"Challenges make you strong"

Julie Laughton Design Build offers a timeless classic look that complements each homeowner's lifestyle. "IT ALL STARTS WITH A GOOD PLAN," says Julie Laughton, CEO of the company. Julie designs client-focused plans and builds truly custom homes with integrity, reliability, and superior quality. The company provides a seamless process from conception to completion. Julie is an expert in timeless traditional styles like Mediterranean, French Country, English Tudor, Modern Farmhouse, Contemporary Style, and the Classic Beach Cottage.

Julie founded the company to help homeowners with a one-stop approach, and this makes her unique. She's the designer and general contractor overseeing all aspects of the project. As a designer, she originally worked with architects and contractors. However, she saw so many homeowners experience a multitude of problems with their remodels. To address these issues and save a lot of headaches, she became the contractor in order to keep the job on time and on budget while relieving the client of the burden of managing a large number of people.

Being a great leader means supporting and lifting up the people around you, in Julie’s opinion. It all starts with excelling at what you do best and making sure you are respecting everyone around you equally and listening carefully to those you are overseeing. In person, she's personable and very efficient with clients, subs, and colleagues.

Julie enjoys leading the team, orchestrating all aspects of the build to guarantee everything goes smoothly. She's also the project's designer who visualizes the initial inspiration, which helps develop project plans and ensure their completion. "Being a CEO isn't easy, despite popular belief," she adds. If you're doing your job right, you oversee everything on a daily basis. Julie thinks building projects require communication between departments, and the most effective communication is one-on-one. This approach, according to her, gives clients peace of mind and clarifies things, which always results in a better experience and less stress.

For Julie, the biggest obstacle to overcome has been being a female in the man’s world of construction and constantly being challenged. She welcomes constant challenges because they give her another opportunity to shine.

Julie makes quick decisions to move things along because of her years of experience in the dirt, so making decisions on a building site is easy for her. If one can't meet her in person, she recommends calling or using Zoom. She gives clients daily and weekly updates; some clients, especially out-of-state ones, expect daily updates, and some clients want bimonthly or as-needed updates. "Every project has the same process and team, but we personalize it to each client's demands," adds Julie.

Julie proudly explains that her favorite architect and engineer in her industry is, Julia Morgan, who oversaw Hearst Castle's construction. It was amazing that she was the architect, engineer, and project manager for Mr. Hearst, who often added to projects and changed his mind. Julie says she has several favorite architects and contractors who work in her local area and also provide quality design-build services.

"Every project has a timeline, and we work toward that timeline every day while building high-quality custom homes," says Julie. “When each project is over, we all take credit equally for the beautiful outcome, and everyone is complimented for their contributions. We are all inspired because we are team players and respect each other’s individual talent and expertise.” Her staff is loyal and hardworking, which makes every job rewarding.

They have an internal Asana program that allows them to schedule the entire job and communicate with all team members instantly, and this program provides all of the scheduling. They also use SharpSpring, which is their CRM program that monitors all new client traffic coming in. During the design process, the client not only gets 2D blueprints, but also color 3D renderings and Revit modeling so they can see exactly what they are building before the project starts.

Giving back helps complete the circle of success. As a donation, Julie remodeled the KX FM Radio 104.7 DJ Booth in Laguna Beach. It is named the Julie Laughton Design Build Studio. The radio station is a non-profit, and she was happy to support it. She is also on several Boards and gives back to the community in many ways through the Laguna Beach Chamber and other organizations.

Julie is celebrating over 30 years in business this year and has plans to expand the company. Over the next five years, she anticipates expansion through the hiring of new project managers and members of the design team and she is also doing commercial work.

This will ensure continued growth and one-on-one care for each and every customer. The goal moving forward is to maintain a 5-Star level of service while utilizing all currently available tools and resources.