Lawrence Group

What Lawrence Group does

Lawrence Group is a privately held, St. Louis-headquartered architecture and design firm founded in 1983, operating nationally across all 50 states from four regional offices (St. Louis, New York, Austin, Tampa). The firm delivers integrated architecture, interior design, master planning, landscape architecture, furniture procurement, and graphic design services to enterprise clients across nine vertical markets — with healthcare, higher education, and student housing as primary verticals and workplace, retail, hospitality, senior living, multi-family, and community as secondary verticals. Its client base includes major healthcare systems (BayCare, SSM Health, Health First, Austin Regional Clinic), universities (University of St. Thomas Houston, Southeast Missouri State University), national retail brands (Edward Jones, H&R Block, National Vision, Panera, Tend Dental), and developers (New + Found for City Foundry STL). Several relationships span decades and involve multi-site national rollouts.

Lawrence Group operates a project-based professional services revenue model, with fees negotiated per engagement and contracts typically structured as multi-year engagements. The firm uses industry-standard CAD/BIM tools (Revit) alongside sustainable and evidence-based design methodologies; there is no proprietary technology product, software platform, or AI-driven design capability disclosed. Pricing is custom and quote-based, with no published rate cards or subscription tiers. Marketing and business development run through direct enterprise sales, RFP responses, client referrals, industry awards (Zweig Hot Firm #67, Interior Design Top 50), and content marketing via the firm website and social channels.

The firm has scaled through both organic growth and acquisitions, most notably the 2023 merger with KWK Architects that deepened its higher education and student housing capabilities. In March 2026, co-founder Steve Smith stepped down and Mike Schnaare was promoted to President & CEO, formalizing a leadership transition. Active projects — including a $45M residence hall, a 500,000 sq ft pediatric hospital, a 5-story replacement hospital, and a 100-location retail rollout — indicate a sizable multi-year backlog distributed across commercial, institutional, and residential end markets. No public revenue, headcount disclosure, or external funding is reported; ownership remains founder/management-controlled with no identified private equity or venture capital investment.

Name

Lawrence Group

Legal name

Lawrence Group

Website

https://thelawrencegroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Lawrence Group is a privately held, St. Louis-headquartered architecture and design firm founded in 1983, delivering integrated architecture, interior design, master planning, and related services from four offices to enterprise clients in healthcare, higher education, retail, and mixed-use development across all 50 U.S. states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (54131), Landscape Architectural Services (54132), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Office Tenant Representation (BPAJALAA)

Keywords

• Architecture design services
• Healthcare facility design
• Higher education design
• Retail store design
• Interior design services

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Architecture and Design Services: Lawrence Group generates revenue through professional architecture, interior design, master planning, landscape architecture, furniture procurement, and graphic design services for commercial, healthcare, education, and residential projects. Revenue is project-based, typically through fee arrangements for design services on new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Lawrence Group is a national architecture and design firm providing integrated professional services including Architecture, Interior Design, Master Planning, Landscape Architecture, Furniture Procurement, and Graphic Design. Services are delivered to enterprise clients across healthcare, higher education, student housing, workplace, retail, hospitality, senior living, multi-family housing, and community markets in all 50 U.S. states through offices in St. Louis, New York, Austin, and Tampa.

Product overview

Lawrence Group is a national architecture, design, and planning firm offering an integrated suite of services including Architecture, Interior Design, Master Planning, Landscape Architecture, Furniture Procurement, and Graphic Design. The firm serves diverse markets including Healthcare, Education, Student Housing, Workplace, Retail, Hospitality, Senior Living, Multi-Family Housing, and Community development. As a full-service design firm rather than a software company, Lawrence Group's 'products' are its service offerings, which are delivered across multiple office locations (St. Louis, New York, Austin, Tampa) to clients nationwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Services Full-service architectural design for commercial, institutional, and residential projects across multiple markets including healthcare, education, retail, and hospitality.
• Interior Design Interior design services for commercial spaces, focusing on functionality, aesthetics, and client-specific requirements across healthcare, retail, hospitality, and workplace sectors.
• Master Planning
• Landscape Architecture
• Furniture Procurement
• Graphic Design

Quantifiable outcome

• City Foundry STL draws more than 2.2 million visitors annually and catalyzed growth of St. Louis' Midtown neighborhood
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• KWK ArchitectscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 March 2023Lawrence Group and KWK Architects, both St. Louis-based architecture firms, announced their merger effective 2023. KWK relocated to Lawrence Group's headquarters while retaining its brand and employees. KWK specialized in higher education and student housing, strengthening Lawrence Group's position in these markets. Paul Wuennenberg, KWK co-founder, joined as Principal focused on student housing.
• BayCare Health SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group serves as design architect for BayCare's freestanding emergency department projects, including the conversion of a former CVS pharmacy on South Dale Mabry Highway into a 13,305-square-foot emergency care facility with $9 million construction value. BayCare Properties LLC purchased the site for $6 million in February 2025.
• Southeast Missouri State UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group serves as design architect for SEMO's Roy Blunt Health Professions Hall, a 55,000-square-foot facility supporting the Department of Allied Health, Kinesiology, and Sport Sciences. Groundbreaking celebrated with completion expected in 2028.
• SSM HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group completed design of SSM Health's 42-bed behavioral health inpatient unit at Saint Louis University Hospital Campus. General contractor was Alberici Constructors, Inc. Lawrence Group also designed SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital topping off ceremony project.
• Health FirstcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group is designing Health First's Cape Canaveral Replacement Hospital on Merritt Island, FL - a 5-story facility with ground elevated 13 feet above sea level. Managing Principal Ray Wong leads Florida operations for this and other Health First projects.
• Austin Regional Clinic (ARC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group served as architect for ARC Greenlawn Specialty clinic, the healthcare provider's 36th clinic in Central Texas and first with an Ambulatory Surgery Center. General contractor was Rogers O'Brien Construction.
• New + Found (City Foundry Developer)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group served as Design Architect for City Foundry STL, a 15-acre adaptive reuse development by New + Found. The project won ICSC Gold Award and Sustainability Commendation, and has drawn 2.2+ million visitors annually.
• Edward JonescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group has designed thousands of Edward Jones branch offices across the country over a decades-long relationship. The firm evolved with the client as they expanded, reinventing branch office design while maintaining brand consistency.
• H&R BlockcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group has rolled out thousands of H&R Block retail locations over 24 years, managing the seasonal constraint of completing new or renovated offices within seven months to be open by January 1 for tax season.
• America's Best Contacts and Eyeglasses (National Vision)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group has worked with National Vision to roll out 40-80 America's Best locations per year for 20 years, handling construction documents, permit submissions, and due diligence with jurisdictions across the country.
• Tend DentalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group developed a rollout package and architectural kit of parts for Tend dental locations starting in 2018. Completed 20+ locations in New York, Washington D.C., and Nashville, now scaling to 100 locations with Lawrence Group as design partner.
• Panera BreadcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group collaborated with Panera to launch five unique Urban Cafe concept locations in Manhattan, developing the small box concept for rapid pickup-focused cafes. Ongoing partnership for new Panera cafe designs nationwide.
• MaritzcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawrence Group has maintained a relationship with Maritz since 2014, completing more than 30 campus projects totaling 650,000 square feet at the 73-acre Fenton campus. Most recently completed the 1385 Plaza project incorporating native Missouri landscape design.
• SSM Health Foundation - St. LouisminorOthersMike Schnaare, healthcare design leader and President of Lawrence Group, was elected to the board of SSM Health Foundation in St. Louis. His experience in healthcare environments supports the foundation's initiatives in health equity, community impact, and access to high-quality care.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Vocon: Architecture and design firm with strong workplace, retail, and hospitality practices. Comparable to Lawrence Group's New York office practice (Rob Gatzke previously served at Vocon's NY office).

Direct peers

• HKS: Major healthcare-focused architecture firm with national reach and additional education and commercial practices. Closely comparable to Lawrence Group's healthcare-led portfolio and enterprise client base.
• EwingCole: Architecture and engineering firm specializing in healthcare, higher education, and science & technology facilities. Comparable to Lawrence Group in healthcare design depth and project complexity.
• Lamar Johnson Collaborative (LJC): St. Louis-based architecture, interior design, and planning firm with overlapping healthcare, workplace, and multifamily practices. A direct regional competitor; notably a prior employer of Lawrence Group's new hire Bob Buckman.
• CannonDesign: National architecture, engineering, and design firm with deep healthcare and higher-education practices. Directly comparable to Lawrence Group in vertical mix (healthcare systems, universities) and project delivery model.
• DLR Group: Architecture, engineering, and planning firm with healthcare, education, and workplace practices and national reach. Comparable in service breadth and integrated design offering.
• Legat Architects: Mid-size architecture firm with higher-education, K-12, and student-housing expertise. Comparable to Lawrence Group's higher-education and student-housing vertical and similar firm scale.
• SmithGroup: Integrated design firm with strong healthcare, higher-education, and workplace practices and multiple U.S. offices. Highly comparable to Lawrence Group's market mix and office-network model.

Broad incumbents

• HOK: Global design, architecture, and engineering firm with major healthcare, education, and workplace practices. Broader and larger-scale incumbent competing for the same enterprise clients.
• Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with significant healthcare, higher-education, and science practices. Operates at a larger scale than Lawrence Group with overlapping client types and project typologies.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/lawrencegroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-lawrence-group
• Instagraminstagram.com/lawrence_group
• Xx.com/lawrence_group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors1 record

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Lawrence Group