How Our Story Helps Make Your Project a Success

John-Paul & Janie Micek, husband and wife founders of STUDIO 818 Design

As the founders of STUDIO 818, we know what it’s like to be in your shoes—ready to invest in a major renovation or new custom home, but unsure how to navigate the risks and decisions, and manage all the moving parts.

That’s why we built STUDIO 818 as a luxury Design Build Concierge™ firm: one team, under one roof, guiding you from property selection to full-furnished move-in and every step in between.

Before serving our first client, we completed over 50 of our own designer Spec Homes in Los Angeles and South Florida—properties developed for yet unknown buyers with real money and real needs, with our reputations at stake.

We managed every aspect of each project ourselves—property acquisition, pre-construction planning, conceptual and master-planning, architectural design, construction, marketing, and property sales.

That experience shaped the systems, mindset, and leadership we bring to your project.

And here’s the big win: all of that real-world trial and error?

You get all the benefits—without the risk.

Watch the quick video below . . .

Get to know the story behind STUDIO 818 and how our journey gives you a serious edge on your project.

The Owner’s Mindset

We’ve personally invested millions of dollars and years of our lives developing residential projects. Every decision we made carried weight—our own money, our partners’ trust, and our brand were always on the line.

That level of ownership shaped everything we do. It’s why we operate as Design Build Concierge firm—delivering a seamless, stress-free experience from concept to completion.

Our underlying Design + Build Management process is engineered by owners, for owners. It’s not theory. It’s a framework born from hands-on investment experience, refined across dozens of real-world projects.

Most importantly, it’s designed to eliminate the guesswork, stress, and costly missteps that plague traditional renovation and building models.

✔ Master-planning
✔ Design that aligns with your goals and your lifestyle
✔ Budget and benchmark discipline
✔ Cohesive execution and management from start to finish

You get one streamlined, designer-led team—and a project that stays on course.

Click here to see our Design + Build Management Framework in more detail.

Our Pain Is Your Gain

We’ve encountered—and overcome—nearly every challenge in high-end residential development. Not just surface-level issues, but root causes that trip up even the most prepared homeowners.

And guess what? The biggest problems don’t come from bad contractors or unreliable suppliers. They come from flaws baked into the standard industry process.

We flipped that script.

Instead of leaving clients to cobble together their own design-build team and manage the chaos, we created a better path. Our Design + Build Management process removes the silos and builds one cohesive team from the start.

You get the benefit of a framework that’s been tested, refined, and stress-tested—on our dime. Now it’s ready to deliver your dream home, minus the drama.

Standing in the Gap for You

Let’s face it—building or renovating a luxury home isn’t just costly. It’s complex. Most homeowners quickly find themselves caught between designers, contractors, inspectors, and vendors—all speaking their own language and protecting their own turf.

You end up as the middleman. Decision fatigue sets in. Mistakes get made. Costs climb.

That’s where we come in.

We believe you deserve a guide who understands the terrain—and has your back from day one. At STUDIO 818, we don’t just help you design a beautiful home. We protect your time, your investment, and your peace of mind.

With our team acting as your single point of contact, your project moves forward with clarity, purpose, and momentum. From concept through construction to move-in, we lead with your best interest at heart.

We unify every player involved—architects, designers, builders, engineers—under a shared vision and clear accountability. You’re not just building a home. You’re building with confidence.

The Backstory

STUDIO 818 began as Restore 818 in Southern California. Founders John-Paul and Janie Micek launched the business in 2010, buying and transforming historic homes in LA’s 818 area code.

As demand grew and their passion deepened, they brought their operation to Fort Lauderdale in 2012—and soon transitioned from developer-only work to direct client services.

By 2018, they had wrapped up their final spec projects and launched STUDIO 818 to focus exclusively on helping clients bring their own design dreams to life.

Janie Micek, Founder / Creative Director

With over 20 years of experience in high-performance design and complex construction, Janie Micek brings a rare combination of technical precision, creative vision, and owner-level accountability to every STUDIO 818 project.

Janie is a licensed Interior Architect and NCIDQ-certified professional—a designation that requires thousands of hours of verified experience and mastery across building systems, codes, construction administration, and project coordination. She is also a LEED Accredited Professional, trained in sustainable design strategies at the systems level. These are credentials few in the residential space hold—especially those also leading creative direction.

Her professional journey began in Boston at one of the city’s premier commercial interior architecture firms, where she managed multi-million-dollar design projects across a variety of sectors. But it was her move to Los Angeles that sparked a deeper evolution in her aesthetic—heavily influenced by the timeless elegance of pre-war architecture, the creativity of adaptive reuse, and the clean lines of Mid-Century Modernism.

From there, Janie stepped into the world of real estate development, personally designing and managing over 50 investor-funded designer Spec Homes in Southern California and South Florida. These weren’t just design projects—they were full-scale developments where every detail impacted value, timeline, and ROI.

That experience shaped her uniquely pragmatic approach: every design decision must be emotionally resonant, visually stunning, and constructible. Whether she’s leading a major remodel, a luxury expansion, or a ground-up new home, Janie designs with one goal—to transform vision into reality with clarity, precision, and style.

John-Paul Micek, Founder / Chief Owner’s Advocate

John-Paul Micek has been building and optimizing businesses since he was 12 years old. A serial entrepreneur by nature, he launched three service-based companies before age 30—including a landscape design-build firm focused on estate-level projects with budgets between $350,000 and $1.2 million (in 1998 dollars).

That entrepreneurial foundation eventually led him into real estate investment and development, where he’s overseen more than 200 residential and commercial projects across the mainland U.S. and Hawaii. From single-family homes to 350-unit apartment complexes, John-Paul’s experience spans the full lifecycle of acquisition, planning, design, construction, and asset strategy.

As Co-Founder of STUDIO 818 and its Chief Owner’s Advocate, John-Paul leads operations, construction oversight, systems development, and the Buy-It-Right Property™ Consulting division—a specialized pre-purchase service designed to help clients make smart, investment-grade decisions before design even begins. He is also a licensed Florida real estate agent working exclusively with STUDIO 818 clients.

His role is clear: to protect your investment, align every decision with your goals, and ensure your dream home is built beautifully, logistically, and financially sound.