119
This is the world that was: In 2008, the second 100 Interior DesignGiants earned a grand total of $452,826,937, slicing a 6 percent increaseout of an otherwise unappetizing economic pie. Each interior designemployee was responsible for an average $194,112 of work, with a minimum of $25,419 and a maximum of $837,500. A total of 195,565,816 square feet of projects, encompassing $11,758,712,354 of materials installed, resulted in 2 and 15 percent increases, respectively. However, in the months between the second 100 Giants’ completion of our annual survey and our sitting down to report the results, the world reeled from one financial crisis to another. Data for last year remains as valid as ever, of course, but that did nothing to allay our anxiety about what had been happening to designers and their clients in the interim. Fortunately, almost half the second 100 Giants—pretty evenly distributed among the rankings— volunteered to let us in on the complex, sometimes contradictory, invariably surprising goings-on. First of all, a big sigh of relief. This group experienced postponements and
200
giants cancellations of projects worth total fees of $27,978,727 but brought in pro jects paying $30,627,252. That’s ahead of the game by almost 10 percent. Some of the numbers are extraordinary. One firm lost $50,000 in fees while gaining close to $2 million. Although 17 firms gained less than they lost, nine suffered no losses at all. Since jobs are not measured by square footage in every interiors category, hospitality being a major example, only 28 firms were able give us an idea of space involved: 16,600,000 square feet lost but just 12,961,638 gained. Whatever else the current adversity does, it’s had the second 100 Giants, as a whole, earn ing 39.6 percent more per square foot than they were before. Hospitality suffered the worst damage, with hotels bearing half the brunt. Office work came next. It may seem strange that offices were also the least hurt. In an economic crisis, however, it’s normal for interiors firms to be hired to reconfigure spaces for downsized staff, and 22 of our respondents have already engaged in this activity. It’s also normal for this extra work to be handled by reduced design staffs—reduced by 12.7 percent in the case of the second 100
some surprising results
Giants. We’ve been warned that six months will pass at the very least before staffing returns to civilized levels. In the meantime, firms will probably hire independent contractors rather than a salaried workforce. Growth actually occurred in health care and government, followed by the office and sustainability categories. Almosttwice as many firms thought overseas prospects better than domestic. Still, one firm declared Russia and the United Arab Emirates to be “disasters.” More than half believed that, despite the economy, opportunities for green design would continue to grow, both to save clients money down the line and to head off potential government regulation; 23 percent felt the green market would contract; 17 percent thought it would remain flat for the duration. Some expect to benefit from government stimulus involving the greening of public buildings; a smaller group was unsure. But, as one respondent put it, “While we may not directly benefit, more dollars in the market can’t hurt.” Seeing where growth might be possible is the sort of ability that will maintain our profession and ultimately help it thrive. —Judith Davidsen
Rottet Studio designed the Bernhardt Design showroom in the Merchandise Mart, Chicago.
eric laignel
giants200 Firm (headquarters | web site) ADD (boston | addinc.com) Epstein (chicago | epsteinglobal.com) RYA Design Consultancy (dallas | rya.com) JGA (southfield, michigan | jga.com) Planning Design and Research Corporation (houston | pdrcorp.com) Looney & Associates (dallas | looney-associates.com) FXFowle Architects (new york | fxfowle.com) KZF Design (cincinnati | kzf.com) VeenendaalCave (atlanta | vcave.com) OTJ Architects (washington, d.c. | otj.com) HFS Concepts 4 (long beach, california | hfsc4.com) Milo Kleinberg Design Associates (new york | mkda.com) Array Healthcare Facilities Solutions (king of prussia, pennsylvania | arrayhfs.com) Loebl Schlossman & Hackl (chicago | lshdesign.com) Ratcliff (emeryville, california | ratcliffarch.com) Carrier Johnson (san diego | carrierjohnson.com) SOSH Architects (atlantic city | sosharch.com) Spector Group (new york | spectorgroup.com) Rottet Studio (houston | rottetstudio.com) Elkus/Manfredi Architects (boston | elkus-manfredi.com) J/Brice Design International (boston | jbricedesign.com) Ronald Schmidt & Associates (englewood, new jersey | rsaaia.com) Hendrick (atlanta | hendrickinc.com) Zeffdesign (new york | zeffdesign.com) SFA Design (santa barbara, california | sfadesign.com) STG Design (austin, texas | stgdesign.com) H. Hendy Associates (newport beach, california | hhendy.com) Chute Gerdeman (columbus, ohio | chutegerdeman.com) Interprise (addison, texas | interprisedesign.com) Gary Lee Partners (chicago | garyleepartners.com) Joi-Design Interior Architects (hamburg, germany | joi-design.com) OPX (washington, d.c. | opxglobal.com) KNA Interior Design (los angeles | knadesign.com) Pollack Architecture (san francisco | pollackarch.com) Whitney (oak brook, illinois | whitneydesign.com) AAI (san jose, california | aaidesign.com) Butler Rogers Baskett Architects (new york | brb.com) Sasaki Associates (watertown, massachusetts | sasaki.com) Graham Downes Architecture (san diego | grahamdownes.com) Rees Associates (oklahoma city | rees.com) Davis Carter Scott (mclean, virginia | dcsdesign.com) OZ Architecture (denver | ozarch.com) Style Interior Design (irvine, california | style-interiors.com) Legat Architects (chicago | legat.com) DES Architects + Engineers (redwood city, california | des-ae.com)
design Fees
Value
Sq. Ft.
(millions)
(millions)
(millions)
$7.354 $7.300 $7.250 $7.250 $7.224 $7.200 $7.180 $7.148 $7.115 $7.041 $7.000 $7.000 $6.827 $6.700 $6.610 $6.562 $6.400 $6.400 $6.300 $6.284 $6.200 $6.020 $6.003 $6.000 $6.000 $6.000 $5.850 $5.800 $5.700 $5.500 $5.380 $5.373 $5.275 $5.250 $5.203 $5.200 $5.200 $5.000 $5.000 $4.955 $4.856 $4.668 $4.650 $4.650 $4.600
$216.298 $650.000 $268.569 $65.000 $200.000 $951.000 $144.000 $318.000 $46.933 $75.000 $198.000 NR $264.000 $200.000 $57.000 $218.720 $320.000 $139.000 NR NR $650.000 $125.000 $145.000 $324.670 $48.000 $4.000 $66.375 NR $57.000 $19.000 $70.000 $107.456 NR $82.000 $74.000 $325.000 $65.000 $200.000 $30.000 NR NR NR $74.000 $56.472 NR
$2.10 $15.00 $2.34 $0.50 $2.00 $2.00 $0.96 $10.68 $3.90 $3.27 NR $0.90 $1.75 $1.30 NR $2.19 $5.50 $2.00 NR $1.43 $1.50 $3.00 $7.25 $1.50 $0.85 $0.25 $2.00 $0.55 $3.50 $0.55 NR $1.10 $2.42 $1.20 $3.00 $5.00 $1.14 $1.60 $1.20 $1.80 NR NR $5.30 $2.79 NR
design Staff 35 55 31 32 42 39 30 30 57 48 87 30 16 8 42 72 10 33 39 30 25 36 31 35 22 30 26 37 46 31 38 43 22 32 31 28 25 36 21 32 22 27 15 32 15
Rank 2008 95 120 127 99 83 109 110 123 107 119 42 93 78 117 108 166 138 94 121 128 132 137 131 125 122 102 112 111 142 133 139 161 129 96 114 149 130 144 87
This stairwell is in a Chicago duplex penthouse by Gary Lee Partners.
130
scott mcdonald/hedrich blessing
work Installed
Rank 2009 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145
work Installed
Rank 2009 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200
Firm (headquarters | web site) Westar Architects (las vegas | wagnarchitects.com) Mojo Stumer Associates Architects (greenvale, new york | mojostumer.com) Omniplan (dallas | omniplan.com) GBD Architects (portland, oregon | gbdarchitects.com) Yates-Silverman (las vegas | yates-silverman.com) RDH & Associates (addison, texas | rdhassociates.net) Kay Lang + Associates (los angeles | kaylangassocs.com) Goettsch Partners (chicago | gpchicago.com) Meyer Design (ardmore, pennsylvania | meyerdesigninc.com) Puccini Group (san francisco | puccinigroup.com) ABA (las vegas | abalv.com) Heitz Parsons Sadek (west palm beach, florida | heitz-parsons-sadek.com) Core Architecture + Design (washington, d.c. | coredc.com) Biber Partnership (summit, new jersey | tbpaia.com) Dyer Brown & Associates (boston | dyerbrown.com) Carson Design Associates (carmel, indiana | carsondesign.com) Cuningham Group Architecture (minneapolis | cuningham.com) Burkettdesign (denver | burkettdesign.com) SKB Architecture & Design (washington, d.c. | skbarch.com) Reel Grobman & Associates (san jose, california | reelgrobman.com) Phillips Architecture (raleigh, north carolina | phillipsarch.com) Symmes Maini & McKee Associates (cambridge, massachusetts | smma.com) Design Development (agoura hills, california | designdevelopment-group.com) Design Directions International (marietta, georgia | ddi.cc) Brereton Architects (san francisco | brereton.com) J. Banks Design Group (hilton head island, south carolina | jbanksdesign.com) GRAD Associates (newark | gradarchitects.com) Idea/Span (atlanta | idea-span.com) RD Jones & Associates (baltimore | rdjones.com) EDG Interior Architecture + Design (san rafael, california | edgdesign.com) Hatch Design Group (costa mesa, california | hatchdesign.com) Shea (minneapolis | shealink.com) Rowland Design (indianapolis | rowlanddesign.com) Loffredo Brooks Architects (new york | lbarch.com) Cleo Design (las vegas | cleo-design.com) Maregatti Interiors (indianapolis | maregattiinteriors.com) BLT Architects (philadelphia | blta.com) Stephen B. Jacobs Group/Andi Pepper Interior Design (new york | sbjgroup.com) Sawyer Design Associates (dallas | sawyerdesignassoc.com) Klawiter and Associates (los angeles | klawiter.com) IEI Group (philadelphia | ieigroup.com) Lauckgroup (dallas | lauckgroup.com) Partridge Architects (philadelphia | partridgearch.com) Spacesmith (new york | spacesmith.net) Orsini Design Associates (new york | orsinidesignassociates.com) Faulkner Design Group (dallas | faulknerdesign.com) Montgomery Roth Architecture & Interior Design (houston | montgomeryroth.com) FME Architecture + Design (san francisco | fme-arch.com) Simeone Deary Design Group (chicago | simeonedeary.com) Design Group Carl Ross (el segundo, california | designgroupcarlross.com) Inarch (new york | inarch.net) Dupoux Design (new york | dupouxdesign.com) Grid2 (new york | grid2.com) Gray Design Group (st. louis | graydesigngroup.com) Morrison Seifert Murphy (dallas | msmgroup.com)
design Fees
Value
Sq. Ft.
(millions)
(millions)
(millions)
$75.000 $36.000 NR $40.000 $200.000 $36.640 NR $21.000 NR $47.000 $700.000 $55.000 $35.000 $69.100 $45.000 $6.000 NR $154.078 $45.400 $100.000 $20.000 $46.000 $40.000 $147.850 $55.000 $7.137 $50.000 $77.500 NR $80.000 $108.764 $55.000 NR $75.000 NR $130.000 $25.000 $350.000 $12.250 $62.000 $50.000 $60.000 $29.200 $4.500 $17.806 $6.445 NR NR $1.800 NR $31.000 $100.000 $2.000 $240.000 NR
$0.70 $0.20 NR $3.22 NR NR NR $0.12 $10.50 $0.63 NR $1.52 $0.27 $1.80 $1.70 $1.82 $1.63 $2.57 $0.65 $1.60 $2.00 $2.00 $0.60 $3.83 $1.50 $0.52 $0.50 $1.19 NR $0.29 $0.28 $0.55 NR $0.70 $0.67 $6.90 $0.25 $0.55 NR $0.78 $1.80 $0.90 $0.31 $0.34 NR $0.24 NR NR $0.02 NR $0.28 $1.20 $0.75 $2.40 NR
$4.500 $4.500 $4.370 $4.316 $4.300 $4.200 $4.200 $4.120 $4.038 $4.000 $3.950 $3.950 $3.950 $3.900 $3.900 $3.900 $3.864 $3.852 $3.828 $3.800 $3.688 $3.616 $3.600 $3.525 $3.500 $3.453 $3.404 $3.300 $3.300 $3.225 $3.111 $3.100 $3.036 $3.000 $2.985 $2.900 $2.850 $2.800 $2.750 $2.700 $2.700 $2.699 $2.619 $2.590 $2.587 $2.448 $2.300 $2.286 $2.200 $2.196 $2.120 $2.100 $2.100 $2.075 $2.050
design Staff 18 23 14 25 22 16 20 14 32 27 15 29 20 18 21 48 152 37 21 27 21 87 12 14 25 23 14 20 25 28 28 20 23 18 16 15 101 15 27 13 12 23 22 20 7 16 10 7 17 10 15 20 24 25 9
Rank 2008 124 151 140 147 191 155 159 160 134 148 171 150 177 164 198 145 154 157 167 162 182 172 179 181 176 174 156 165 173 163 168 136 178 185 170 175 197 143 189 184 195 -
giants200
giants200 % of Fees by project type <1.0%
<1.0%
3.6%
0.9% 3.2%
1.1%
3.1%
3.7%
6.1%
6.4%
6.2% 36.7%
6.5%
6.6%
36.6%
7.1%
8.5%
7.2% 28.4%
28.3%
(2008 actual fees)
(2009 forecast fees)
Office $166,052,653 Hospitality $128,722,342 Retail $38,428,116 Residential $29,416,419 Health Care/Assisted Living $27,870,789 Educational $27,738,343 Government $14,376,163 Cultural $3,938,298 Transportation $160,248 Other $16,123,567 Total: $452,826,937
Office $170,097,178 Hospitality $131,758,243 Retail $33,356,054 Residential $32,826,455 Health Care/Assisted Living $30,712,476 Educational $29,600,077 Government $17,213,132 Cultural $5,227,820 Transportation $74,480 Other $14,247,620 Total: $465,113,535
189 From left: MTV Networks in New York is by Spacesmith. OPX designed the law office of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in Washington, D.C.
132 median annual salary & hourly rate
$85,000 $60,000
Designer Other Design Staff
$50,000
10 Fastest-Growing in second 100 (By % Change) Firm Cuningham Group Architecture RDH & Associates SOSH Architects Dyer Brown & Associates Orsini Design Associates Design Directions International AAI GRAD Associates Spector Group Idea/Span
2009 Fees $3,863,657 $4,200,000 $6,400,000 $3,900,000 $2,587,352 $3,525,000 $5,200,000 $3,404,000 $6,400,000 $3,300,000
2008 Fees $1,750,000 $2,000,000 $3,366,100 $2,600,000 $1,752,176 $2,410,000 $3,600,000 $2,520,000 $4,800,000 $2,499,000
% Change 120.8 110.0 90.1 50.0 47.7 46.3 44.4 35.1 33.3 32.1
$200 $150 $110 $90
from left: chris goodney; hoachlander davis photography
Principal/ Partner Project Manager
$150,000
179 A John Varvatos boutique by Loffredo Brooks Architects occupies the former CBGB club in New York.
new to the second 100 giants firm 2009 Rank Array Healthcare Facilities Solutions 113 Rottet Studio 119 J/Brice Design International 121 Joi-Design Interior Architects 131 Rees Associates 140 Legat Architects 144 Omniplan 148 Kay Lang + Associates 152 Symmes Maini & McKee Associates 167 Brereton Architects 170 Maregatti Interiors 181 Stephen B. Jacobs Group/Andi Pepper Interior Design 183 Sawyer Design Associates 184 Klawiter and Associates 185 Montgomery Roth Architecture & Interior Design 192 FME Architecture + Design 193 Simeone Deary Design Group 194 Design Group Carl Ross 195 Grid2 198 Morrison Seifert Murphy 200
the second 100 largest firms ranked by interior design fees for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2008. The first 100 Giants firm ranking was published in January. Interior design fees include those attributed to: 1. All types of interiors work, including commercial office, hospitality, retail, medical, and residential. 2. All aspects of a firmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interior design practice, from strategic planning and programming to design and project management. 3. Fees paid to a firm for work performed by employees and independent contractors who are full-time staff equivalent. Interior design fees do not include revenues paid to a firm and remitted to subcontractors who are not considered full-time staff equivalent. For example, certain firms attract work that is subcontracted to a local firm. The originating firm may collect all the fees and retain a management or generation fee, paying the remainder to the performing firm. The amounts paid to the latter are not included in fees of the collecting firm when determining its ranking. The data was compiled and analyzed by the Interior Design market research staff in New York: Laura Girmscheid, research manager, and Wing Leung, research director. Judith Davidsen is a frequent contributor to Interior Design.
Circle 24
giants200 40
interiordesign.net month.09
eric laignel
Methodology The second installment of the two-part annual business survey of Interior Design Giants comprises