

The consequences, she argues, are measurable. “Poor design impacts customer experience, staff retention, operational efficiency, pricing power, and long-term brand perception. Businesses then compete on cost instead of differentiation.”

She added: “Strong design creates measurable value: higher occupancy, stronger sales, better retention, and deeper customer loyalty. Good design is not an aesthetic luxury. For me, it is a commercial asset that compounds value over time.”

On the question of cutting design budgets in difficult markets, Cosgrove is unequivocal. "Cutting design in difficult markets is often short-sighted because differentiation matters most when competition intensifies."

Her view is that the businesses which succeed long-term are not the ones that spent the least. "The projects that succeed long-term are rarely the cheapest — they are the ones people remember and return to."

For leaders looking beyond aesthetics, she points to outcomes: occupancy rates, repeat bookings, recruitment and retention figures, and the premium achieved on residential sales.

Hear more from Cosgrove and other speakers at the Fit Out Conference 2026 on 11 June from 09:00 to 15:00 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Santry. Visit the official event website to explore the full programme and book your place at fitoutawards.ie/conference/book-your-place.