Tillett Lighting Design
Tillett Lighting Design Associates is a privately held, New York-based boutique lighting design firm founded in 1989 that delivers ecologically-sensitive, site-specific lighting programs for municipalities, cultural institutions, developers, and leading landscape architecture partners across the United States, Canada, and China.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1989
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Tillett Lighting Design does
Tillett Lighting Design Associates, founded in 1989 by Linnaea Tillett, Ph.D., is a privately held, New York-based boutique lighting design practice specializing in ecologically-sensitive illumination for landscapes, parks, waterfronts, cultural institutions, memorials, and select commercial and residential projects. The firm delivers site-specific lighting programs designed to minimize light pollution and protect nocturnal habitat for both human and non-human species, supported by a small senior team of approximately five professionals with backgrounds in environmental psychology, landscape architecture, lighting design, and horticulture. Its underlying technology is a craft- and research-driven design methodology rather than a software platform, anchored by two proprietary product lines developed with manufacturing partners: the Firefly Bollard (originally with Louis Poulsen, second generation with Cole Lighting) and the Profile Outdoor Lighting Series (with Landscape Forms).
The firm generates revenue through fee-based professional services contracts, individually scoped for each project, and through long-standing co-design partnerships with leading landscape architecture and architecture studios including Maya Lin Studio, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, OLIN, Nelson Byrd Woltz, Beyer Blinder Belle, Toshiko Mori, Civitas, Public Work, and Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Its go-to-market is sales-led and reputation-driven, with no public pricing, channel partners for service delivery, or product sales infrastructure — projects are commissioned through direct client relationships with municipalities, cultural institutions, developers, and private clients, and amplified through a professional portfolio website, Instagram, ASLA/IES lectures, and earned media coverage. The firm operates primarily in the United States, with documented work in Canada and China.
Customer concentration is moderate, spread across cultural, civic, healthcare, hospitality, and high-end residential clients (e.g., Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Morgan Library & Museum, Brooklyn Public Library, City of Austin/Waterloo Greenway, Hudson River Park Trust, West Elm, Ames Hotel), while revenue flow is intermediated through a small set of repeat landscape architecture collaborators. The firm is nationally certified as a Women Business Enterprise (WBE), holds no external private equity or venture capital, and is not a candidate for conventional venture-backed scaling — its economics are those of a high-prestige specialty professional practice rather than a software or platform business.
Tillett Lighting Design firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Tillett Lighting Design
- Legal name
- Tillett Lighting Design Associates
- Website
- https://tillettlighting.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1989
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Tillett Lighting Design Associates is a privately held, New York-based boutique lighting design firm founded in 1989 that delivers ecologically-sensitive, site-specific lighting programs for municipalities, cultural institutions, developers, and leading landscape architecture partners across the United States, Canada, and China.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Tillett Lighting Design industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Architectural Lighting Design Services
- NAICS
- Landscape Architectural Services (54132)
- SIC
- Services-Engineering Services (8711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Lighting Design Services (BPAHAKAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Landscape Accent & Uplighting (Trees/Facades) Installation (HSAIAHAE), Outdoor & Area Lighting (Street, Roadway, Parking, Flood, Sports/Architectural exterior) (IMAGAIAB)
Keywords
Where Tillett Lighting Design is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Tillett Lighting Design business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Lighting Design Professional Services: Fee-based professional services for lighting design on landscape and built environment projects. Revenue generated through design contracts with municipalities, cultural institutions, landscape architecture firms, and private developers for specific projects.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Tillett Lighting Design product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Tillett Lighting Design Associates provides professional lighting design services for landscapes, parks, waterfronts, cultural institutions, civic memorials, and built environments, guided by an ecologically-sensitive, poetic design methodology that minimizes light pollution and protects nocturnal habitat. The firm also designs and co-develops two proprietary luminaire product lines — the Firefly Bollard and the Profile Outdoor Lighting Series — manufactured by partner firms and used within its projects and available to other landscape and architectural projects.
Product overview
Tillett Lighting Design Associates offers a portfolio of lighting design services and proprietary lighting products. The core offering consists of professional lighting design services for landscapes, parks, waterfronts, cultural institutions, memorials, and public spaces, guided by principles of ecological sensitivity and poetic restraint. The firm complements its services with two proprietary product lines: the Firefly Bollard (bronze garden bollards originally developed with Louis Poulsen and later with Cole Lighting) and the Profile Outdoor Lighting Series (a modular luminaire developed with Landscape Forms). These products reflect the firm's philosophy of subtle, ecologically-sensitive illumination and are available for use in projects designed by the firm as well as for other landscape and architectural projects.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Profile: A modular outdoor light column designed with Landscape Forms that minimizes light pollution and spillover while illuminating outdoor pathways.
- Firefly Bollard
Products and services
- Professional Lighting Design Services Fee-based professional lighting design services for municipalities, cultural institutions, developers, and landscape architecture firms. Deliverables include lighting master plans, schematic and detailed lighting design, fixture specifications, and oversight through construction, with a methodology centered on ecological sensitivity and poetic restraint.
- Firefly Bollard Bronze firefly bollard lights designed by Linnaea Tillett that animate gardens and outdoor spaces, illuminating low-level plantings and providing dimension to overhead trees. Intended for use in landscape and garden-room settings where ecological sensitivity and intimate illumination are required. Originally developed with Louis Poulsen for the Battery Bosque (2005), with a second generation developed with Cole Lighting (2017).
- Profile Outdoor Lighting Series Modular outdoor luminaire series co-developed with Landscape Forms that integrates the architectural and wayfinding attributes of a typical light column with the directionality of an aimable fixture. Designed to minimize light pollution and spillover while illuminating outdoor pathways. Available for use in Tillett projects and in other landscape and architectural projects specified through Landscape Forms.
Quantifiable outcome
- Pier 26 at Hudson River Park received multiple 2021 awards including Chicago Athenaeum American Architecture Award and MASterworks Best Urban Park
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Tillett Lighting Design
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Tillett Lighting Design technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Tillett Lighting Design partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.
- Maya Lin StudiocoreLong-term collaborative relationship with Maya Lin on multiple projects including Novartis Headquarters, Box House, Riggio-Lynch Interfaith Chapel, Ecliptic/Rosa Parks Circle, and others spanning over two decades.
- Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA)coreFrequent collaborator on landscape lighting projects including Waterloo Park, Menil Campus, Novartis, Shoemaker Green, FDR Four Freedoms Park, and numerous other projects.
- OLIN StudiocoreOngoing collaboration with landscape architecture firm OLIN on projects including Pier 26, Drexel University, Fountain Square, Mill River Park, and Syracuse Connective Corridor.
- Nelson Byrd WoltzcoreCollaboration with Nelson Byrd Woltz landscape architects on projects including Children's Memory Garden, Lakeshore Park, Waterloo Park, and Parthenon at Centennial Park.
- Toshiko MoricorePartnership with architect Toshiko Mori on Brooklyn Public Library Leon Levy Information Commons and Brooklyn Central Library Phase 2 projects.
- Beyer Blinder BellecoreCollaboration with Beyer Blinder Belle architects on High Line Headquarters, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Morgan Library, and Brooklyn Bridge Boathouse projects.
- Louis PoulsensecondaryOriginal manufacturer partner for Firefly Bollard product design - bronze bollards developed specifically for Battery Bosque project.
- Landscape FormscorePartnership with Landscape Forms for Profile outdoor lighting series - modular luminaire combining architectural and wayfinding attributes with aimable fixture directionality.
- Cole LightingsecondarySecond-generation Firefly Bollard manufacturer with slimmer form factor for use in projects including Waterloo Park and Drexel University.
- CivitascoreCollaboration with Civitas landscape architects on St. Patrick's Island, NCMA Museum Park, Virginia Key Beach Park, and Prince Arthur's Landing projects.
- Public WorkcorePartnership with Public Work on The Bentway under Gardiner Expressway in Toronto - innovative public space transforming 1 mile underneath elevated highway.
- Gustafson Guthrie NicholsecondaryCollaboration with Gustafson Guthrie Nichol landscape architects on Hemisfair Park, Weston Urban Open Space, and Hazelwood Green Plaza.
- Renzo Piano Building WorkshopcoreCollaboration with Renzo Piano Building Workshop on High Line Maintenance and Operations Building alongside Beyer Blinder Belle.
- Quennell Rothschild & PartnerscoreOngoing collaboration with Quennell Rothschild landscape architects on Battery Perimeter, Fountain Square, Ecliptic/Rosa Parks Circle, and multiple other projects.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Tillett Lighting Design competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lighting Design Alliance: Lighting design consultancy serving commercial, civic, hospitality, and exterior architecture projects. Comparable in delivery model — fee-based professional design services for built environment clients.
- Fisher Marantz Stone: Long-established New York lighting design firm specializing in architectural and landscape lighting for museums, civic landmarks, and public spaces. Closest geographic and segment peer to Tillett, frequently collaborating with the same elite architects.
- One Lux Studio: Independent lighting design consultancy serving high-end architectural, cultural, and urban projects. Comparable professional services model and client roster of premium institutional and developer clients.
- L'Observatoire International: International lighting design practice serving museums, retail, hospitality, and cultural institutions. Comparable in prestige-tier client focus and architectural lighting specialization.
- Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design: Architectural lighting design firm focused on cultural, civic, and institutional projects with a project-based consultancy model that overlaps Tillett's service offering and client types.
- Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design: One of the largest US lighting design consultancies, serving cultural, civic, institutional, and high-end architectural clients with a similarly project-based professional services model. Direct overlap with Tillett on museum, library, park, and institutional commissions.
- Kugler Ning Lighting Design: Lighting design studio working on cultural, civic, and landscape projects with a similar project-based professional services approach and comparable client quality.
Emerging players
- Atelier Ten: Environmental design consultancy with a strong sustainability and ecological-design orientation overlapping Tillett's environmental psychology / ecological-sensitivity thesis. Serves similar institutional and cultural clients but with a broader sustainable-design mandate rather than lighting-only focus.
Broad incumbents
- Buro Happold: Global engineering consultancy with a dedicated lighting design practice serving museums, civic, and infrastructure projects. Competes for institutional lighting commissions as part of a much broader MEP / structural / sustainability portfolio, often bundling lighting with engineering scope.
- Arup: Global engineering firm with an established lighting design practice serving cultural, transportation, and urban infrastructure projects. Overlaps with Tillett on civic and cultural commissions but typically delivered as part of an integrated engineering package.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Tillett Lighting Design social profiles
Digital presenceTillett Lighting Design financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Tillett Lighting Design leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Tillett Lighting Design funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Tillett Lighting Design M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Tillett Lighting Design
What does Tillett Lighting Design do?
Tillett Lighting Design Associates provides professional lighting design services for landscapes, parks, waterfronts, cultural institutions, civic memorials, and built environments, guided by an ecologically-sensitive, poetic design methodology that minimizes light pollution and protects nocturnal habitat. The firm also designs and co-develops two proprietary luminaire product lines — the Firefly Bollard and the Profile Outdoor Lighting Series — manufactured by partner firms and used within its projects and available to other landscape and architectural projects.
Is Tillett Lighting Design a public or private company?
Tillett Lighting Design is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Tillett Lighting Design founded?
Tillett Lighting Design was founded in 1989. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Tillett Lighting Design based?
Tillett Lighting Design is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Tillett Lighting Design make money?
One revenue line is on record: lighting Design Professional Services.
Who are Tillett Lighting Design's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lighting Design Alliance, Fisher Marantz Stone, One Lux Studio, L'Observatoire International, Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design, Horton Lees Brogden Lighting Design and Kugler Ning Lighting Design. Atelier Ten is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Buro Happold and Arup.
Does Tillett Lighting Design have an API?
No public API is recorded for Tillett Lighting Design.
What industry is Tillett Lighting Design in?
Tillett Lighting Design's product category is Architectural Lighting Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAJ, Lighting Design Services, with a secondary code of HSAIAHAE, Landscape Accent & Uplighting (Trees/Facades) Installation. Its NAICS code is 54132 and its SIC code is 8711.