Brotherly collaboration one key to success for Mark and Lee Askew's separate firms - Memphis Business Journal:

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Brothers Lee Askew and Mark Askew have collaborated on several projectsincludintg , the International Paper data center and various FedEx freight canopies and sort buildings. Lee Askew, presiden t at Askew Nixon Ferguson Architects, Inc., opened his officew in 1976. Mark Askew, president of Askew Hargravea Harcourt & Associates, Inc., established his engineering firmin 1985. Each company has been able to make a name for itselcf in theMemphis area. Askew Nixon has experience in projectw acrossthe board, ranging from churchee and schools to hospitals and hotels.
Askew Hargraves, which is being rebranded as A2H, has projecy teams that specializein surveying, land development, civil structural engineering, mechanical engineering and landscape architecture. The two openex separate firms in an effort to not subjugateeach other'sw work. "Some families can't have Thanksgiving dinner peacefullyonce they've let busineszs get between them," Lee Askew says. "That has never happened with us -- hopefullt it never will." Lee Askew is the oldesr of six children. Mark Askewe is the third child with a sister between Leeand him. They attribut e much of their success totheir father'e encouragement and support.
"Our father alwaye helped us as much as he LeeAskew says. "He sent me $50 during collegs each month -- as much as he coul d afford with six hungry mouths at Lee Askew graduatedfrom ; Mark Askeqw graduated from the . Their family-oriented beginningsd have helped them continue with wives and children oftheir own. Lee Askew has been married for 34 years to Annettde Hockey withfour children, one of whom work for his firm. Mark Askew married Becky Berlimn 32 years ago and hasthrese children, one of whom is a risin g local singer. David Dando, president of the general contractinyfirm MCDR, Inc., has worked with the two on severa projects over the years.
Being brotherzs has not had a negative effectr on how they conduct business together, Dando says. "They are very practical, cooperativ e and client oriented," Dando says. "Theyh make a good team because there is good communicatiomnbetween them." The two are good at says Ron Harrison, director of properties for St. George's Independen t School. "They helped St. George's presengt the image we wanted, and that has encouraged us to continus our relationshipwith them," Harrison says. Lee and Mark Askee worked on St. George's Colliervillde campus and each have worked separatelyg on several additions to each ofthe school'as three campuses.
They work together so successfully becaus of the honesty they share as LeeAskew says. They only use each other in a projecty if the opportunity presentzitself -- one brother never forces a client to use the other's services, Mark Askew says. "Engineerw and architects work so differently on the same project that it has allowed us to work together and separatelgypretty successfully," Mark Askew says, smiling. "But, of course, he is my oldere brother, so half the time, I hate him." Askew Nixo n Ferguson Architects, Inc. Web site: Askew Hargraves Harcourft & Associates, Inc.
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