Dan Mayer has an eye for building design, and we’ve personally found it helpful on a project or two (Have you visited our headquarters in Upper Arlington yet?). Recently, he’s been working with business partner, Andy Johnson on his latest adventure: Development | Architecture Collaborative. This joint venture was established as full-service real estate development, architecture & design, and construction management collaborative to provide a full spectrum of services to clients in the pursuit of their vision.
Over the years, Dan has become aware that many people take on ambitious projects and development opportunities without knowledge of the process, costs, or implications of their architectural design requests and ideas. Because this ends up causing the owners to under-deliver and risk major financial capital, he was driven to start his own firm to prevent that from happening. He’s found that their team can provide effective and efficient insight into opportunities and advise owners on the process customized for each project and also the risk/reward of each project, not seen through the lens of an architect looking for a fee, but rather as a trusted advisor looking out for the client. We can attest to Dan’s skills, and he’s certainly become our trusted advisor for any and all future projects.
Dan has taken to his role as founder. By owning the business, he and Andy can expand the breadth of services and customize the approach for each project with just the right scale of risk. His advice for other people considering going out on their own is to have a partner to collaborate with. Dan says, ”Andy has been an incredible partner and keeps my focus on track. If you don’t have a partner opportunity, surround yourself with like-minded mentors that have risked the safety of a scheduled paycheck for a stronger, more meaningful purpose. I have been fortunate to be inspired by my clients who were mentors to me as I began this journey.”
Haven in particular has been an incredible experience since November. It’s allowed me to provide a professional environment to conduct my business, but also provide that missing sense of community I enjoyed when in a office. Starting a business is hard enough, not being around others dealing with the same experiences provides positive support when you struggle, but also expanded network of professionals that recommend services that help your business be successful.
Because Dan’d business is new, they chose to establish it to be fully remote and believe that the remote strategy will allow them to expand the business reach into other communities and states more efficiently. This remote strategy has been working well for their team of collaborators too: real estate, engineering, construction, and development partners.
When we asked Dan what the future looks like for Development | Architecture Collaborative, he said that he hopes that “in the next 18 months, they have enough consistency and stability to do more with newer developers and creative people, being partners on projects but also in the risk.” In the immediate future, he’s excited to be working on a new collaboration (soon-to-be-announced) in Franklinton, along with the Community STE(A)M Academy which will be the first K-12 STEM program in the state of Ohio, but also have a focus on the creative and performing arts, hence the (A). That project has developed a creative approach to financing, creative public/private partnership, and collaboration with incredible partners.
Outside the office, Dan’s family is paramount. He loves spending time with his daughter, 4, and son, 11 months. Dan says, “it’s been incredible and I learn from them every day, especially in terms of patience and compassion. Those elements come with me every day in my business.” Additionally, Dan teaches at CCAD in the Interior Architecture department which fulfills his desire to mentor and helps the architectural field diversify.
To meet and cowork with inspiring entrepreneurs like Dan Mayer, schedule your tour of Haven Collective today. We can’t wait to meet you!