A-Tech Architectural Design is becoming one of the fastest-growing architectural design practices in the Peak District and High Peak regions.
They work with a trusted network of third-party consultants for areas including Structural Engineering, Mechanical and Electrical Design, Ecology and Topographical Surveying.
“Since starting my own company, I have seen my portfolio grow at a very satisfying rate. I have taken the experience gained from my employment career and am now applying it to my own projects. Every project, be it a simple re-roofing job or a new build housing scheme is an opportunity to improve, and this I believe is reflected in the quality of service provided.”
Andy Flanagan runs a small team of Architectural Technologists and Specialist Designers from technical backgrounds within the built environment. He aims to deliver complete design packages from concept to completion; offering one-to-one project management and design consulting for all stages of work.
With a background in architecture going back to 2003, Andy is an Architectural Technologist with an obsession for detail design. It's an area of architecture Andy feels is lacking in today’s practice, making it more niche. Andy set up as an independent Technologist for companies who want to outsource and for private clients.
A-Tech Architect Design Ltd had been running for 3 years, jobs were coming in and the business was making a profit. It was ready for growth but the foundations to do so weren’t in place. There was no plan or structure for the business to expand.
No fundamentals in place.
“It was clear I needed to backtrack and look at the fundamentals of running a business.”
“Jobs were coming in and I got excited. I threw money at an office and hired staff. Except, without that foundation in place, it didn’t work.”
I tried to grow too quickly.
I didn’t have an identity.
I was just firing out architectural plans to everyone and anyone that would have them.”
Many business owners share this experience. At BBB we help those who have been established for a few years go back over the fundamentals of business, like Andy Flanagan, through our Launch Programme .
The BBB Launch programme is a 30-day course that provides you with step-by-step instructions on building the solid foundations required for business success. We steer you away from expensive mistakes and delays, and provide you with personalised feedback to give you the best chance of generating income.
“I met Tracey and George on LinkedIn. Among all the LinkedIn spam, their posts stood out to me as worthwhile content that resonated with me. I spoke to George a couple of times when I realised that things weren’t going so well, and he gave me some insightful pointers to help me understand what my business was all about and get back to the roots of what I was trying to achieve with the business.”
“George told me about the Launch Programme, and after attending a couple of his How to Hit £100k Workshops, I felt I had received really useful advice and decided to go for it.”
Andy started the Launch Programme in September 2023, and really embraced it. He took it and implemented his learning into the real world quickly, which yielded some very quick results.
“From week 1, the programme got me focussed on my market and product and made me review the way I was presenting myself to clients. I soon realised I hadn’t been presenting myself as a specialist in any specific areas. I took the advice and began pitching myself to new industrial clients as the specialist I was in their area.”
“I began talking to my clients more confidently, on their level, and explained my areas of expertise better."
“It’s made me so much more organised, and I'm much more positive about growing the business now.”
“When someone gets you to look at your key areas and understand what you’re good at and what’s important to you as an individual, as well as a business, you start to realise the areas where you can be proud of your abilities and which you can push out to people.
Speaking as more of an expert in my field has enabled me to raise my prices already, by looking at the market and understanding where a specialist like me slots into that. I have had no push back on my fees so I’m happy with that!”
“George is ace – he goes through everything you write, and positively advises.”
If you are stuck, feeling like you keep hitting a ceiling, struggling to get clients or the income you need, or wanting to scale your already established service business, then talk to us. You could be just 30 days away from solving your biggest business challenge.
Andy Flanagan highly recommends the BBB Launch Programme.
“The Launch programme kept me on track and committed. Knowing my workings were going to be reviewed each week kept me accountable, and it made me do the work. That’s what I really liked about it, building a foundation that I can keep going back to as my business grows and evolves, and that’s going to be really helpful going forwards.”
“Everything is now going to be standardised and professional. When I’ve written up and implemented all my learning, I’ll be able to pitch to clients with a reusable, professional fee proposal, set of terms and conditions, and a contract that not only protects me but gives me that professional image, which before I didn’t have.”
“I was all over the place at the start of this, trying to take in new clients from all areas, but now I’m focussed on the areas I know I can deliver to a good standard, and that brings confidence.”
“When you're in your comfort zone, you are a lot more confident.”