Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Browne.
Hi Lauren, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
The short answer is that I answered a Craigslist ad for an office assistant, and chose Larsen over another job because I didn’t want to drive to the airport every day. The longer answer is that I wanted to work in an industry where my work is tangible. Something that evokes emotion and can change someone’s life.
Coming from the world of hospitality, presold custom home building was a good fit for me. I was used to wearing many hats from the very beginning, and the customer care piece of home building was really important to me. When I first started at Larsen, we only had three employees that ran the day-to-day.
As we grew, I was able to step into different roles and learn the business from the ground up. When we needed an interior selection manager, I did it. When we needed an accounting person, I did it. Eventually, I became the Director of Operations and now, I am a Co-Owner of the business. I had wonderful mentors along the way that encouraged me to grow.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Is it ever? I have had many bumps along the way in my career but instead of calling them challenges, I call them opportunities. There were times when I couldn’t see the road ahead for my career and would look for jobs outside of my organization but it always came back to Larsen.
As I said before, I had a career in hospitality for a long time, and our customer care and the experience you go through while building a home weren’t up to the standards we wanted. Building a Larsen home takes 2+ years and we become very close to our clients, so I didn’t want to disappoint them.
I implemented a program I took from a luxury hotel chain called “Show Me You Know Me” in order to build stronger relationships with our clients, while I implemented processes in the background to give all of our clients a similar building experience. I didn’t always know that I would someday own Larsen so I wasn’t always in the position where I felt I could use my voice. Once I started, it was a beautiful thing and we were able to make great strides and grow our business.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are a luxury design + build firm out of the Denver Metro area. We have architecture, interior design, and construction under one roof and specialize in presold custom homes for clients. We build homes anywhere from 3800 sq ft to 15,000 sq ft. The thing that sets us apart is our commitment to making the building process fun and enjoyable.
Our clients pick everything from their kitchen slabs to the hinges on their doors if they want to. Over the past 6 years, we have changed our company from building primarily in one neighborhood to venturing out and building bigger and more expensive homes. Years ago we were known as a Wash Park builder but really pushed the envelope and are currently building in 5 different municipalities.
We are very proud of our attention to detail. Our tagline is “Bringing Luxury Home”. We have spent years cultivating a reputation for being best in class and last year won Custom Home Builder of the Year. We build homes in the $3M-12M range and do remodels starting at $1M. We also offer architecture services for areas outside of our building area.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
First and foremost my business partner Jeff. We kind of came up in the business together but he had always had his eye on home building. I had my eye on bringing smiles to people’s faces but didn’t have a direction per se. Together we have been able to be two halves of a whole and steer our business into new directions. Since we joined forces, we have been a great pairing and I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else.
Cheryl Schuette who will be my forever mentor. She was the President at Larsen and encouraged me to always say YES to new opportunities. I remember having a conversation with her about how much I hated doing all of the permitting at Larsen, and she told me it was an important building block that would help down the road. She was of course right.
Larry Larsen who used to own Larsen, gave me my start showed me the business from the ground up, and later bestowed the honor of owning a company that holds his name. Carl Sokia was my boss and friend from my time with Starwood Hotels and is another forever mentor of mine. Carl has the ability to see what people are capable of before you ever are. He is such a light.
And finally my family. My mom has always been a great cheerleader for me and is such an amazing shoulder to hoist me up on to catch my dreams. My dad, as a successful business owner himself, has also been an integral part of putting the wind in my sail and is always there to answer the most outlandish questions. He also started out doing accounting for a construction company so it is really nice to have a common background.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.larsengroup.co
- Instagram: @larsendenver
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brownelc/
Image Credits
Rosy Hart, Ron Rusico, and Meagan Larsen
