Real estate and construction go hand in hand, which is why ESPINAL|ADLER maintains a long-term relationship with James Stanley and his design/build firm James Stanley NY. With a background in engineering, design, and architecture and decades of hands-on experience, James knows the industry—and has a vision for how it can be improved for the clients’ benefit.
The Apple Peeled: What services does James Stanley NY provide?
James Stanley: Design/build means that we do both the designing and the construction, so that’s primarily renovations, interior design, and architectural design for homes. Outside of that, we also have a service that makes us the unique kid on the block… we have the ability to design specific pieces within those projects. That could be a table, furniture, light fixtures, artwork, etc. It’s an interesting combination to hand over to a client and is sort of a one-stop shop situation.
The Apple Peeled: Is that what makes JSNY stand out from the competition?
James Stanley: It’s unique in the sense that it’s our hybrid offering and has helped a lot of clients complete their vision. But ‘hybrid’ is the word of the day; we’re seeing it everywhere. What’s really unique about JSNY is that we own the construction company and oversee the construction team—they’re not subcontractors. Construction, architecture… it’s all done in-house.
The Apple Peeled: Why was it so important to you to build your company that way?
James Stanley: I believe it should be all about the client. Today, I feel like client service is dead, so my team focuses on that. When we have everything under one roof, the client gets the most seamless experience possible. It’s a big difference from working with multiple companies or ones that sub-contract.
The Apple Peeled: What exactly does that mean?
James Stanley: A client who is taking on a renovation is walking into an industry that, let’s be honest, doesn’t have the best reputation. Clients might be afraid contractors are going to overcharge them with a bunch of change orders. They might fear that designers are going to charge them for every hour they can and upcharge on everything. And ultimately, they might not be sure how it’s all going to come together with so many moving pieces and personalities. It’s a difficult situation for any client to walk into, especially one who’s never been to the rodeo so to speak. My job is to take away that stress with honesty and clarity. Me and my team have a track record of being there in every sense of the words “customer service.” I want to take out the guesswork for clients and assure them that all of these items are going to be addressed before they even sit down with their questions.
The Apple Peeled: And that’s the better way!
James Stanley: I find that the different entities in the field don’t always like working together and it often causes the client to get overlooked. Because we’re one-stop shopping, our clients don’t have to deal with multiple teams. And I don’t worry about people’s egos because it’s easy to remind everyone that it’s all about the client… all the time. In actuality, the old-school boys club needs to be torn apart and rebuilt. My ecosphere is one little part that works well, and I’m eager to revamp the industry.