Thousands of people pass Neil Bhatt’s work every day. His architectural skills have contributed to the construction of several Henrico County structures, including the Overlook office buildings and recently completed Paragon Place 3 office building. Locally, his work includes the Capital One West Creek Campus and the Phillip Morris Gateway Center as well as projects in hospitality, apartments and cultural and religious facilities.

The founder of nbj Architecture met with Henrico Magazine to discuss his company, the state of Asian businesses in the county, and what leaders should do to help Asians start their own enterprise.

Q: What made you decide to form nbj Architecture in 2000?
A: I worked for a company named Dewberry and Davis, which was a large engineering and architecture firm. They were going through major restructuring, and at that point, the Richmond office was becoming more engineering oriented. So I actually proposed to the owners that if Dewberry and Davis was not truly geared toward architectural practice in the Central Virginia area, would it be possible for them to let me form my own firm? I could turn the same department I was running into an independent company. We struck a mutual agreement. I formed nbj and kept the same staff, some of the clients and some of the projects.

Q: What does nbj stand for?
A: When we initially started, I had two other senior architects, who I convinced to join me in the new venture. Dewberry and Davis was a 1,600-staff firm at the time. Here I was going to open a firm that was six people. I suggested we form the company with just our first names. I’m Neil. The other senior architects were named Brian and John. People always think it’s Neil Bhatt-something like junior or joint venture. The other architects are no longer with nbj, but I kept the name.

Q: You are pretty successful at both, but are you a better architect or
businessman?
A: I never see myself as a businessman because if that were the case, I would have not waited until I was 52 to open a business. I always see myself as an architect. That’s really all I can do. So to answer the question, I’m a better architect. Business just happens to follow.

Q: You could have set up your headquarters in Northern Virginia. Why did you choose Henrico County?
A: I’ve lived in Henrico County for a long time. It’s very convenient to be here. Also, we’ve found the tax structure to be better than the City of Richmond. The first three years, we leased an office in the Bookbindery Building (on Broad Street). At the end of the lease, we were looking at other options to see if we could do better than rentals. We came across this office condominium (Grove Park) concept in Henrico County. We bought the office space, and it has worked out very well. I moved from Northern Virginia so sure, I’m very familiar with the area. From a business activity point, Northern Virginia may be better, but I have seen personally that Henrico County has greater potential than many people outside of the county can perceive.

Q: How has your heritage influenced you as an architect?
A: Obviously I grew up in India and studied architecture there. But the Americans dominated architecture education in India. We learned about Walter Gropius, Frank Lloyd Wright and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. We admired them. So there was a pull to come to America because our idols did their work there. But obviously India has its own long history in architecture. The Taj Mahal is well-known. So how we look at symmetry and proportions does tend to tilt toward our Eastern influences.

Q: You are considered one of the biggest Asian businesses in the county. What does that mean to you?
A: It makes me feel that we Asians have a lot to contribute, and we are contributing to the success of this county and this country. We are proud that we’re productive citizens.

Q: Do you see more Asian businesses now than when you started nearly seven years ago?
A: I certainly would think so. I do think that since I started there’s a lot more awareness about Asian businesses. I also have seen more Asian businesses succeeding at a much greater rate and value.

Q: Are you looking to expand?
A: This is our seventh year. We have continuously grown about 20 percent per year. We hope we will continue that in the next five years. That means we’ll double again to around 30 people.

Q: Do Asian business owners retire?
A: I don’t know about Asians, but old architects never retire. However, I do have a goal of retiring at least from the activities of running the company in the next 7 to 10 years. I also have a plan to groom the staff into an employee-owned company.

Q: What can Asian business leaders in Henrico County do to help others who are thinking about starting their own business?
A: I, as a businessman in this county, had a relatively easy time starting a business in Henrico County. I would be willing to guide them through the process and show them where help and resources are available through the county level and associations.

Q: If you could talk to Asians who are considering a move to Henrico County, what would you tell them?
A: I would tell them that it’s a very business-friendly county. It’s very progressive. We don’t see any pitfalls here just because we’re Asian. We do get fair treatment. We get equal or even better treatment. As for quality of life, it’s better than most metropolitan areas. I would encourage any Asian business to come here.

Q: Is it true Asians would rather save or borrow from family rather than take out a loan from a bank to start a business?
A: I think this is somewhat of a misconception. Asian families will help each other as much as any community. But borrowing money from a bank is common. When I started nbj, I borrowed money from BB&T. The bank was very kind to us and gave us money at very reasonable terms. That’s how we started. We paid off that loan. When I bought this office condominium, we borrowed again from BB&T. None of the friends in business I know have not borrowed from a bank. But Asia is a big continent. People from each Asian country may be looking at the economic situation differently. India, in particular, has never been conservative in borrowing. Even when I was growing up, there was an acceptance of the American business model.

For more information, visit www.nbjarch.com/firmprofile.html.