An Inspired Chat with Samantha Bessudo Drucker of Manhattan

We recently had the chance to connect with Samantha Bessudo Drucker and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Samantha, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
I searched for an apartment in Manhattan for years. I stomped all around the city and my husband, an architect, would review the top contenders from each round of searching – it took 4 years until I finally found one! My husband and I lived in it for a couple of years to feel it out, followed by over a year of planning and finally we are renovating and in production for Season 3 of “Love&Design Project”: a home renovation show focused on fabulous urban living.
I have been developing and pushing forward this project for nine and a half years. There has been a lot behind the scenes and we are finally filming Season 3 for a big renovation reveal soon! No one has seen it yet but it will be out soon and I’m really proud of what we’re doing! This is a dream of an apartment and designing it as been one of the projects I’m most proud of.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Samantha Bessudo Drucker – I am a lifestyle genie, journalist, host, producer, author, and actress.

Throughout my career I have excelled as an dating expert, image consultant, and journalist leading me to author my humorous self-help book: “90 Days to Husband No. 2: 10 Rules to Find Him.” Recently, I have returned to acting and hosting for film and television.

I am the producer and co-host of Love&Design Project, currently filming its third renovation. This renovation project is all about modern luxury urban living. Here I use my interior design and media skills, alongside my husband Jeffrey, to deliver fabulous advice about apartment style living.

As an actress, I blends intelligence with sophistication, wit, and humor. With a B.S. from NYU in Educational Theatre, I have a knack for powerful, dramatic, and humorous roles.

I am a serial entrepreneur, constantly carving my own path. After college I owned and taught at a dance studio, then owned and operated an image consulting firm Polished Social Image Consultants for over 20 years.

Some fun facts about me, I am fluent in English, Spanish, and French – and I split my time between New York City and Hollywood Beach, Florida!

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
My first memory of feeling powerful was on stage as a child. I was around seven years old in the 1st grade play and I was Fairy #4, The Wicked Fairy. I remember all these adults laughing and soaking up my performance and it felt wonderful! It was the first time in my life that I felt powerful, I could entertain and make people laugh. I knew wanted to entertain people!

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
For me, the fear of not being good enough has been a double edged sword. Because on the one hand, the fear of failing or not being enough pushed me to work non-stop to be the best that I can be. So it helped me succeed at a lot of things. Conversely, that fear sometimes blocked me from having the confidence to try to something. And that fear of not being enough also produces tremendous anxiety, which can make work impossible.
So there’s fear of failure as a propellent to success, but that fear is a lot to carry around for any person. I would tell my younger self if I could the I was fabulous and worthy of love and smart and talented enough to succeed with some guidance and training!

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Of course! But the public version of me is the best, brightest, bubbliest version of me. And yes, what you see is what you get. Just like I don’t leave the house without mascara, I don’t go in front of people without a smile and my best foot forward.
A lot of my projects are siloed, so if you’re following my column, or my book, and my interior design projects, you might not get the full picture of who I am. But be assured the entire picture is out there for the public to see.
My friends would definitely agree, my private life self and my on-camera personality are identical. I am always the real me.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope people will remember that I was funny, strong, brave and very sensitive… That I cared about my clients, friends, family, spouses, colleagues, animals and anyone in my world – very deeply.
I think they will say that I was driven, sometimes at a great expense. Never completely satisfied always striving for perfection, striving towards the next level, next project, idea, challenge.. because I’m a perfectionist. I like to think people would say that I cared, that I was kind, generous, thoughtful, That I loved hosting parties at home. Even when home was just a studio apartment.
They would say I was polite, warm, ambitious, charming, seductive, and had an impeccable taste. My renovation have always been stunning transformations and I made even the smallest studio apartments as lovely as I could. The same goes for my image consulting clients and my fashion sense. My friends would say that I had a great sense of style that permitted my sense of play with fashion.
Hopefully they would say that I wrote a humorous and helpful book, and some might remember my early years as a triple threat who loved to act dance and sing!

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Skiss Photography
– Eiffel Tower Photo
– Orange “Love & Design” Logo Photo

Eric Campbell Photography
– Headshot (blue leather jacket)
– Primary Photo Headshot

Della Bass Photography
– Silver Leather Jacket (more recent picture, arms NOT crossed)

Gregory Muller
– Pink Top Workout Photo

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