Up To The Challenge: 2009 Top 100 Giants

This is going to require a little perspective.

Interior Design

‘s current top 100 Giants earned $2,697,678,869 in 2008, an increase of 13 percent over the previous crew and 9 percent more than their own forecasts. Sounds good, no? But if the pundits who claim the current recession was already under way a year ago are correct, 13 percent is not just good but rather extraordinary.

This year’s Giants were responsible for 750,308,533 square feet, up 19 percent, and $58,375,277,937 in furnishings, fixtures, and construction, up 7 percent. New construction accounted for 62 percent of jobs, renovations 38 percent—pretty much the same as the year before. Project types that paid the best per unit of time or effort were health care, office, and hospitality, followed at a distance by retail. Government and educational paid the least.

As of our survey last October, the Giants predicted a 6 percent decline in interior design income for the coming year. But, again, a little perspective. A 10 percent decline is projected in overall income, which includes earnings from building and landscape architecture, engineering, facilities management, industrial design, consulting, planning, preservation, lighting, feasibility studies, branding, graphics, and set design. On average, interiors account for 58 percent of Giant income, with only 16 firms devoted exclusively to the practice. Declines of 7 percent are also projected in square footage as well as furniture, fixtures, and construction.

The largest portion of Giant income still comes from the office sector, but its share has dropped 11 percent since 2005. Over the same period, hospitality grew from 9 to just shy of 20 percent of income.

Almost 30 percent of Giant fees derived from environmentally responsible design, with 19 firms earning 50 percent or more from the category. Still, 22—including five of the top 10—did not report any green income at all. Government, educational, and office clients were the most enthusiastic about sustainability, with health care and hospitality only mildly engaged, and cultural and retail projects barely on the map. Sustainable products accounted for 44 percent of those specified, and 14 firms claim that at least 75 percent of their choices was green. All in all, the 97 firms specifying environmentally responsible products spent a tidy $6,988,806,383, roughly 12 percent of all spending on furniture, fixtures, and construction.

The median annual fee earned per employee was $221,619, up 6 percent from the previous year and 32 percent over 2003, when we started calculating this figure. Recruiting high-caliber staff members was the second-highest concern for the Giants, after the economy. To hang onto them, competitive salaries and benefits topped the list, followed by diverse projects and collaborative work environments.

The Giants hired 740 interior design employees during 2008, increasing staffs by an average of 7 percent. Sustainability credentials and computer expertise were named most often as skills required now versus five years ago. A dozen firms relied more on independent contractors than previously; 49 used the same number; 33 used fewer.

It remains to be seen, of course, how these numbers will play out in the future. In the meantime,

Interior Design

is confident that our industry’s innovation will play a significant role in creating the exact sort of alternatives needed to stem the tide and reflect changes in business practice. We’ll keep our ear to the ground, reporting the latest news as early and often as possible.

See the top 100 Giants from 2008

See all the Giants rankings

Images from top: Gresham, Smith and Partners designed Nissan Americas in Franklin, Tenneessee. Photo by Brian Robbins; Peter Marino Architect’s Ermenegildo Zegna boutique is in New York. Photo by Paul Warchol; Nokia Latin America, Miami, is by Leo A Daly. Photo by Simon Hare.

Rank 2009	Firm (Headquarters|Web Site)	Design Fees (millions)	Value (millions)	Sq. Ft. (millions)	Design Staff	Rank 2008
1	Gensler (San Francisco | gensler.com )	$285.000	$5,700.00	70.50	1,140	1
2	HOK (St. Louis | hok.com )	$114.000	$3,721.11	47.71	395	2
3	HDR (Omaha | hdrinc.com )	$92.400	$2,800.00	21.00	390	7
4	Callison (Seattle | callison.com )	$89.000	$2,000.00	20.00	145	3
5	Perkins + Will (Chicago | perkinswill.com )	$85.886	$2,158.00	32.43	305	4
6	Jacobs (Pasadena, California | jacobs.com )	$74.565	$1,350.00	15.00	300	6
7	Nelson (Philadelphia | nelsononline.com )	$70.000	$1,600.00	18.20	378	5
8	HBA/Hirsch Bedner Associates (Los Angeles | hbadesign.com )	$68.800	$4,059.20	38.66	440	8
9	Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (New York | som.com )	$61.537	NR	5.48	113	12
10	Wilson Associates (Dallas | wilsonassoc.com )	$53.600	$1,000.00	NR	349	11
11	Leo A Daly (Omaha | leoadaly.com )	$53.480	$1,500.00	13.40	211	10
12	Burt Hill (Washington, D.C. | burthill.com )	$52.800	NR	NR	301	19
13	IA Interior Architects (San Francisco | interiorarchitects.com )	$51.810	$950.00	23.00	272	9
14	RMJM Hillier (New York | rmjmhillier.com )	$50.000	$1,600.00	10.50	350	30
15	Perkins Eastman (New York | perkinseastman.com )	$49.980	$854.00	5.17	185	16
16	PageSoutherlandPage (Houston | pspaec.com )	$48.312	$597.58	9.20	180	13
17	Cannon Design (New York | cannondesign.com )	$47.950	NR	6.00	167	15
18	SmithGroup (Detroit | smithgroup.com )	$43.659	$540.00	5.50	197	14
19	M Moser Associates (Hong Kong | mmoser.com )	$40.609	$205.96	4.25	370	–
20	Pavlik Design Team (Fort Lauderdale, Florida | pavlikdesign.com )	$39.341	NR	43.97	123	17
21	KlingStubbins (Philadelphia | klingstubbins.com )	$35.000	$700.00	9.95	140	20
22	NBBJ (Seattle | nbbj.com )	$34.980	$1,000.00	22.00	208	18
23	Flad Architects (Madison, Wisconsin | flad.com )	$32.850	$1,105.00	8.50	86	26
24	TPG Architecture (New York | tpgarchitecture.com )	$31.943	$1,085.00	9.50	183	22
25	Rockwell Group (New York | rockwellgroup.com )	$29.900	$124.50	1.36	37	24
26	HLW International (New York | hlw.com )	$29.400	$700.00	NR	82	41
27	Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects (Portland, Oregon | zgf.com )	$29.000	$600.00	3.00	94	33
28	Anshen + Allen (San Francisco | anshen.com )	$28.000	$656.55	1.93	100	28
29	Cubellis (Boston | cubellis.com )	$27.400	$639.00	9.13	79	23
30	AECOM (Los Angeles | aecom.com )	$26.111	$479.86	4.41	63	21
31	Little (Charlotte, North Carolina | littleonline.com )	$25.800	$365.00	19.00	55	43
32	FRCH Design Worldwide (Cincinnati | frch.com )	$25.200	$500.00	NR	155	27
33	Studios Architecture (Washington, D.C. | studiosarchitecture.com )	$25.025	$1,155.00	4.20	131	39
34	RTKL Associates (Baltimore | rtkl.com )	$25.000	$350.00	10.00	133	34
35	HKS (Dallas | hksinc.com )	$25.000	NR	NR	258	35
36	EwingCole (Philadelphia | ewingcole.com )	$24.800	$500.00	3.00	150	37
37	HGA Architects and Engineers (Minneapolis | hga.com )	$24.250	NR	NR	34	–
38	Mancini Duffy (New York | manciniduffy.com )	$23.000	$575.00	10.30	123	25
39	Ted Moudis Associates (New York | tedmoudis.com )	$22.000	$200.00	5.00	100	36
40	VOA Associates (Chicago | voa.com )	$20.479	$341.31	6.83	92	38
41	BBG-BBGM (New York | bbg-bbgm.com )	$20.000	NR	NR	42	51
42	Daroff Design + DDI Architects (Philadelphia | daroffdesign.com )	$19.500	$175.00	3.00	35	40
43	Peter Marino Architect (New York | petermarinoarchitect.com )	$18.700	$300.00	0.45	102	47
44	Harley Ellis Devereaux (Southfield, Michigan | harleyellisdevereaux.com )	$18.000	$304.00	4.10	115	31
45	Bilkey Llinas Design (Palm Beach Gardens, Florida | bilkeyllinas.com )	$17.200	NR	NR	117	74
46	ASD (Atlanta | asdnet.com )	$17.000	NR	NR	90	49
47	Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart (Atlanta | srssa.com )	$16.190	NR	NR	40	32
48	Vocon (Cleveland | vocon.com )	$15.300	$260.00	3.70	62	56
49	Shepley Bulfinch Richardson & Abbott (Boston | sbra.com )	$14.949	$166.10	0.47	14	72
50	DBI Architects (Washington, D.C. | dbia.com )	$14.500	$210.00	3.00	64	50
51	Marc-Michaels Interior Design (Winter Park, Florida | marc-michaels.com )	$14.100	$225.00	NR	50	48
52	RMW Architecture & Interiors (San Francisco | rmw.com )	$14.003	$398.00	2.95	65	65
53	Roger Ferris + Partners (Westport, Connecticut | ferrisarch.com )	$14.000	$300.00	1.20	38	61
54	TVSdesign (Atlanta | tvs-design.com )	$13.500	NR	NR	72	58
55	OWP/P (Chicago | owpp.com )	$13.325	NR	4.80	33	–
56	LS3P Associates (Charleston, South Carolina | ls3p.com )	$13.200	$674.00	12.70	63	57
57	Granary Associates (Philadelphia | granaryassoc.com )	$13.000	NR	NR	47	113
58	CBT (Boston | cbtarchitects.com )	$12.700	$415.00	4.00	60	60
59	Karlsberger (Columbus, Ohio | karlsberger.com )	$12.540	$1,104.40	3.63	22	59
60	Switzer Group (New York | theswitzergroup.com )	$12.200	$220.00	3.50	44	69
61	DiLeonardo International (Warwick, Rhode Island | dileonardo.com )	$12.200	NR	NR	80	53
62	Cooper Carry (Atlanta | coopercarry.com )	$12.140	$200.00	2.10	35	76
63	Ware Malcomb (Irvine, California | waremalcomb.com )	$12.063	$360.00	6.03	34	45
64	Gresham, Smith and Partners (Nashville | gspnet.com )	$11.760	$137.98	6.20	73	64
65	Swanke Hayden Connell Architects (New York | shca.com )	$11.400	NR	3.20	83	44
66	Lawrence Group (St. Louis | thelawrencegroup.com )	$10.834	$298.00	3.56	93	52
67	Robert A.M. Stern Architects (New York | ramsa.com )	$10.737	$140.00	2.42	19	141
68	Huntsman Architectural Group (San Francisco | huntsmanag.com )	$10.500	$450.00	0.75	74	70
69	Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo (Irvine, California | watg.com )	$10.404	NR	14.24	50	116
70	BAMO (San Francisco | bamo.com )	$10.100	NR	NR	57	62
71	Stonehill & Taylor Architects and Planners (New York | stonehilltaylor.com )	$10.024	$200.00	3.00	43	84
72	Gettys (Chicago | gettys.com )	$10.004	NR	NR	69	66
73	Staffelbach Design Associates (Dallas | staffelbach.com )	$9.900	$220.00	1.70	60	80
74	Creative Design Consultants (Costa Mesa, california | cdcdesigns.com )	$9.872	NR	NR	45	29
75	BraytonHughes Design Studios (San Francisco | bhdstudios.com )	$9.631	NR	NR	44	86
76	Arcturis (St. Louis | arcturis.com )	$9.559	$231.33	1.92	68	118
77	Group Goetz Architects (Washington, D.C. | gga.com )	$9.500	$165.00	1.50	55	100
78	JRS Architect (Mineola, New York | jrsarchitect.com )	$9.500	$85.00	0.45	45	77
79	Slifer Designs (Edwards, Colorado | sliferdesigns.com )	$9.450	$26.45	NR	32	73
80	TRO Jung/Brannen (Boston | trojungbrannen.com )	$9.256	$257.10	1.03	39	63
81	Design Duncan Miller Ullmann (Dallas | designdmu.com )	$9.100	$500.00	3.00	40	82
82	LPA (Irvine, California | lpainc.com )	$9.030	$211.34	3.84	30	–
83	Baskervill (Richmond, Virginia | baskervill.com )	$9.009	$122.05	3.78	20	90
84	ForrestPerkins (Dallas | forrestperkins.com )	$8.925	$200.00	NR	79	68
85	TSC Design Associates (New York | tscdesign.com )	$8.800	$105.00	3.10	52	79
86	Tsoi/Kobus & Associates (Cambridge, Massachusetts | tka-architects.com )	$8.648	$220.40	0.69	18	101
87	Chambers (Baltimore | chambersusa.com )	$8.625	$94.00	2.33	16	89
88	WWCOT (Los Angeles | wwcot.com )	$8.614	$221.00	3.50	20	91
89	Ballinger (Philadelphia | ballinger-ae.com )	$8.600	$29.63	0.69	18	55
90	Francis Cauffman (Philadelphia | franciscauffman.com )	$8.500	$205.00	5.50	52	75
91	Tricarico Architecture and Design (Wayne, New Jersey | tricarico.com )	$8.346	$190.00	1.98	64	54
92	McCall Design Group (San Francisco | mccalldesign.com )	$8.075	$115.00	2.10	39	105
93	JPC Architects (Bellevue, Washington | jpcarchitects.com )	$8.000	$150.00	2.00	44	81
94	Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects (New York | gwathmey-siegel.com )	$8.000	$125.00	0.40	47	71
95	Ziegler Cooper Architects (Houston | zieglercooper.com )	$8.000	NR	3.00	40	103
96	Kasian (Vancouver, British Columbia | kasian.com )	$7.972	$45.00	8.00	60	88
97	Bergmeyer (Boston | bergmeyer.com )	$7.900	$95.00	0.70	57	97
98	Wolcott Architecture/Interiors (Los Angeles | wolcottai.com )	$7.800	$100.00	NR	44	106
99	Margulies Perruzzi Architects (Boston | mp-architects.com )	$7.650	$50.00	1.20	34	92
100	Anderson Mikos Architects (Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois | andersonmikos.com )	$7.478	$62.44	6.83	16	115

% of Fees by Project Type (2008 Actual Fees)

Office	$854,390,765
Hospitality	$530,980,806
Health Care/Assisted Living	$385,990,518
Retail	$269,235,649
Government	$154,864,807
Educational	$174,383,433
Residential	$108,919,542
Cultural	$41,463,647
Transportation	$33,392,674
Other	$144,057,027
Total	$2,697,678,869

% of Fees by Project Type (2009 Forecasted Fees)

Office	$808,606,024
Hospitality	$510,774,906
Health Care/Assisted Living	$362,257,831
Retail	$271,524,638
Government	$169,960,679
Educational	$142,538,901
Residential	$96,653,421
Cultural	$29,811,519
Transportation	$24,914,719
Other	$119,807,586
Total	$2,536,850,223

10 Fastest-Growing

Firm	2008 Fees	2007 Fees	% Change	Rank
Robert A.M. Stern Architects	$10,736,946	$4,550,000	136.0	67
RMJM Hillier	$50,000,000	$23,450,000	113.2	14
Granary Associates	$13,000,000	$6,630,000	96.1	57
Bilkey Llinas Design	$17,200,000	$9,100,000	89.0	45
Shepley Bulfinch Richardson & Abbott	$14,949,000	$9,158,000	63.2	49
Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo	$10,404,000	$6,416,000	62.2	69
HLW International	$29,400,000	$18,240,000	61.2	26
Burt Hill	$52,800,000	$33,082,000	59.6	12
Little	$25,800,000	$16,500,000	56.4	31
Arcturis	$9,558,900	$6,319,400	51.3	76

Median Hourly Rate

Principal/Partner	$203
Project Manager	$150
Designer	$115
Other Design Staff	$85

Median Annual Salary

Principal/Partner	$147,500
Project Manager	$95,000
Designer	$69,000
Other Design Staff	$50,000

Firms with the Most Foreign Projects

Firm	Percentage
M Moser Associates	95%
Wilson Associates	90%
HBA/Hirsch Bedner Associates	88%
DiLeonardo International	75%
Design Duncan Miller Ullmann	75%
RMJM Hillier	60%
HOK	57%
Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo	55%
Swanke Hayden Connell Architects	50%
BBG-BBGM	45%

New to the Top 100 Giants

Firm	Rank
M Moser Associates	19
HGA Architects and Engineers	37
OWP/P	55
Granary Associates	57
Robert A.M. Stern Architects	67
Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo	69
Arcturis	76
LPA	82
Tsoi/Kobus & Associates	86
McCall Design Group	92
Ziegler Cooper Architects	95
Wolcott Architecture/Interiors	98
Anderson Mikos Architects	100

The Most Admired Firms (Voted by the 2009 Top 100 Giants)

1. Gensler

2. Studios Architecture

3. HBA/Hirsch Bedner Associates

4. HOK

Top 10 in Hospitality (corrected)

Firm	Design Fees
HBA/Hirsch Bedner Associates	$68,800,000
Wilson Associates	$53,064,000
Gensler	$34,200,000
Rockwell Group	$25,415,000
HOK	$23,940,000
Bilkey Llinas Design	$17,200,000
Leo A Daly	$17,113,600
Daroff Design + DDI Architects	$16,770,000
BBG-BBGM	$16,000,000
DiLeonardo International	$12,200,000

Top 10 in Office (corrected)

Firm	Design Fees
Gensler	$133,950,000
Nelson	$67,200,000
HOK	$60,420,000
IA Interior Architects	$50,773,800
M Moser Associates	$40,609,000
Perkins + Will	$34,354,400
KlingStubbins	$29,400,000
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill	$21,538,033
TPG Architecture	$21,433,878
HLW International	$20,580,000

Top 10 in Health Care/Assisted Living

Firm	Design Fees
HDR	$47,124,000
Perkins + Will	$34,354,400
Perkins Eastman	$25,489,800
Cannon Design	$25,413,500
Anshen + Allen	$25,200,000
PageSoutherlandPage	$24,156,000
SmithGroup	$15,280,615
HGA Architects and Engineers	$14,550,000
HKS	$12,500,000
Granary Associates	$12,480,000

Top 10 in Educational

Firm	Design Fee
Burt Hill	$19,008,000
Cannon Design	$15,344,000
Gensler	$11,400,000
Flad Architects	$8,212,500
RMJM Hillier	$7,500,000
Perkins + Will	$6,870,880
HDR	$6,468,000
Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects	$5,800,000
HOK	$5,700,000
LPA	$5,418,000

Top 10 in Retail

Firm	Design Fees
Callison	$54,290,000
Gensler	$42,750,000
Pavlik Design Team	$33,439,468
Jacobs	$25,352,134
FRCH Design Worldwide	$13,860,000
Little	$8,772,000
Peter Marino Architect	$8,602,000
TPG Architecture	$8,433,001
Cubellis	$8,220,000
Tricarico Architecture and Design	$7,678,706

Top 10 in Residential

Firm	Design Fees
Marc-Michaels Interior Design	$14,100,000
Robert A.M. Stern Architects	$8,739,874
Callison	$7,120,000
Creative Design Consultants	$6,910,400
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill	$6,769,096
Slifer Designs	$6,615,000
Peter Marino Architect	$6,171,000
Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects	$5,520,000
Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart	$5,504,568
Cooper Carry	$4,006,200

Top 10 in Government

Firm	Design Fees
Jacobs	$33,554,295
Gensler	$17,100,000
HDR	$11,088,000
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill	$7,999,841
Group Goetz Architects	$7,600,000
PageSoutherlandPage	$7,246,800
Leo A Daly	$6,952,400
HOK	$6,840,000
EwingCole	$6,696,000
Studios Architecture	$6,256,250

Top 10 in Cultural

Firm	Design Fees
Gensler	$14,250,000
HKS	$3,750,000
Studios Architecture	$2,502,500
Roger Ferris + Partners	$2,100,000
Pavlik Design Team	$1,967,028
HGA Architects and Engineers	$1,697,500
HLW International	$1,470,000
EwingCole	$1,240,000
Leo A Daly	$1,069,600
RMJM Hillier	$1,000,000