DAHLIN

Architecture and Planning Servicesdahlingroup.com

DAHLIN is a 50-year-old, privately held architecture, planning, and interiors firm with 10 offices across the US and China, serving residential developers, commercial clients, institutions, and municipalities through project-based design, master planning, and interior design services.

Company typePrivate
Founded1976
HeadquartersPleasanton, United States
Headcount101–250
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What DAHLIN does

DAHLIN (legal name Dahlin Group, Inc.) is a privately held architecture, planning, and interiors firm founded in 1976 and headquartered in Pleasanton, California. The company employs 101–250 staff across ten offices in the United States (Pleasanton, San Diego, Irvine, Bellevue, Salt Lake City, Kalispell, Austin, Tahoe/Reno) and China (Beijing, Shanghai), and operates as a horizontal-segment professional services provider serving residential developers and homebuilders, commercial and retail clients, institutional and civic clients, hospitality operators, and municipal planning agencies. Its core service lines are architecture, planning (including master planning, urban design, transit-oriented development, and entitlement), and interior design, supplemented by specialized project expertise in affordable housing, education, healthcare, golf clubhouses, senior living, sustainability, and community amenities.

The firm generates revenue through project-based professional services fees spanning small-scale renovations to large master-planned communities (e.g., the 4,905-acre River Islands community and the Rivermark master planned community in Silicon Valley) and commercial developments for enterprise clients such as Centex/Lennar/Shea Homes, Cambay Group, Wakeland Housing, Scripps Health, UC San Diego, Save Mart, Dust Bowl Brewing, and municipal entities including the City of Dublin and the City of San Diego. Pricing is quote-based and project-specific, with no publicly disclosed standard tiers, and go-to-market is conducted through direct enterprise client engagement, repeat relationships, and a multi-channel digital presence spanning LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest, WeChat, and Weibo. The company is led by CEO Nancy Keenan, with founder Doug Dahlin serving as Chairman of the Board, and is a recipient of multiple industry trade awards including Gold Nugget Grand Awards, BALA Platinum and Silver Awards, The Nationals Silver Awards, and NAIOP recognition between 2003 and 2026.

DAHLIN firmographics

Firmographics

Name: DAHLIN
Legal name: Dahlin Group, Inc.
Website: https://dahlingroup.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1976
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 101–250 employees
Short description: DAHLIN is a 50-year-old, privately held architecture, planning, and interiors firm with 10 offices across the US and China, serving residential developers, commercial clients, institutions, and municipalities through project-based design, master planning, and interior design services.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

DAHLIN industry classification

Industry

Product category: Architecture and Planning Services
NAICS: Architectural Services (541310), Interior Design Services (54141), Landscape Architectural Services (54132)
SIC: Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)
akta.pro primary industry: Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)
akta.pro secondary industries: Urban Planning & Master Planning (BPAHAKAD), Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG)

Keywords

Architecture design services
Urban planning services
Interior design services
Master planning services
Sustainable building design

Where DAHLIN is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Pleasanton
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices10 records

Markets served

DAHLIN business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

Architecture and Design Services: Professional services revenue generated through project-based fees for architecture, planning, and interior design projects ranging from small-scale renovations to large master-planned communities and commercial developments

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

DAHLIN product offering

Product offering

Core offering

DAHLIN is a diverse architecture, planning, and interiors firm that provides comprehensive architectural design, urban and master planning, and interior design services for residential, commercial, institutional, and civic projects. The firm serves developers, municipalities, and private clients with new construction, renovation, entitlement, and sustainable design work across 10 office locations in the United States and China. Services are delivered through project-based engagements underpinned by the firm's 'Passion for Place' design philosophy and 50 years of design experience.

Product overview

DAHLIN is a diverse architecture, planning, and interiors firm celebrating 50 years of design excellence. The company offers a unified portfolio of services organized as core offerings (Architecture Services, Planning Services, and Interiors) supplemented by specialized project expertise across multiple verticals including Affordable Housing, Commercial + Retail, Community Amenities, Education, Golf Clubhouses, Healthcare, Hospitality + Fitness, Master Planning, Senior Living, Sustainability, Urban Design, and Entitlement Services. DAHLIN works with developers, municipalities, and private clients across a portfolio of residential, commercial, institutional, and civic work. The firm's design philosophy centers on 'Passion for Place,' evident in projects ranging from single buildings to large-scale master planned communities spanning the United States and China.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Architecture Services
Planning Services Urban planning and master planning services including specific plans, transit-oriented developments, and entitlement work for large-scale communities and municipal clients.
Interiors Interior design services for commercial, residential, and hospitality environments including branded environments, tenant improvements, and space planning.

Companies that use DAHLIN

Customer profile

Named customers13 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

DAHLIN technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

DAHLIN partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

DAHLIN competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Bassenian Lagoni Architects: Architecture firm specializing in residential design for production homebuilders (similar to Lennar/Shea/Centex work DAHLIN does). Comparable in product, customer type, and project scale.
Steinberg Hart: Architecture and planning firm with strong master planning, multifamily residential, and mixed-use expertise based in the Western US. Comparable service offering and developer-client focus to DAHLIN.
MVE & Partners: Architecture and planning firm serving residential developers and master planned communities across the Western US. Closely comparable in product mix and target market to DAHLIN.
WATG: Architecture and planning firm with strong residential, hospitality, and master planning practices serving developers and resort clients. Highly comparable to DAHLIN's community-scale and hospitality project work.
KTGY Architecture + Planning: Mid-size architecture and planning firm focused on residential, mixed-use, and master planned communities — directly comparable to DAHLIN in service mix, client base (homebuilders and developers), and scale.

Broad incumbents

HKS Architects: Major architecture firm with deep healthcare, sports, and hospitality expertise. Comparable on the commercial/retail/hospitality side of DAHLIN's portfolio.
Gensler: Largest global architecture and design firm with broad commercial, retail, and mixed-use practice. Competitor at the enterprise end of DAHLIN's commercial/institutional client base.
Perkins&Will: Large global architecture firm with strong healthcare, education, and civic portfolios. Overlaps with DAHLIN's institutional and civic client work but at much greater scale.
SmithGroup: Integrated design firm with architecture, planning, and interiors practices. Comparable in service breadth and mixed-use/community planning expertise to DAHLIN, but at larger scale.
NBBJ: Global architecture and design firm with strong healthcare, education, and commercial practices. Comparable on institutional client work DAHLIN performs for UCSD, Scripps, and civic clients.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

DAHLIN compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance5 records

DAHLIN financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

DAHLIN leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

DAHLIN funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

DAHLIN M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DAHLIN

What does DAHLIN do?

Is DAHLIN a public or private company?

DAHLIN is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.

When was DAHLIN founded?

DAHLIN was founded in 1976. It employs 101 to 250 people.

Where is DAHLIN based?

DAHLIN is headquartered in Pleasanton, United States, in the North America region.

How does DAHLIN make money?

One revenue line is on record: architecture and Design Services.

Who are DAHLIN's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Bassenian Lagoni Architects, Steinberg Hart, MVE & Partners, WATG and KTGY Architecture + Planning. Broad incumbents are HKS Architects, Gensler, Perkins&Will, SmithGroup and NBBJ.

Does DAHLIN have an API?

No public API is recorded for DAHLIN.

What industry is DAHLIN in?

DAHLIN's product category is Architecture and Planning Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAA, Architectural Design Services, with a secondary code of BPAHAKAD, Urban Planning & Master Planning. Its NAICS code is 541310 and its SIC code is 8700.