Executive Summary
Interior designers in L.A. County have been staying busy as commercial construction in the area continues its comeback. Revenues at the 25 largest commercial interior design firms increased to $94.9 million, up 16 percent from $81.9 million reported by last year’s top 25. The number of designers on staff at the top 25 increased as well, to 552 from 519 last year.
Eighteen of the 25 firms saw their revenues increase last year, some of them substantially. Most notably, No. 1 Gensler’s revenues rose from $10.3 million to $14.2 million, and No. 5 HLW International went from $4 million to $6 million.
Most commercial interior design firms provide a variety of services beyond interior design such as strategic planning and brand positioning. Among the top 25, 17 firms reported that at least 80 percent of their business involves interior design. The rest are mainly architectural firms that have a design division.
The Pacesetter
Gensler is the largest interior design firm in the world and by far the biggest in L.A. County. With 1997 L.A. County design revenues of $14.2 million, Gensler tops its nearest competitor No. 2 Hirsh Bedner Associates by over $5 million. And it’s getting bigger. The San Francisco-based architecture and interior design firm saw its L.A. County design revenues jump 38 percent last year, following a 37 percent increase from 1995 to 1996.
Design staff in L.A. County has increased 167 percent in the last two years and currently stands at 88 interior designers. In L.A., about 40 percent of Gensler’s business is devoted to commercial interior design, with the rest devoted to architecture. Routinely ranked as the nation’s top design firm by Interior Design and Building Design & Construction magazines, Gensler performs design work in a variety of industries in L.A. County, generally in office settings. Recent local design projects include Pacific Capital’s Beverly Hills offices, screening rooms for 20th Century Fox and Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton’s downtown law offices. Gensler has also contributed both architecture and interior design work as the executive architect for Dreamworks SKG’s Glendale animation complex. Gensler has 17 offices around the world and had companywide revenues of $182 million in 1997.
