Meet the Team
Chad Philhour
Founder | Principal Architect
AIA, NCARB Architect | Licensed AZ, CO, FL, ID, KS, KY, MO, TX, UT
Chad Philhour is an experienced Architect and design leader specializing in entertainment, hospitality, and retail environments. With over 25 years of industry experience, he blends hands-on architectural involvement with creative leadership, guiding projects from early vision through construction while focusing on brand alignment, guest experience, operational performance, and budget.
He has led design for a broad range of entertainment exhibitors, encompassing hundreds of bowling lanes and thousands of auditoriums. In the hospitality sector, he has delivered numerous restaurants across a variety of brands, giving him a deep understanding of how experience-driven environments function and perform at scale.
As Founder and Managing Partner, Chad directs the studio’s design vision while remaining actively engaged in concept development, feasibility studies, budgeting, construction documentation, and administration. His approach is grounded in collaboration, technical precision, and a disciplined understanding of scale, repeatability, and operational performance, delivering innovative and buildable solutions for clients ranging from independent operators to large franchise models.
Chad holds a degree in Architecture and Art History. Outside the studio, he is a husband and proud father of four daughters, a role that keeps perspective, balance, and purpose at the center of his work.
