Introducing Interior Design’s 2024 Rising Giants
While many overarching industry trends recounted in the previous essay apply to both the top and Rising firms, including full pandemic recovery and generally healthy vital signs, there are some nuances between the two populaces worth highlighting.
First, Rising Giants took a bigger hit during COVID, so have farther to recover. Second, their design fees are less than a tenth the amount of the top 100 firms’ ($576 million compared to $5.9 billion), so small changes in their numbers can result in more significant swings percentagewise. Not to mention that one huge project or a single market performing extremely well or poorly on any given year can make the data look more volatile than it truly is.
All that a prelude to say: The Rising Giants had a good 2023. Fees have grown 11 percent since 2019 (and 8 percent yearover year), while FF&C value rose 15 percent in that same time period. The number of projects firms worked on increased 9 percent from 2022 to 2023 and more than doubled since 2019. (Top 100 Giants’s projects increased only 13 percent in that interval.) Not to mention that 24,956 is a heck of a lot of projects for the Rising firms!
2024 Rising Giants
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | 2024 rank | Firm | Headquarters | Design Fees (in millions) | FF&C Value of Work Installed (in millions) | Design Staff | 2023 Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 101 | CHAMBERS | Baltimore | 10.4 | 107.0 | 38 | 103 |
2 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 102 | KZF Design | Cincinnati | 10.2 | 596.0 | 62 | 108 |
3 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 103 | Kasian Architecture Interior Design and Planning | Vancouver, Canada | 10.1 | 201 | 106 | |
4 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 104 | Dyer Brown & Associates | Boston | 10.0 | 429.0 | 31 | 119 |
5 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 105 | Faulkner Design Group | Dallas | 10.0 | 22.0 | 37 | 149 |
6 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 106 | Pierre-Yves Rochon | Chicago | 10.0 | 57 | New | |
7 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 107 | AP+I Design | Mountain View | 9.9 | 325.0 | 42 | 100 |
8 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 108 | ENV | New York | 9.8 | 118.8 | 73 | 90 |
9 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 109 | Design Republic | New York | 9.7 | 140.0 | 36 | 98 |
10 | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | colsen | 29/04/2024 11:32 AM | 110 | Aria Group | Oak Park | 9.5 | 220.0 | 117 | 104 |
Note: “blank cells” = did not report data
Remember we mentioned the roster of employees shrank 16 percent for the top 100 firms? That’s the exact same percentage that Rising Giants staff grew, which is concrete evidence of how much further they had to build back up after pandemic downsizing. It makes sense we’re seeing positive recovery in greater percentages for Risers than for the top 100 because of the deeper hit they took. To get more specific, the number of principals/partners is up 109 percent since 2019; project managers are up 61 percent; and designers are up 36 percent. (Remember, these figures include new hires and promotions.)
Interested in learning more about Interior Design’s 2024 Giants of Design? Check out our reports for Top 100 Giants, Sustainability Giants, and more.
Overall, salaries rose 11 percent but billable rates only grew 2. Translation: Rising Giants are doing more projects and paying their staffers more but not increasing their billable fees to compensate—likely due to the competitive nature of the work they’re trying to win.
Forecasts are another arena where top and Rising Giants diverge, with the latter trending a bit more optimistic. Last year, the top 100 projected a decline (which did not come to pass) while the second 100 firms anticipated an uptick (which did occur—although even more forcefully than anticipated). For 2024, Rising Giants are forecasting less of a slowdown than the top 100 are predicting, their rosier expectations evidence of a very different recovery trajectory.
Firms With the Most Fee Growth
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Firm | 2022 Fees | 2023 Fees | Growth (in millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Faulkner Design Group | 5.2 | 10.0 | 4.8 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | //3877 | 4.0 | 7.5 | 3.5 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Hart Howerton | 3.5 | 5.9 | 2.4 |
4 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | INTEC Group | 2.4 | 4.7 | 2.3 |
5 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Philpotts Interiors | 2.6 | 4.8 | 2.3 |
6 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Dyer Brown & Associates | 7.8 | 10.0 | 2.2 |
7 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Hendy | 7.0 | 9.2 | 2.2 |
8 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Interior Image Group | 2.9 | 5.1 | 2.2 |
9 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | INC Architecture & Design | 6.0 | 8.0 | 2.0 |
10 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:24 AM | Nadia Geller Designs | 2.0 | 4.0 | 2.0 |
Segment Income and Number of Projects Worked On...
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Segment | 2023 Fees (in millions) | 2024 Fees Forecast (in millions) | 2023 Projects | 2024 Projects Forecast |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Hospitality/restaurant | 186.0 | 205.2 | 3,049 | 670 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Corporate workplace | 151.8 | 164.0 | 8,116 | 8,656 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Residential | 63.0 | 69.2 | 1,736 | 1,934 |
4 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Healthcare | 34.5 | 37.5 | 1,873 | 1,915 |
5 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Manufacturing + other | 30.0 | 32.3 | 1,998 | 2,069 |
6 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Education | 23.3 | 25.5 | 1,286 | 1,263 |
7 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Retail | 20.3 | 21.3 | 1,473 | 1,561 |
8 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Government/civic | 19.4 | 26.6 | 1,478 | 1,571 |
9 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Mixed-use | 16.4 | 16.9 | 1,233 | 1,267 |
10 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Life sciences | 13.9 | 15.0 | 1,263 | 1,323 |
11 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Senior living | 11.9 | 14.1 | ||
12 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Cultural + sports centers | 5.6 | 6.8 | 947 | 959 |
13 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Transportation | 0.4 | 0.3 | 201 | 199 |
14 | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | colsen | 26/04/2024 10:30 AM | Data centers | 0.1 | 0.1 | 303 | 309 |
*New this year is data centers, a vertical that also encompasses mission critical and advanced facilities.
Note: “blank cells” = did not report data
Most Admired Firms
Editor’s Note: Take a look at recent coverage of our Rising Giants most admired firms of 2023 below. Gensler tops the list followed by Rockwell Group, AvroKO, Yabu Pushelberg, and Rottet Studio.
Read About Projects By The Most Admired Firms
Projects
Learn How Design Can Manifest a Brighter Future in This Gensler Tome
Penned by Gensler global cochairs Andy Cohen and Diane Hospins, Design for a Radically Changing World is a call to (design) action.
Projects
Steam the Day Away in New York’s Latest Bathhouse Locale
Moody lighting and a dramatic subterranean atmosphere evoke peace at Bathhouse’s Manhattan Flatiron District location with interiors by Rockwell Group.
Projects
AvroKO Channels Savannah’s Hospitality at the Perry Lane Hotel
The Perry Lane Hotel in Savannah, Georgia, is a new ground-up structure with interiors by AvroKO that conjure a bygone era, yet still feel modern.
Staffing Information
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Level | Total Staff | Median Hourly Rate | Median Salary |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | Principals/partners | 648 | 259.0 | 180,499.0 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | Project manager/directors | 1,100 | 178.0 | 109,572.0 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | Designers | 1,839 | 145.0 | 75,000.0 |
4 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:43 PM | Other ID staff | 427 | 103.0 | 65,000.0 |
By the Numbers
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Employees | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | Overall | 6,386 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | Interior Design Staff | 4,014 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:49 PM | Other Staff | 2,372 |
Percentage of Rising Giants Reporting These Challenges As The Biggest They Face
More From The Most Admired Firms
Projects
George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg Design a Dramatic Hotel in Leicester Square
2021 Best of Year winner for Boutique Hotel. Plays staged in the West End have been entertaining theatergoers for over 350 years. As the scene rebounds from pandemic closures, visitors can enjoy that spectacle while stay…
Projects
Inside an Award-Winning Boutique Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Explore the 2023 Interior Design Best of Year Awards winner for Boutique Hotel, the Morrow Hotel, Washington by Rottet Studio and INC Architecture & Design.
Projects
Gensler Designs Boston Consulting Group’s Latest Office
Step inside the Boston Consulting Group’s new 90,000-square-foot campus in Washington that embraces light and fosters connectivity to nature.
Domestic vs. Overseas Project Locations
International Project Locations
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Country | Percentage of Projects |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Canada | 40 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Asia/Pacific Rim | 38 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Caribbean | 28 |
4 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Europe | 23 |
5 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Mexico | 20 |
6 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Africa | 20 |
7 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Central/South America | 15 |
8 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:16 PM | Other | 10 |
Percentage of Billable Time
wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Billable Time | 2024 Rising Giants |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | < 70 | 13 |
2 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | 70-79 | 17 |
3 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | 80-89 | 44 |
4 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | 90-99 | 25 |
5 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | 100 | 2 |
6 | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | colsen | 26/04/2024 02:22 PM | average | 80 |
Methodology
The Interior Design Giants annual business survey comprises the largest firms ranked by interior design fees for the 12-month period ending December 31, 2023. The listings are generated from only those surveyed. To be recognized as a top 100, Rising, Healthcare, Hospitality, or Sustainability Giant, you must meet the following criteria: Have at least one office location in North America, and generate at least 25% of your interior design fee income in North America. Firms that do not meet the criteria are ranked on our International Giants list. Interior design fees include those attributed to:
1. All aspects of a firm’s interior design practice, from strategic planning and programming to design and project management.
2. 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. Ties are broken by rank from last year. Where applicable, all percentages are based on responding Giants, not their total number.
All research conducted by ThinkLab, the research division of SANDOW Design Group.
read more
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