How a Fashion‑Hearted Mexican Immigrant Reinvented Luxury Interiors Across the Globe
In a world where interior design often follows fleeting trends, Perla Lichi stands out by creating spaces that feel timelessly luxurious and full of personality. Born in Mexico City and raised in South Florida, Perla’s journey has been marked by boldness, global ambition, and a richly woven creative vision.
From Fashion Dreams to Interior Mastery
Perla’s early passion lay in fashion, but a scholarship win in interior design at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale changed her path forever. Influenced by her mother’s love of Louis XVI-style decor and a background in jewelry appreciation, she transformed her natural instinct for arranging visual aesthetics into a vibrant design career.
A Distinctive Signature: “The Perla Lichi Style”
Perla defines her style as a fusion, Italian, French, Arabic, and modern elements blended with immaculate balance in proportion, texture, and scale. She believes travel is essential to her creativity. With each journey, she absorbs cultural details that influence her design, infusing spaces with global soul and timeless elegance.
Crafting Opulent Palaces Worldwide
Since launching her firm in 1984, Perla has built a stunning portfolio: luxury estates in South Florida, palaces in the Middle East, majestic homes in South Africa, Kenya, and modern twenty-first-century penthouses. One standout project involved renovating a Hollywood, FL home once linked to Al Capone. Perla transformed its low-ceiling interiors with reflective white canvases and LED geometry to visually elevate the space. Another project in Johannesburg was shortlisted for the International Design & Architecture Awards, it featured custom vignettes, a dramatic double‑story library, spa, and game room tailored to each family member.
Business Savvy & Vertical Integration
Perla’s entrepreneurial flair propelled her beyond South Florida. Despite the 2009 Dubai market crash, she launched a showroom in Jumeirah in 2009, partnering with manufacturers to produce furniture and window treatments in-house, firmly planting her brand on the global luxury stage. Her firm now offers full-service interior design with 3D renderings and hand-drawn concepts, catering to residential, commercial, and even sacred spaces like Chabad.
Awards, Accolades & Published Works
Perla has earned over 650 national and international awards and industry recognition spanning from the Prism Awards to bespoke categories in global competitions. She has authored multiple lavish coffee-table books, You Deserve Beautiful Rooms, You Too Deserve Beautiful Rooms, Palaces of the World, and most recently, “You Can’t Make This Up! Oh Yes I Can”, blending her design journey with scenes of high fashion.
Personal Touches & Client Devotion
Beyond grand aesthetics, Perla brings deeply personal touches to her work. She hand-knits custom throws, oftentimes large 72″ by 54″ heirloom blankets, that add rich texture and warmth to her interiors. These thoughtful details reflect her belief that design must be “beautiful” and “work”, functional, comfortable, and delightfully surprising.
Clients value not only her eye for detail, but her patience and partnership. Testimonials highlight her ability to balance budgets with creativity and to elevate homes into expressions of personal identity.
A Bold Personality Behind the Brand
Perla is not shy, and neither are her designs. She describes herself as gutsy, determined, bold, and quick-thinking. Her charisma turns clients into friends, and her zest for life infuses her projects with drama, color, and joie de vivre.
Looking Ahead: Innovation & Legacy
Celebrating 40 years, Perla continues to evolve, embracing new trends, digital tools, and fresh types of projects such as places of worship. With upcoming events to mark her career milestone and a commitment to future luxury storytelling, she’s constantly reinventing what luxury can mean in modern interiors.
Final Reflection
Perla Lichi is a powerhouse, a creator who blends technical finesse, daring design, and genuine personal flair. Her story is a testament to daring beginnings, boundary-breaking creativity, and a heartfelt mission: crafting distinctly luxurious interiors that resonate not just visually, but emotionally and globally.
