Jay Labarre doesn’t deny the influence his parents had on his career.
“My father was a lifelong employee of the telephone company, Bell South, where he retired from after 37 years,” Labarre tells Business Report in the new executive spotlight Q&A. “He also did side jobs in construction which made my career choice seem like an extension of his ‘second career.’”
Labarre credits his father with teaching him the importance of “loyalty and commitment.” His mother was a stay-at-home mom who raised six kids and eventually worked as a medical technician. Labarre says she encouraged him to stay in school.
Now the CEO and president of Labarre Associates, a real estate and architecture firm based in Denham Springs, Labarre keeps close the lessons his parents taught him.
Founded in 1984, the company designed several notable projects in the region over the years, including several Livingston Parish Library branches as well as the Greystone Country Club pavilion and clubhouse. During its more than three decades in existence, the company has weathered technological changes and new market expansions. But in 2016, Labarre Associates encountered a new obstacle— taking on upwards of eight-feet of water during the August flood. Half of the company’s Denham Springs-based staff lost their homes and cars.
“For us, the silver lining to the flood was that we learned to rely on each other, and our clients learned that with the capabilities of our employees we really are ‘One Source-One Solution,’” Labarre says. “After the flood, we rebuilt the entire corporate office with an emphasis on the needs of the employees. We have learned that when our employees are provided with a superior working environment the employees provide our clients with superior service.”
Read the full Executive Spotlight Q&A. Here’s a sample of what you will find:
You’ve expanded your company through the years to include branch offices in Mississippi and Florida. What’s your advice to business owners who want to branch out and expand their business?
Make sure you have existing work and clients to support the branch office, or the capital required to see you through what is usually a slow and expensive start.
Send your comments to editors@businessreport.com.
