Andrea Shapiro
Andrea Shapiro is a residential designer and licensed architect with more than three decades of experience in architecture and project leadership. She earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Roger Williams University and began her career in the Boston area, where she worked across residential, transportation, and hospitality projects. Early in her career, she held roles at firms such as DHK Architects, Inc., contributing to large-scale infrastructure projects including transportation facilities and multi-million-dollar developments, which strengthened her technical expertise and project management capabilities.
After relocating to California, she shifted her professional focus toward residential design, where she found a strong alignment with her interest in how people experience homes in their daily lives. Over the past two decades, she has worked extensively on custom homes and high-end residential projects throughout the Los Angeles region, including Malibu, Beverly Hills, and surrounding communities. Prior to establishing her own practice, she served for over a decade as a project manager at Eserts Architecture & Interiors, where she contributed to luxury residential work involving complex client needs and high-design expectations.
Today, she operates her own design studio as a solo practitioner, specializing in residential architecture and renovations. Her work includes ground-up custom homes, major additions, and interior transformations, often coordinating closely with clients, consultants, and municipal agencies. Known for her detail-oriented and collaborative approach, she integrates technical precision with client-centered design, balancing creative vision with practical execution. Her practice reflects both her long-standing commitment to residential architecture and her emphasis on functional, livable, and enduring home environments.
• Honored Listee
• Massachusetts Registered Architect
• Roger Williams University - BArch
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to a lifelong passion for designing homes, as well as the meaningful mentorship and trust I received from early supervisors, particularly Mickey Krakmolnik. Being given opportunities early on to take on responsibility allowed me to grow quickly and develop both confidence and expertise in my field.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I have ever received is to acknowledge when I don’t know something rather than risk providing incorrect information. This principle has reinforced the importance of honesty and integrity in my work, ensuring that I prioritize accuracy and accountability over appearing knowledgeable in every situation.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would advise young women entering the field to seek out and learn from confident role models they admire, as this helps build confidence early on. It’s also important to stay aware of market conditions and remain flexible, since opportunities can shift—for example, while architecture work is slower in many areas, places like Los Angeles currently offer growth through fire recovery projects.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest opportunity in my field right now is the increased demand for work related to fire recovery. While challenges exist in balancing workload and resources, this situation has also created meaningful opportunities to contribute to rebuilding efforts and support affected communities.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The most important values to me in both my work and personal life are honesty and empathy. I prioritize truth because it allows situations to be understood clearly and improved effectively, but I also believe it should always be delivered with empathy. Honesty, in my view, should never come at the expense of unnecessary cruelty, and balancing both helps build trust and respect in any setting.
Locations
Andrea R. Shapiro, Design Studio
Tarzana, CA 91356