Bailey: [00:00:00] So what were some of your early experiences growing up that you believe looking back, led you towards the career path of architecture?
Sean Canning, Architect: That's an interesting question. my dad is pretty handy, so he. Growing up, he was always fixing things around the house, building things. My mom is really artistic, so my childhood was, we spent a lot of time drawing with Crayola markers, crayons.
Sean Canning, Architect: And then eventually that grew into a more sophisticated version of that, which was more pencil sketching. And my mom's a really talented acrylic painter. So I feel like I spent a lot of time drawing much more than most. Kids would. in my earliest recollection, my dad built a tree house for me, which started as a sandbox and then became four posts and then a tree house.
Sean Canning, Architect: And then we knocked down a wall and added a slide, and then we knocked down another wall, and then we added a balcony, Every couple years we remodeled that tree house I remember drawing floor plans and [00:01:00] elevations for this tree house. And they were completely ridiculous.
Sean Canning, Architect: You couldn't build what I was drawing. But nobody ever taught me how this is an elevation drawing. You have to draw It was just intuitive. eventually I became The person who helped my dad with these construction projects around the house.
Sean Canning, Architect: So maybe it was like the deck, remodeling the bathroom, building a shed, building an addition to the tree house. And I do distinctly remember my role in those projects going from like the guy who would go get the tools to like the guy who is wait a second, if we do it like this, wouldn't that be a better or more efficient way to do it? So over. 15 years. I remember my role shifting from more of a helper to more of a planner. And I guess being able to pull those two things together is the root of architecture, understanding construction, and then understanding how to express your ideas. So those are my earliest recollections of what led me to this career as an architect. my dad a couple years back sent me a when you're in like [00:02:00] first grade and you have that assignment you have to fill out where it says what do you want to be as an adult? My dad sent me a photo of something I put together in like first grade when it says I want to be an architect. And I had no recollection of this, and I even spelled architect wrong. I don't know what happened between first grade and 12th grade, but. In high school I had no idea I was gonna be an architect. So those are some of my earliest memories of what led me to architecture?
Bailey: you were a much more realistic first grader, I'll say. 'cause I'm pretty sure I put down like shortstop for the New York Yankees, which.
Sean Canning, Architect: I never
Bailey: But yeah.
Sean Canning, Architect: aspirations to be, professionalsports athlete, like a lot of kids do. I never had those types of aspirations.
Bailey: Yeah. Before we move on to your college career, I gotta say that is one thing I've always been slightly envious of you because you are very handy. Like you alluded to me. I'm not handy whatsoever. I do have a toolkit though, like a very full feature toolkit here, but honestly I've never even used a drill and all that type of stuff.
Bailey: But I do remember growing up. Like I had a tree house as [00:03:00] well. I don't really recall the one you mentioned. Maybe I've seen it though, but I know you helped some. And your dad helped mostly build out the treehouse in my backyard. And then I also remember when you were still living in New Jersey, you were always helping out my parents with like stuff around the house.
Bailey: I remember one time you were helping out with some sort of ceiling improvement to two in the morning or something, but you were always doing handy stuff, which obviously dovetails very nicely with your career path now.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, but did you take like wood shop in school?
Bailey: I did my freshman year of college, but it was labeled Intro to Tech, so I thought it would be like a computer class. And then it turned out to be like we were like sawing things and I did not like that 'cause I'm sure you've seen that Johnny Cash movie from like 2005 when the brother dies.
Bailey: Because of that, I was never a fan personally.
Sean Canning, Architect: I think the, curriculums are a lot different today, but I took my first wood shop class in probably fifth or sixth grade, then I took it every time it was available, and then I took. Plastic shop. And then I took metal shop [00:04:00] then I would take technology, which was essentially wood shop. all through middle school, all the way through high school. I took every wood shop available, basically every shop class available. And then I also took every art class available. And was a good thing because those classes pulled up my GPA quite a bit. 'cause I was really naturally talented in those types of classes.
Bailey: Do you think the types of things you're describing, like being just very handy and artistic as well, do you think that is something that can be learned or do you think it's just something you're inherently born with?
Sean Canning, Architect: Like the nature versus nurture argument? It's probably a little bit of both to be honest, because I do think I'm. Like naturally inclined to be a little bit more artistic. My brother is not, doesn't have that like artistic skill. At least I don't want to speak poorly about him, but he doesn't have it to the level I have. But he's also pretty handy. He probably learned A lot of the construction thing, like just growing up and having to do these types of projects around the house. I dunno, it's a boring answer, but I think it's [00:05:00] probably a little bit of both.
Bailey: Yeah, I think actually the key is that you gotta start young. if you learn from five, it's just ingrained better.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, I would agree with that.
Bailey: Let's fast forward now to when you were in college. So you started out at Keen University. You didn't last long, I'll just say that much, but what were you studying originally and then how did you eventually transition to transferring to NJIT, which is really where like your architecture origin story, so to speak, picks off.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, actually, like I mentioned earlier I never had aspirations to be. A professional athlete like a lot of people do but I was involved in sports and by the time I was trying to decide what to go to college for, I'd completely lost track of architecture. In fact, I was pretty far removed at that point from like any type of design work I'd gotten really.
Sean Canning, Architect: Into music, which is an artistic endeavor. My parents basically said there's no way we're gonna send you to college for music because they just didn't see like a career that could come out of it. Because I was involved in [00:06:00] sports, I. Even though I knew I, it would never become like a profession for me, but I enjoyed it quite a bit.
Sean Canning, Architect: So I figured maybe I'll go to college and become a, an athletic trainer. This way I'm like sports adjacent. And the first semester I had never declared a major, but I was taking classes towards the athletic training degree. And I just remember, like I had this biology class there was this just like this mental block, I had the textbook, I'd purchased the textbook. It's probably like $150 textbook. And I could not take the thing outta the cellophane, I'd go to the class with the textbook, like in the wrapper, and I was so bored in this class. Like I couldn't, there was nothing engaging in that class for me.
Sean Canning, Architect: So needless to say, I did not have a great GPA that first semester at Kane University, and I was looking for something that was going to like. Bark my interest. In fact, your dad gave me like a huge pep talk. I remember he was like, this is just the first quarter. You still got three more quarters to go. [00:07:00] so I just figured, okay, what am I gonna do here? I feel like I'll just take courses that are things I'm very interested in, and then I'll figure out which is the thing that I'm the most interested in, and that'll be my career path. then the second semester. took I think it was like drawing one furniture design 3D design, 2D design, and like calculus and I. I just aced every single class. It was like, so easy for me and really really interesting. The math class was not so interesting to be honest, but that one you actually have to apply yourself. But I remember like drawing one, I was just like easily at the top of my class. 3D design, like same thing. And oh, and industrial design. I took an industrial design class, I figured that would be. my career direction industrial design is easiest way to explain is let's say you're a water bottle manufacturer and you need a new design for the water bottle. You would hire an industrial designer to design that water bottle. So you have to draw a [00:08:00] lot of things, prototype. little study models. So I was like, okay, industrial design seems to be the direction that I'm going. And then the third and fourth semester I did basically the same thing and I just took a bunch of electives I. I pretty much the second to fourth semester was on the dean's list. So I feel like that's the thing that doesn't get brought up in our family conversations. It's usually like how bad Sean was at athletic training. It's never how good Sean could have been as a industrial designer. But anyway, after the end of the second year, I had taken like four core math classes, including trigonometry, and I was getting A's and B's in the math classes, but I was getting straight A's in all the design and drawing classes. And then at that point I was like, maybe I should really try to apply myself more. And I figured maybe I can be an architect. And I started looking into it and there was like two options. I could have went to Princeton, but I wasn't gonna get into Princeton, or I could have went into New Jersey [00:09:00] Institute of Technology, which was a, the time like a mid-level state school for architecture. It's now been voted the number 11, best college in the country. Believe it or not. You can Google that if you don't believe me.
Bailey: I've seen those articles. Yeah.
Sean Canning, Architect: and so I applied to NJIT and I got accepted. With three other 300 other people into the architecture program. So my first year at NJIT, there was 300 of us my fifth year at N-N-G-I-T-A hundred of those students that started with me graduated.
Bailey: Okay. Yeah, I remember when you were in NJIT, that's when I actually have a solid recollection of the stuff you were doing back then, because I don't know, you're probably like 15, 16 years older than me, I was probably like seven or eight at this time actually. But I do have a very good recollection of your little like bachelor pad and seven guitars all over the place.
Bailey: And then the boxy windows, like beige computer that was like what everyone had at the time. But I do remember, and that's also when you were giving me like the weekly guitar [00:10:00] lessons, and I think you were also interning at least towards the end of your time there. At another architecture studio.
Bailey: So you were gaining experience that way. But I do remember this time you being very like it was very clear, even though I was obviously not like of the age where I would understand what's going on too much, it was very clear that you were working very hard at this time. I remember that for sure. And then I know you was talking about how you used to pull some all nighters and stuff like that, which I feel like it's just like a rite of passage during the college years.
Bailey: But during the NJIC experience, when did it become. How were you even viewing the architecture career during that time? Did you know? ' cause it's a five-year program, I believe, right? If you were to do it, start to finish. So it's a, you have to do an extra year of school during this time and it's, it is a very intense degree.
Bailey: Like I had a business degree, much, much simpler. I would say honestly, much easier to just BS your way through, for lack of a better term. What was your thought process during this time? Like obviously you wanted to get into the architecture industry, but did you have the goal to eventually open your own studio during this time?
Sean Canning, Architect: that idea evolved over [00:11:00] time?
Sean Canning, Architect: So yeah, just to recap, I spent seven years in college, so if you're doing the math my first year at architecture school. I was like first semester, 'cause you take these five credit courses that are called architecture studios and you have to do 10 of them and they're all kind of sequential.
Sean Canning, Architect: So you, if you fail one, you basically have to repeat the year. I had transferred some elective credits from my previous college, but for the most part I was pretty much starting over my fifth year. At N-G-I-T-I did not have to go full-time because of the electives I transferred. and I did start working two and a half years into architecture school and I had a job in an architecture firm I was one of the first of my class to get a real job because I've always been a big proponent of having your own job.
Sean Canning, Architect: I started working when I was 14 years old as a caddy, and I've always juggled multiple jobs. So I started that. But really back to your question what did I expect my, so my first architecture studio class, I was like, oh man, I can't wait to build a [00:12:00] wall.
Sean Canning, Architect: I was like, they're gonna teach us how to frame a wall and I'm gonna be like really good at this and I'm gonna get like these studs from Home Depot and I'm gonna build this wall and the instructor's gonna teach me exactly how to like the proper way to do it. And the whole semester was theoretical. And I was so thrown at first I had this really theoretical project. It's even hard to explain, but we needed to make a 14 by 14 abstract image then you had to create a conceptual model that represented how something would penetrate the image. I was like. What? this doesn't make any sense. I couldn't figure out what the instructor was even doing. And then I brought this model and I'd spent the whole night making this model, and it was a literal interpretation of a rollercoaster track going through this two dimensional image, and I'd spent so long on this thing.
Sean Canning, Architect: I'd detailed it like looked pretty realistic and I looked at my classmates and I was like, whoa, I clearly have put the most effort into this [00:13:00] thing The professor's you didn't understand the assignment. And I'm like, what? I don't understand. I have, I think it's the best one in the class.
Sean Canning, Architect: And he's no, you totally did not understand the assignment. 'cause that's too realistic. And we were looking for something much more conceptual and abstract. I was like, oh, I have to switch my brain back into the artist mode understand what the next four and a half years is gonna look like here. So then I did that and I realized, Okay. it's all about concept. And oftentimes like architecture school is just like theoretical conceptual architecture. It's not really learning how to. Nail and screw construction materials together. In fact, like you learn that in professional practice.
Sean Canning, Architect: I would say that's actually one of the downfalls of American architecture studies I know in other countries they more so focus on what you would do on a day-to-day job of putting construction drawings together. But in the United States, we learn that in an apprenticeship after you graduate. But once I was able to switch my brain back into the. mode then [00:14:00] it was a challenging program, but it was enjoyable and I feel like I excelled in it as well. And also, architecture schools known \for the all-nighters, like most students are pulling lots and lots of all-nighters. I think I pulled six to seven all-nighters in the span of. years, which I credit to just like good time management, which is something that I obsess about. I definitely pulled less all-nighters than the rest of my class. I was on the dean's list for five of the 10 semesters I graduated with a pretty high GPA. that's my experience at NJIT.
Bailey: Now let's transition to the professional career. So I guess you graduated right around 25 or so. What kind of firms did you work at earlier in your career? I know you worked for a couple ones and then also In between that, we'll say the W2 corporate life, for lack of a better term.
Bailey: You also moved from New Jersey to San Diego. So talk to me about your early career before you started 10 70 architecture and then [00:15:00] also the move cross country that coincided with that.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, so after you have the five year degree, before you can get your license, you need to do a three year apprenticeship, and in New Jersey you can start the apprenticeship. You could do it at the same time as your education after your third year. And since I knew I was gonna be part-time my fifth year and I wanted to get the job as early as possible, because I always believe like the earliest the dates on your resume for your first job experience the longer career experience looks. So I always felt like that was like a cheat code for showing employers. Future employers that you had more experience is just get that first job as early as you can. So the first job I got was at a, basically a space planning company, professional architecture firm, but mostly focusing on space planning of commercial tenant improvements. I started at the two and a half year mark of my college education and I worked there [00:16:00] all the way through right before I moved out to like a week before I moved out to California. And in total four years I'd worked there. So I basically finished up my whole apprenticeship in New Jersey. And the work that we would do there would be like we would have these four story commercial buildings. There'd be different office suites on each floor. So maybe each floor has, five to 10 office suites. These aren't like design oriented commercial suites. It's not like somebody's going into a restaurant and everything has to look nice. These were like office places. Where it was about making, getting the right amount of private offices, the right amount of workstations, the right amount of printers and cubicles and conference rooms. it was almost like space planning is the proper term for this, but it's like Tetris trying to fit all these things in the most efficient way possible the codes that are required, then creating the drawings.
Sean Canning, Architect: needed to be done to get the permit and then [00:17:00] for a contractor to build. And it was a lot of rinse and repeat. But the firm was three people, including myself. So one principal and two designers, all three of us were working on the same projects. The principal was doing a lot of business management, so he was working like a couple hours a week or a dozen hours a week on the space planning. But me and the other designer were. 40 hours a week on space planning. And initially I was like the junior designer and then I became like the senior designer. And I really learned how to like just fit everything together. Into these small spaces, which I think translates to a lot of the infill development we do now where you're really trying to maximize the efficiency in a small and then to answer your question earlier, what did I imagine starting a business would be like or did I imagine starting a business? I always wanted to run my own business where I would be the principal and I'd have two. Like to designers underneath, underneath me. What I've come to realize now 15 years into this is to make the finances [00:18:00] work the best. You. A four person or a five person business probably works best in California where there's a. Real high need for management and especially permit management.
Sean Canning, Architect: So four to five people. my company's four people right now. And hopefully we'll grow to five people over the next year. But the space planning job was my first job. Then I moved to California and took a job in Riverside where I was doing design management for much larger government funded projects. So there would be a child development center in Yuma, Arizona, or a marine training facility in San Diego. Orlike a public park improvement, somewhere in California. And the contract would come in from the government.
Sean Canning, Architect: It's like that thick. And then the company that I worked for, they were a general contractor and they would subcontract out the architects and the engineers and then I would manage that work, making sure that their designs met the government contract. I worked there for an [00:19:00] entire year. I was. becoming a little frustrated with the job because I was doing like 60 hours a week and I did, I was not like agreeing with some of the management direction and ultimately I was not really fulfilled by the projects because I felt like the projects were a little bit more geared towards creating things that supported. A lot of the foreign policies that the United States had at the time, which I'd felt like I was not totally on the same page with. And I really wanted to get into residential architecture because I felt like, working with the homeowner I felt would be a more intimate type of design experience. So ultimately I ended up getting fired from that job. Which was like the best thing that ever happened to me, felt like the worst thing that ever happened to me in the moment. But hindsight, it was the best thing that ever happened to me because then I had four months where I was able to take all of my architecture exams. I took a study class. I. Took all the architecture exams. There's seven national exams, one state exam. I passed [00:20:00] all seven of the architecture registration exams in a three month period. Like no misses, just seven passes in a row. And then I scheduled for the state exam and I passed that one too.
Sean Canning, Architect: And at that point, I was the most likely the youngest in the state. I just turned 28 years old and I was a licensed architect. I did work like an onsite apprenticeship with a really talented architecture design company called Brown Studio. one of the most talented. Designers slash architects I'd ever met and I was doing onsite work for them, so like literally swinging a hammer. And that was also a really enlightening experience. And then ultimately after I got the license, I figured, okay, now I'll start applying for jobs.
Sean Canning, Architect: It was like 2008, 2009. Nobody was hiring, so I figured, okay, I was just going to networking events, looking for jobs, and somebody convinced me to design an addition for their home. I was like, I'm not ready for this. They're like, definitely ready for this. And then that person became my first [00:21:00] client.
Bailey: Okay. Very cool. Before we get into 10 70 architecture, why don't you tell me a bit about. Why you decided to move from New Jersey to San Diego? Because one, I feel like there must have been some temptation at least to go work in New York City in Manhattan, because I work in advertising.
Bailey: That's where like the top advertising agencies are, which I did work at briefly But also in Manhattan, I'm sure like the best architecture firms in the world were there. There would've been the opportunity to work on lots of cool projects worldwide, but then that would've also been very corporate, I'm sure.
Bailey: But talk to me about why you decided to kinda blaze your own path, so to speak, and move out West. Because over time I would say like you've definitely become the authority on San Diego. Just the way you're able to break down, the city geography, the zoning, the planning, and like how to.
Bailey: Build these types of, specifically the small infill a DU type projects, the multi a DU development projects that you're now getting into. I feel like you've come like the expert in [00:22:00] San Diego, but what was it that drew you there originally?
Sean Canning, Architect: I didn't have an there. I've never had a good experience in New York City. I know a lot of people in Northern New Jersey, like love New York City. Every time I went to New York City I'd leave and I'd be like. Tired and broke. That was my experience of New York. So I had friends that would drive into New York City and then come back at four in the morning and I was like this is insane.
Sean Canning, Architect: Everything is so expensive here. I've never driven in New York City. It looked insane to me. Obviously like New York's super cool, but. it didn't jive with me, so I didn't have that draw to New York City that I think a lot of people growing up in New Jersey may have. And then I also think that as a recent graduate, going to work for a big architecture firm can be a real big trap. most of the people who go to work for real big architecture firms, they end up working in a very compartmentalized manner. So like ongoing. Like meme in our industry is if you work for a big famous architecture firm, [00:23:00] you basically spend 40 hours or 50 hours a week detailing bathrooms. So that's what they assign to you. They're like, Hey, we're doing this awesome project, but we need all these bathroom details. So that's your role for the next three years, detail out all these bathrooms. And when you work for a small firm, a much more holistic approach to architecture. you end up doing everything from start to finish, which is the way we run our architecture business. Like the that I employ, they're involved in the project from the onset of the project all the way through the construction of the project, which is a lot to take in, but I think that's the best way to do architecture. Why did I move to San Diego? I actually really wanted to move to Los Angeles. That was my initial plan because even through architecture school, my goal was still to become a musician. That was what I really wanted to do. I don't know if I had the skills to do that, so maybe it's better in hindsight, I didn't end up doing that.
Bailey: We'll pause on that. I feel like you were in a band for a [00:24:00] while. I would say you were fairly legit. I remember you had some CDs printed as well. I think you might've even been recording like a record studio. So you got further down that path than 95% of people easily.
Sean Canning, Architect: We recorded a demo with two songs, and that I think cost $4,000 record that two song demo.
Bailey: It was a much different era back then, 20 years ago.
Sean Canning, Architect: so we did record it in like a. In a home, somebody's home studio. And they were like a professional, but it wasn't like a big studio. the songs were not, were fun, but they weren't great. My biggest accomplishment as a musician was that I played at a small club in, I don't even remember the. Lift in New Jersey, I think, it was called Ding Bats. And it was a very small club and we played there and then a month later, LA Guns played at the same place. So if you know who La Guns is, you may understand the significance of that.
Sean Canning, Architect: Of course, I think it was just the singer of La Guns using, 'cause that's how these older bands tour now. So that's my, oh, and Steven Adler [00:25:00] from guns N Roses. I. Played there with his band Adler's Appetite. So that's my biggest accomplishment as a musician. But as an American there was like an idealism of. California like the, all the movies are made in California, you grow up, you're like, oh, that's so cool over there. And I'd never even been out to California. but I wanted to move to Los Angeles. I took a vacation out to San Diego and I was like, oh, this is actually probably better for me than Los Angeles. And I remember the ultimate decision making factor was I was sitting in a environmental studies class at NJIT. And in the back of the book, they had listed all of the climate zones the United States. I think there's I don't know, 20 climate zones or something, and they define the ideal human comfort zone between 65 degrees and 78 degrees. And I was like, okay, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna flip through these climate zones and whichever one is within the human comfort zone at the highest percentage, I'm just gonna make a decision and that's where I'm gonna move. [00:26:00] Because I hated the winter. And the New Jersey winter is brutal. live in Colorado, so you probably have pretty brutal winters there too. But I didn't want to deal with winter. I was like, if I can just take weather out of the equation, everything would be a lot easier. I was flipping through this book and the second climate zone is a region in Florida that had 25% or so in this human comfort zone, the number one was San Diego. Between the, within that climate zone of the year. So it's three times better than the second best climate. And I was like, okay, I guess San Diego it is. So Morgan and I took a vacation out here. We checked it out and then almost immediately after I graduated, one or two months later, I had resigned from my job and drove out here and set everything up over here.
Bailey: Yeah. Very cool. I remember that time too when you were making the move out, and it would seem to me that the Southern California region is actually uniquely well suited for the types of work you're trying to [00:27:00] do. One, the design style. I believe like the mid-century modern, at least like the Americanized version comes from Southern California.
Bailey: Then you have, based on the climate, the ability to design these indoor-outdoor living type spaces where you would not be able to do in places where there's the Four Seasons and then also the ADUs. I know they have 'em in different places throughout the country, but it seems much more of like a.
Bailey: Western US thing compared to the East coast. So it seems actually that San Diego and the entire Southern California region is uniquely well suited for the specific type of architecture work you're trying to do.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah. and like I wanted to do modern architecture and that's well received out here, but I don't know if it's as well received in New Jersey. fact, I did one project in New Jersey before I moved out here. my first job and I was moonlighting and designing a project for one of my good friends whose father was a general contractor, which is how a lot of architecture graduates get their first [00:28:00] commission. And the commission was design a McMansion. if you don't know what a M mansion is, it's a giant home on a small lot that steals a lot of. components from mansions, but then compresses it all down into a smaller version of that. And they're over New Jersey, especially Northern New Jersey.
Sean Canning, Architect: It's all McMansions. So my first project in New Jersey was a McMansion and almost all the projects I do out here are modern or some version of modernism.
Bailey: So then talk to me about when you started the firm 10 70 Architecture. I know. It's been a 15 year journey nearly at this point. So why don't you talk about the early stages, because I know for the first 10 years or so, it was just you mostly, I think you had one employee nearly going and then, but you did have an office space, but it was still just you.
Bailey: So why don't you talk about that. Period up from starting the firm to ultimately hiring out a team right around 2020 or so.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, so basically 10 years as sole practitioner for the most part. The first office was [00:29:00] in my kitchen, in our apartment. And then I moved into a smaller officea little tiny studio office. then I moved into a different one. I think I've had five or six different offices at this point the 15 years.
Sean Canning, Architect: the first job I ever got was when I was looking for employment and I was attending all of these free education seminars. in this particular one, it was at the California Center for Sustainable Energy, I think it was called. they would give these free seminars about the performance of your home, to design. I would go there and attend all of the free seminars I would talk to people after the seminars and see if anybody was hiring basically.
Sean Canning, Architect: That was my goal. And I met this guy his name's Matthew Cone he's really interesting guy actually very similar to my dad. He has a very similar personality to my dad. I think they would be best friends. He's also an Irish guy, which is interesting. And, and my dad's Irish.
Sean Canning, Architect: That's why find that to be interesting. So I was at this one seminar. I felt like [00:30:00] I knew all the information and they give you a ticket that you can use to get a free lunch on the way out. So I was like, okay. I've had about enough of this seminar, so I was gonna leave, but I wanted to make sure I got my free lunch on the way out. And I went out to the cafeteria where they had the thing set up. I wasn't gonna get a free lunch. I was gonna give my ticket away so somebody else could get a free lunch. And this guy, Matthew. I was like, Hey, I'm about to leave, but if you want my lunch, here's the ticket. then he's I think he was like, I'm gonna leave too or something.
Sean Canning, Architect: And we started talking and he's what do you do? And I was like I'm looking for a job. I have a degree in architecture. And he is I'm gonna do this addition on my home and I need somebody to design it. And I was like I don't really have my own. I want to have open my own business, but I'm not gonna do it yet.
Sean Canning, Architect: And I don't have a license at this point. I was like six months away from getting the license. I basically tried to talk him out of it, and through that conversation he talked me into designing this edition for him. And I was like, okay, I'll do it. I was like, I guess I'll charge you a thousand dollars. I was like, I'll include the structural engineering and I'll include all the permitting. And I had to [00:31:00] outsource the structural engineering. So I ended up meeting Curtis Patterson, who's the engineer at Patterson Engineering, and Curtis gave me his proposal, which was $900. I had a hundred dollars of.
Sean Canning, Architect: Profit in this project. I designed the coolest addition that I could. The client was super happy and he never ended up building the project because he ended up moving to Las Vegas, but he became a good friend of mine and like Margaret and I still go and I. Meet up with him and his wife, and every time they're back in San Diego, he eventually referred me to another client who I designed an addition for on their home. That one never got built, now I had two projects that I could put in my portfolio and I had then at that point gotten my license. So I figured I'm gonna start the business now. And then I realized I have to learn how to market because they don't teach you this in architecture school. So that was the first lesson of business is like really have a business unless you have clients and you can't get clients unless you [00:32:00] market to get the clients. So that's how it all started.
Bailey: Gotcha. Yeah, you definitely have to grind the early going on those projects, even if there's almost no profit on them. But that's just how everyone gets started. so then talk about from, and we'll conclude on this one. Why don't you talk about how, right around 20, 20 20 or so, I believe that's when the A DU regulations really opened up in San Diego.
Bailey: So that's what drove you to eventually bring on Margaret and then eventually hire a team from there. So why don't you just talk about that period up until the present day where you're at now.
Sean Canning, Architect: Yeah, basically I was juggling all these projects by myself and I was like, at this point I gotta hire somebody because I need somebody to help produce some of the drawings on the backend. Like architecture's very labor intensive because it's one thing to say oh, here's a great idea for this edition. But then you actually have to produce all of the drawings that are needed to get the permit and the construction, and that takes hours and hours. One construction drawing set [00:33:00] easily can take 80 hours for a single project or more, and then you enter permitting, and then they give you comments, and then you have to make revisions and you have to answer all the. All of the comments. So that could be another 40 hours. So you could be looking at three to four weeks just to create the documents that can get the permit and you can build. So if you're juggling multiple projects, you just don't have the time to commit to that. So after 10 years looking at. The numbers, it was like, I just can't, I need somebody to do that work for me. And I think that's basically the conclusion that like a lot of sole practitioner architects end up getting to. So I hired, I made my first hire, actually it was, this was actually the second hire, but he was my this was basically my first like full-time employee. And then it was two of us. And then COVID hit like end of 2020, I guess when it really kicked in. And then Margaret lost her job. And Margaret has the same degree, same bachelor's degree as me, and she also has a master's [00:34:00] degree. And we also did a certification in project management, which took took a year to do out here at STSU. we had a lot of the same education, but we have complimenting skills because I'm a little bit more design oriented and she's a little bit more, better on like the organizational side. And as she like. is a past employee of San Diego Development Service Department, so she's really good at permitting. So I was working on a lot of design. then I took on Margaret. So now we had a team of three. the problem is we were very top heavy at that point because you can't have two managers and one employee. That doesn't work. So then it became obvious, I gotta hire the second employee. then I hired the second employee probably about a year later, and then we hired the next employee after that, and that grew the team to five, which is a nice size for the team, bigger than what I had imagined the company would be. But due to the fact that we are so top heavy, you have to get the support staff below and hopefully we'll be able to hire one more [00:35:00] after that. So that's how we, that's how we grew from sole practitioner to the size we are right now.
Sean Canning, Architect: And then eventually we moved the office to a bigger office.
Sean Canning, Architect: And then the expenses start to creep up. Office expense goes up, insurance expense goes up, payroll expense goes up. So you have to start to elevate the whole thing at the same time.
Bailey: Yeah. So is there anything you would like to say to conclude this interview here and wrap up? Because I'll just say, I think if you could take, and I was telling you this a few weeks ago, the work your firm is doing now, not just of projects that already have been built and there's a lot of cool YouTube videos, we'll link to here but also a lot of the projects you have now in development.
Bailey: We only have renderings now. I know it's like a two year process from like start to actually completing the construction. But I feel like if you were a college self could see the work you're doing, you would be unbelievably thrilled with the direction things have taken. So how would you like to do you have any final party words here you'd like to wrap up with?
Sean Canning, Architect: I would say the work I'm doing [00:36:00] now, I could not do when I graduated college. there's a big learning curve in this career and you have to learn a lot of different skills. You have to be able to design the project. You have to be able to do the drawings and detail the project. You have to permit the project, you have to understand construction. So a lot of those skills. had from my childhood as we started this conversation. But then over the course of running the business, you have to learn basically business management, marketing, finances, client management, and being personable and being able to, discuss things with?
Sean Canning, Architect: clients in a way that's very like democratic. But also you have to be able to sometimes relay. Bad news to a client. Hey, the building department is requesting that you have this report done and that's a $7,500 report. not a fun conversation to have, as you run a business, you start to mature a lot in that sense. I have probably about 19 or 20 years of total career work [00:37:00] experience. The work we're doing now is like, It comes a little easier for me now. So what would maybe take one of my staff members like 40 hours to do? probably create design in about 10 hours. But then you still have to produce all the documents, so that's when it gets passed off to the employee and then you monitor them doing that. the more experience you get. The more you're like, oh, I remember on that project we couldn't design it that way because of this thing, and now I'm on this new project I don't have to commit all the time. That I've committed on the previous project because I already know how to design it. And then you start to plan ahead a little bit. You're like if I design it like this, it's actually a little easier to build because I remember that we had a challenging detail on the last project. Or you end up through permitting, you find out that there's a major issue with one thing that the building department is like, Hey. You need to figure this. Let's say the building department says you can only have 25%, windows on this wall Now you're on this new project. You're like, okay, I know [00:38:00] based on the building department's interpretation, I'm gonna design it this way and it's gonna go a little smoother. So everything starts to get a little smoother as long as you stay on top of things. and are diligent with your business. I guess in conclusion, I would say the skills that had growing up eventually led me down this path of architecture and becoming an entrepreneur and starting the business was something that my childhood kind of lended me to. And then here I am. In a blink of an eye 15 years later running a business. It's been a little bit of a whirlwind, but looking back on things, it's been a great experience.
