223: Architecture as Business and Product with Ricardo Alvarez-Diaz

In today's episode we speak with a remarkable entrepreneur, educator and architect. Ricardo Álvarez‐Díaz is the founding principal of Álvarez‐Díaz & Villalón, an award-winning architecture and interior design practice with offices in San Juan Puerto Rico and Miami Florida.

Álvarez‐Díaz is President of the Puerto Rico Builders Association. He serves as the founding Co-Chair of the local Urban Land Institute (ULI) district council and is on the Board of Directors of Invest Puerto Rico, a non-profit organization established in 2017 to promote the island’s economic development. He teaches a course on entrepreneurship at the School of Architecture, Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico and frequently writes on the topics of leadership, sustainability, and business. With his wife and business partner, Cristina Villalón, he co-sponsors the Álvarez-Díaz & Villalón Fund at the University of Notre Dame, of which he is a graduate.

If you're looking for inspiration on running an impactful practice, you're going to love today's interview with Ricardo Álvarez‐Díaz - he holds nothing back as he shares the triumphs and challenges of growing his successful design firm in Puerto Rico.

In today's episode, you'll discover how he transitioned from being an employee to running his own firm. You'll discover his formula for getting the right projects and clients, even in an economic downturn.

You'll learn about the 3 "i's" that chart the path for growing your business, and around the 16 minute mark of this episode Álvarez‐Díaz sums up 4 years of business insights and growth in 30 seconds.

Now if you enjoy today's episode, I've love it if you leave a review on iTunes. If you don't have an iPhone you can visit iTunes.com on your computer. When you leave a review, I'll recognize you on the air here to the thousands of Business of Architecture faithful.