The Philadelphia Tribune – Ayana Jones, Tribune Staff Writer
June 11, 2021 – Ian Smith is making his mark in the field of architecture.
He leads the Ian Smith Design Group LLC, an award-winning full service architecture design firm.
“I’d say we’re a unicorn,” Smith says describing his Fishtown-based company.
“We’re one of very few that can provide a multifaceted perspective on culture in order to deliver something that is little bit more thought out. I think we as a company can do high end aesthetic driven conceptual projects, as well as nuts and bolts, pragmatic get it done projects.”
“The hope is we could serve the public by extracting multiple narratives that could augment the value and the success of the projects,” he said.
Smith launched his business 13 years ago.
“It’s super tied to how I discovered the difficulties of competing even when you assemble an elite amount of credentials in the Philadelphia market,” he says of his decision to pursue entrepreneurship.
“I think if I had been anywhere else in the world it would have been different. I don’t think I would have needed to start my own business if I were in Hong Kong, L.A., New York or other places around the world.”
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