Sandy Hickey, a chartered architect, has recently joined the team at Pride Road and has been appointed as the head of the South Warwickshire office. As a franchisee, she will undergo comprehensive training on how to establish a thriving architecture practice. This series of posts will document her journey and progress through the training program.
Today marks Day 1 of Sandy’s training and she had her first client prospect meeting with the founder, Lisa Raynes.
On Day 1 of her training, Sandy had the opportunity to shadow architect and founder Lisa Raynes during a prospect meeting. The meeting was a free initial consultation held at the client’s house. The clients, who lived in a 1960s detached house, were looking to renovate their failing conservatory and transform it into a more practical and warm open plan kitchen-living-dining room.
Lisa guided the clients through the design process, step by step, and explained how Pride Road operates using their unique Concept Design Workshop. The workshop is a low-cost paid service that helps to determine the affordability of the design before moving forward with the planning and building regulations process. By utilising this approach, Lisa ensured that the clients had a clear understanding of the costs involved and the feasibility of their desired renovation.
During the consultation, Lisa also discussed the details and costs associated with the planning process, the building regulations stage, party wall requirements, and CDM 2015 requirements. This helped the clients to gain a comprehensive understanding of the entire renovation process and the various steps involved, including the associated costs and requirements. The aim was to ensure that the clients were fully informed and had a realistic expectation of the project timeline and budget.
As Sandy shadowed Lisa during the consultation, she was able to provide her initial thoughts on the design potential of the house. With her background in architecture, Sandy was able to offer insights and creative ideas to enhance the design concept and ensure that the clients’ vision for their new kitchen-living-dining room was realized. Her contribution was valuable and helped to build trust and confidence with the clients, showcasing her expertise and commitment to delivering exceptional results.
Check out ‘Part 2: How to be a successful architect: Day 2 the concept design workshop’ here
