Meet Erika Lin | Architect

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

Hi Erika, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I did my Architecture studies in the City of Tijuana, but from the beginning I knew that it was not the ideal city to start my career with Architect-interiorist in luxury projects, so when I completed this, I went to Mexico City to continue my learning and work in specialized design firms. After two years, I returned to Tijuana and founded my design firm Erika Lin Architects—now part of EL Design Group. I started with a very small office in the mezzanine of a furniture and decoration store, with very small projects, such as furniture design, bathroom remodeling and that is how we have grown until today, designing big houses, buildings, developments and corporate projects.

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?
I wanted to take my vision of impeccability beyond my work, expand it, and transmit it to my teams, creating a company that not only provides architecture services but also creates design experiences for both collaborators and clients.  My first step was to identify the foundation of my company—what did I want to dedicate myself to? Without a doubt, outstanding projects.
I focused on creating a work methodology. So over time, the projects grew in size and number. Organization and team training helped us grow very organically. Until we landed our first project to work on a mansion of a public figure. This really blew us away.
More large residential projects began to arrive. And many of our clients also assigned us their commercial, corporate and medical projects. So the commercial and medical architecture division of the firm began to grow as well. Another important step was in 2015 when we started operations in the United States. With some fear but with faith in our methodology of work! Today we have carried out more than 1000 projects.
One of my biggest challenges was starting the firm in the United States. When we started here, we already had the firm in Mexico established, with resources and clients who came looking for us to carry out their projects. Coming to the United States meant leaving my comfort zone, driving the appointments alone, introducing myself to the clients, selling, and on many occasions measuring the houses myself. This was very different as just across the border I had an assistant, a driver, and a great team that always do those things for me. But as exhausting as it seemed alone I had to remind myself how I started in Mexico and where it had taken me. So I kept going! And today customers come looking for us.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Please, it is what I ask most, that you know “la Baja”, we can start in Tijuana, a versatile city, with a tremendous cultural variety, delicious Baja Med food and above all great customer service, In Rosarito you can enjoy some surf lessons and eat in local restaurants with a warm attention, we need to drive along the scenic highway and enjoy the beautiful view of the Pacific, you cannot miss the experience of staying in a vineyard in the Guadalupe Valley, learn about its history and enjoy the best wines of the region.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I had the opportunity to be raised by two wonderful and very opposite women, my mother, a housewife, who made an effort to give me a childhood surrounded by beauty, love and values, and during my adolescence I moved with my grandmother, a totally dedicated to her successful career, she was almost never home, but when she arrived she gave me the best times and of course the best stories, she taught me to be strong and work hard for my goals.

In life I was always looking for my sources of inspiration, but meeting my husband marked my life, I told him about my dreams as something distant and he just said, ok do it, what do you need, always pushing me and challenging me to grow, without a doubt my mentor.

Website: erikalin.com

Instagram: instagram.com/arq_erikalin

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/erika-lin-130744146

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

Image Credits
Silvia Galvan Miguel Valdez