In BY DESIGN, Camille (Juliette Lewis) lives a simple, quiet life, lunching weekly with her two best friends, Lisa (Samantha Mathis) and Irene (Robin Tunney). One day, after lunch, the trio goes shopping. Although they usually never buy anything, Camille is suddenly struck by a beautiful chair in a high-end shop. She decides to go home and think abojt whether she can afford such an extravagant purchase, but when she returns the next morning, the chair has been sold. Camille makes a wish to "just be here" with the chair, and before she knows it, her soul has been transferred to the chair, while her body remains a limp, empty vessel. The purchaser of the chair, Marta (Alisa Torres) gives it to her ex-boyfriend Olivier (Mamoudou Athie). Olivier immediately discovers that there's something special about the chair and finds he can't part with it.