Meet Larry Paschall | Larry Paschall, AIA

We had the good fortune of connecting with Larry Paschall and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Larry, what do you attribute your success to?
Old school architects told us that the only thing required to be successful was to do good work. What they left out was the importance of building quality relationships as the means to obtain work. To do good work means having the opportunity.

I believe those relationships drive the success of Spotted Dog Architecture. In the 25+ years working in Dallas, I have strived to maintain great relationships with clients, contractors, and consultants. Consequently, most of my business comes from referrals. You want to be top of mind when a client’s friend is looking for an architect. You want the contractor that’s been approached by a homeowner to refer you. Even consultants know who they like to work with and who they feel does the level of work with which they want to be associated.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Architects often look at projects from the lens of the final product. For Spotted Dog, our focus centers around the client first with the project second. A successful project for us isn’t about the scale of the project but if we think we will have a good experience working with the client and vice versa. Which has at times meant taking on smaller projects than others would.

Reaching that point took a while and included sales coaching to make us realize we are interviewing the client as much as they are interviewing us. Instead of performing the dog-and-pony show about what we can do, our mindset had to change where we were listening first. If we felt we were a good fit, then we could talk about the next steps and how we could help. That went against years of conditioning by a building-focused profession. However, the effort has proved invaluable.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is such a challenging question given how much there is to do in Dallas and the surrounding cities. For anyone visiting, I would want to be sure they had a moment to visit White Rock Lake and the Dallas Arboretum. In such a busy city, both are an oasis from the day-to-day hustle. We would also cross the Trinity River to spend some time in Bishop Arts, lunching at Oddfellows and swinging by Dude, Sweet Chocolate for dessert and a little something to take home.

Of course, we would have to hit some museums while they were here. My choices would be Crow Museum of Asian Art, because I think visitors often overlook the collection, and if up for a car ride, Louis Kahn’s iconic Kimbell Art Museum in Ft. Worth.

We would need to spend one evening bar hopping down Cedar Springs in Oak Lawn. Maybe stop by The Round Up to watch the cowboys dance, and weather permitting, lounge on the balcony at JR’s to watch the world go by.

Finally, I would make certain to grab lunch at Parigi’s and have their lobster grilled cheese. We would also need to pay our respects at Mariano’s Hacienda for Friday night Mexican food and margaritas.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband James deserves so much credit for helping me be a successful business owner. From the beginning of my first firm, he has been a champion and a comfort. He’s held on through the thick of being busy and the thin of surviving a recession. My story wouldn’t be a story without his support.

Website: https://spotteddogarchitecture.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/SpottedDogArch/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larrypaschall/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SpottedDogArchitecture

Image Credits
Beau Bumpass