The Shelby relationship did not start with a contract. It started with a mural, fifteen by forty feet, racing stripes and Carroll Shelby's signature across the side of the building. We painted it without asking the city.
It came out so well that the city's reaction was, more or less, we would never have approved this if you had asked, but keep it up. That is not a story about getting away with something. It is a story about what a city actually wants: something that makes the town look better, and a company that can be trusted to do the work right. When we later needed the city on our side for the harder things, the documentation packet we put in front of them was mostly about how Shelby would add press and value to the city. The mural was the proof, already on the wall.
The mural led to the retail store, and the store led to a full VIP lounge built out of Shelby's own former apartment, about four years of work in all. The company's co-CEO said it plainly: the team earned their trust.
I do not believe you win the big scope by pitching for it. You win it by making the small piece so good that saying no to you next time stops making sense. And often it is better to ask for forgiveness.