Meet Joseph Cole of Culture Architecture and Design in Metro

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph Cole.

At Culture Architecture and Design, we pride ourselves on creating compelling spaces and brands that people love. We intentionally curate each design team to fulfill our client’s values, goals, and priorities. With our diverse background of working on prominent and signification projects, we take a hands-on approach to exceed our client’s needs and ensure a pleasurable experience.

The intersection of community advocacy, sustainability, economic development, and thoughtful design is a true passion for Joseph Cole. After graduating from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville College of Architecture and Design, Joseph went on to work as a licensed Architect at TMPartners in the healthcare, government, and higher education studios. Joseph’s expertise in his career and engagement in the Nashville community led to his national recognition as an Allstate Giveback Day Hero. This national award is given to four professionals who demonstrate outstanding commitment to volunteering in their community and continuing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy of service. To propel Joseph’s aspiration of starting his own industry-leading design firm, in 2015, he set out to pursue a Master of Business Administration at Emory University Goizueta Business School.

After completing his MBA, Joseph and his wife relocated to New York City, where he worked at Gensler’s New York office in the Technology, Media, and Start-Up Workplace studio as a licensed Project Architect. During his time at Gensler, he designed projects for many of the world’s premier global tech and start-up companies. In addition to this experience as a New York architect, in 2018, Joseph completed the Project REAP New York City Real Estate Associate Program to further his understanding and exposure to the business of architecture, real estate, and design.

In 2018, Joseph and his wife relocated back to Nashville to be closer to family. Joseph founded his own firm, Culture Architecture and Design, PLLC, in 2019 with the focus of creating compelling spaces and brands that people love. In his free time, you can find Joseph volunteering at his church, attending concerts with his wife Brittany, traveling, and obsessing over Tennessee Titans Football.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The field of architecture has historically neglected black and brown communities when marketing what are services are, why the are needed, and when they are needed. Our target market is entrepreneurs, leaders. Trailblazers and businesses/organization that are typically members or allies of black and brown communities. Since we are often the first architect the person/organization has worked with, there is often a level of education/introduction needed by the client around the field of architecture, design, and construction. We’ve used this insight along, with our priority on customer experience, to carve our a niche.

Also, the field of architecture is highly response to the economy. When the economy dips, clients often slow down, pause, or all-out cancel their projects. 2020 has been a challenging year for us in that regard. We have had to find additional markets and services to create value for clients in this economy.

Please tell us about Culture Architecture and Design.
At Culture Architecture and Design, we pride ourselves on creating compelling spaces and brands that people love. We intentionally curate (architectural) each design team to fulfill our client’s values, goals, and priorities. With our diverse background of working on prominent and signification projects, we take a hands-on approach to exceed our client’s needs and ensure a pleasurable experience.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My biggest supporter is my wife, Brittany Cole. She is the CEO of Career Thrivers, a leadership consulting company specializing in diversity, equity, and inclusion. As an entrepreneur herself, she often shares lessons learned, as well as bouncing ideas and decisions off of each other. Often our dates turn into business strategy meetings. 🙂

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.designwithculture.com
• Phone: 615-210-7269
• Email: Joseph.Cole@DesignWithCulture.com
• Instagram: Joseph.Cole@DesignWithCulture.com

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