What DLA+ Architecture & Interior Design does

DLA+ Architecture & Interior Design is a privately held, full-service architecture and interior design firm headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, founded in 2008 by Dennis L. Astorino after his departure from the family-run Astorino firm. The firm operates across seven market segments: Workplace/Commercial, Higher Education, Sports, Healthcare, Hospitality/Retail, Residential, and Civic & Community, delivering projects that range from residence halls and athletic facilities to corporate offices, hospitals, and adaptive-reuse developments. Its service offering is organized around a Strategic Architecture model that integrates client institutional and organizational objectives into design outcomes, supported by integrated interior design, LEED-accredited sustainable design capabilities, and specialized practice areas including a Sports Practice with over 100 completed projects and $1B+ in constructed value over 25+ years.

The firm's technical stack is built on industry-standard architecture software — AutoCAD, SketchUp, and Revit — for design, detailing, and construction documentation. Differentiation comes from process (the Strategic Architecture partnership model), sector specialization (notably collegiate and professional sports facilities, including esports venues via a strategic partnership with the International Esports Federation), and a portfolio of marquee sustainability projects such as the LEED Platinum Energy Innovation Center in Pittsburgh and the LEED Gold PPG Paints Arena (first in the NHL). Geographic footprint spans Pittsburgh headquarters with a State College, PA project office, a Morgantown, WV office opened in February 2024, and select international engagements including the Cheongna SSG Baseball Stadium in South Korea.

DLA+ generates revenue through professional services fees tied to architecture and interior design project engagements. Pricing is project-based, determined by scope and complexity rather than disclosed unit rates. The firm operates a sales-led go-to-market targeting enterprise and institutional clients — universities, professional sports franchises, healthcare systems, and commercial developers — and reports an 80% client repeat rate. The leadership team includes CEO and Senior Principal Dennis L. Astorino, President and COO Christopher Haupt, Senior Vice Presidents Nick Doichev and Jennifer Pavlik, and Principal/Sports Practice Leader Sunghoon Jung, with no disclosed outside investors or funding rounds.

Name

DLA+ Architecture & Interior Design

Legal name

DLA+ Architecture and Interior Design

Website

https://dlaplus.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DLA+ is a Pittsburgh-based architecture and interior design firm providing Strategic Architecture services across seven market segments — including higher education, sports, healthcare, and workplace — to enterprise and institutional clients, with an 80% client repeat rate.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Pittsburgh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architecture and Interior Design Services: Professional services revenue generated through architecture and interior design project fees. The firm provides Strategic Architecture solutions through collaborative and integrated approach to delivering projects for clients including design, planning, programming, and construction contract administration.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

DLA+ is a full-service architecture and interior design firm providing Strategic Architecture solutions across seven market sectors: Workplace/Commercial, Higher Education, Sports, Healthcare, Hospitality/Retail, Residential, and Civic & Community. The firm delivers integrated services spanning programming, planning, design, and construction contract administration through a collaborative partnership model with an 80% client repeat rate.

Product overview

DLA+ Architecture & Interior Design is a full-service architecture and interior design firm providing Strategic Architecture solutions. The firm operates across seven core market segments: Workplace/Commercial, Higher Education, Healthcare, Sports (including Esports), Hospitality/Retail, Residential, and Civic & Community. The portfolio is organized through specialized practice areas including Sports Practice (with dedicated esports venue design capabilities), Higher Education Practice, and Interior Design Services, all delivered through a collaborative partnership approach with clients. Notable projects include the LEED Platinum Energy Innovation Center, Penn State East Halls residence hall complex, Pittsburgh Penguins facilities, and the Busan Esports Arena. The firm holds partnerships with the International Esports Federation and has completed over 100 sports projects exceeding $1B in constructed value.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategic Architecture Services Full-service architecture and interior design offering that integrates client strategic goals into architectural designs through a collaborative partnership approach. Targeted at enterprise clients across multiple sectors with an 80% repeat client rate.
• Workplace (Commercial) Architecture Corporate and commercial office space design services including office renovations, tenant fit-outs, and amenity planning for corporate clients.
• Higher Education Architecture Design services for colleges and universities including residence halls, academic buildings, sports facilities, and campus master planning. Clients include Penn State and University of Pittsburgh.
• Sports Practice Sports and recreation facility architecture with expertise in collegiate athletics, professional stadiums, and esports venues. The practice has completed over 100 sports projects exceeding $1B in constructed value over 25+ years.
• Esports Venue Design Specialized esports facility design capabilities including venue planning, fan experience design, and revenue generation strategy for esports facilities.
• Healthcare Architecture Healthcare facility design including hospitals, medical offices, and specialized healthcare environments. Notable project includes the $600 million Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
• Hospitality/Retail Architecture Design services for hotels, restaurants, retail spaces, and hospitality venues.
• Residential Architecture Custom residential design including single-family homes, multi-family developments, and specialized residential projects.
• Civic & Community Architecture Public and community facility design including government buildings, non-profit facilities, and civic spaces.
• Interior Design Services Interior design services spanning corporate interiors, hospitality, healthcare, and residential projects with expertise in workplace amenities, biophilic design, and sustainable interiors.
• Sustainable Design Services LEED-certified sustainable design capabilities with expertise in achieving LEED Platinum, Gold, and Silver certifications for various project types.

Quantifiable outcome

• 80% client repeat rate demonstrates strong client satisfaction and long-term partnership value
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• International Esports FederationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDLA+ is a strategic partner of the International Esports Federation, providing unique positioning in the emerging esports venue design market. This partnership leverages the firm's sports architecture expertise for the growing esports industry.
• Sunghoon Jung (Sports Practice Leader)coreOthersInternationally renowned designer specializing in sports and entertainment venues, lecturer, author, and thought leader in sports and esports industry design and planning. Joined to lead the Sports and Recreation Practice.
• RDC Design-Build, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDLA+ was retained by RDC Design-Build Inc. to design the District 15 Office Building project in Pittsburgh's Strip District. RDC served as developer for this 103,000 SF speculative office building.
• Pittsburgh Gateway CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDLA+ was hired as Architect of Record for the Energy Innovation Center (EIC), owned by Pittsburgh Gateway Corporation. The project converted the historic Connelly Trade School into a sustainable energy technology hub.
• Mascaro ConstructioncoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerMascaro Construction served as design-build partner with DLA+ for the Energy Innovation Center project. The partnership delivered a LEED Platinum renovation of the historic trade school building.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with parallel higher-education, healthcare, sports, and workplace practices, and a long-standing commitment to LEED and sustainable design. Similar multi-sector service model with deeper geographic reach.
• EwingCole: East Coast-based architecture and engineering firm with deep sports (NFL, NBA), healthcare, and higher-education expertise. Especially comparable for venues that blend training facilities, healthcare, and academic uses similar to DLA+ projects like the Steelers/UPMC training center.
• SmithGroup: Multi-sector design firm with strong higher-education, workplace, healthcare, and science & technology practices. Comparable scale and balanced sector exposure to DLA+ with a similarly integrated architecture-plus-interiors offering.
• Populous: Global leader in sports and entertainment venue architecture. Directly competes with DLA+'s Sports Practice on collegiate and professional stadium commissions (e.g., PNC Park, PPG Paints Arena), and is the most obvious peer given DLA+'s heavy sports mix.
• CannonDesign: Integrated design practice covering education, healthcare, sports, and workplace with a comparable mid-size scale and reputation for thought leadership; competes on shared market segments such as higher-ed residence halls and academic facilities.
• HKS: Mid-to-large architecture firm with nationally recognized sports (AT&T Stadium, Globe Life Field) and healthcare practices, plus higher-ed work. Closely comparable market-segment mix to DLA+, especially on professional and collegiate sports venues.
• Moody Nolan: Largest African-American-owned architecture firm in the U.S., with a deep higher-education, sports, civic, and workplace practice. Closest peer in scale and sector mix with comparable community-impact focus and growing sustainability practice.

Broad incumbents

• Gensler: Largest U.S. architecture firm with significant workplace, sports, education, and healthcare practices. Operates as a much larger global incumbent that often competes for the same enterprise clients across DLA+'s segments.
• HOK: Large global design practice with a dedicated sports and convention center group and significant higher-education and healthcare portfolios. Competes with DLA+ for major institutional commissions while serving far broader geographies.
• Stantec Architecture: Global design and engineering firm with significant higher-education, healthcare, and workplace architecture; competes for larger institutional clients while operating well above DLA+'s headcount scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DLA_Plus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/3017087
• Instagraminstagram.com/dla_plus

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about DLA+ Architecture & Interior Design