SGS

What SGS does

Smith Gee Studio (SGS) is a privately held Nashville, Tennessee-based architecture, interior design, and urban design firm founded in 2010 by four partners — Fleming Smith III, Hunter Gee, Dallas Caudle, and Greg Tidwell — operating as Smith Gee Studio, LLC. The firm serves real estate developers, hospitality operators, government and housing authorities, and master-planned community developers, primarily across the Southeast United States with concentration in Nashville, Tennessee. Its core practice is built around an integrated 'Complete Places' philosophy that combines architecture, interior design, and urban design disciplines within a single studio to deliver cohesive buildings, neighborhoods, districts, and campuses.

The firm's core services are organized into three primary offerings — Architecture Services (adaptive reuse, multifamily residential, commercial, hospitality, civic/institutional), Interior Design, and Urban Design & Planning — supported by specialized service modules including Zoning & Entitlements, Design Guidelines, and long-term Town Architect engagements. Notable deliverables include The Gulch master plan (LEED for Neighborhood Development Silver — the first such certification in the Southern United States), multiple LEED-certified multifamily communities (Ryman Lofts Silver, Terra House Gold, River House Silver), the 420-unit Kenect Nashville mixed-use project, the $100M Twickenham Square redevelopment in Huntsville, AL, and active hospitality projects such as the Hilton Oak Lawn renovation and The Lodge at Natchez Trace. Its proprietary research publication, 'The Living Lowdown,' is a bi-annual resident-driven multifamily design resource developed in collaboration with Willow Bridge Property Company, based on direct surveys of more than 360 Nashville multifamily residents.

Smith Gee Studio generates revenue through professional services fees on a project-based, negotiated engagement model across both public and private sector clients. The firm's go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting developers, property owners, government agencies, and institutions, supplemented by thought-leadership content (Living Lowdown publication, Connecting the Dots blog), industry conference participation (ULI, AIA, CNU, APA), and a portfolio-led case study approach. The firm has no public listing, no parent company, no external institutional investors, and no disclosed funding rounds; ownership remains with the four founding principals plus other principals. Headcount is reported in the 11–50 band with a team page listing 50+ named individuals across architecture, interiors, planning, leadership, operations, marketing, and quality management disciplines.

Name

SGS

Legal name

Smith Gee Studio, LLC

Website

https://smithgeestudio.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Smith Gee Studio (SGS) is a Nashville-based architecture, interior design, and urban design firm serving real estate developers, hospitality operators, and government agencies across the Southeast with integrated multidisciplinary design services under its 'Complete Places' philosophy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Interior Design Services (541410)

SIC

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

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAKAG

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Interior design services
• Urban planning services
• Adaptive reuse design
• Master planning services

Headquarters

HQ city

Nashville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architecture and Design Services: Professional services revenue from providing architecture, interior design, urban design and planning, zoning entitlements, design guidelines, and town architect services to developers, property owners, government entities, and institutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Smith Gee Studio (SGS) is an architecture, interior design, and urban design firm that delivers integrated design services for real estate developers, property owners, government agencies, and institutions. The firm specializes in adaptive reuse, multifamily residential, mixed-use, commercial, hospitality, and civic/institutional projects under a "Complete Places" philosophy, supplemented by zoning/entitlements support, design guidelines, and Town Architect services.

Product overview

Smith Gee Studio (SGS) is an architecture, interior design, and urban design firm offering an integrated portfolio of services under a 'Complete Places' philosophy. Their core offerings span Architecture Services (adaptive reuse, multifamily, commercial, hospitality, civic projects), Interior Design, Urban Design & Planning, and specialized service modules including Zoning & Entitlements, Design Guidelines, and Town Architect Services. The firm also produces The Living Lowdown, a bi-annual multifamily market research publication informed by resident surveys. The firm's interdisciplinary approach emphasizes collaboration across all design disciplines to create cohesive, human-centered environments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Services Designs buildings integrating architecture, interior design, and urban design across adaptive reuse, multifamily residential, commercial office, hospitality, and civic/institutional projects for real estate developers, property owners, government entities, and institutions.
• Interior Design Crafts interiors that feel intentional and intuitive, designing spaces with attention to light, texture, rhythm, and restraint for commercial, hospitality, multifamily, and mixed-use projects.
• Urban Design & Planning Shapes systems, stories, and shared space—creating frameworks for neighborhoods, districts, campuses, and the public realm that foster connection between individuals and communities.
• Zoning & Entitlements

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $1.5 billion in investment led through The Gulch redevelopment
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Willow Bridge Property CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research partnership developing 'The Living Lowdown' - a resident-driven design resource based on surveys of 360+ multifamily residents across Nashville's urban core. Survey data on resident preferences, work-from-home patterns, and sustainability priorities informs SGS design decisions and client recommendations.
• Perkins + WillminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign collaboration on Kenect Nashville 420-unit mixed-use multifamily project, where SGS worked with Perkins + Will to deliver the innovative dual-tower design for young professionals.
• Chattanooga Design StudiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership on Westside District master planning with Chattanooga Housing Authority, working alongside EJP Consulting Group and the City of Chattanooga to redevelop urban neighborhood including multiple public housing properties.
• EJP Consulting GroupcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerConsultant partnership on Westside District redevelopment, supporting robust public engagement and planning process for housing authority transformation project.
• Bristol Development GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorClient partnership for Twickenham Square $100M mixed-use redevelopment in Huntsville, AL - SGS led master planning and served as architect of record for retail and multifamily components.
• SWH ResidentialcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLong-standing client partnership for Rolling Mill Hill district development including Terra House (194 units) and River House (247 units), both achieving LEED certification.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Perkins&Will: Global architecture and design firm offering overlapping architecture, interiors, and planning services; collaborated with SGS on Kenect Nashville but operates at far larger scale.
• HKS Architects: Large national architecture firm active in hospitality, mixed-use, and multifamily projects, overlapping with SGS's project types on a national footprint.
• Gensler: World's largest architecture and design firm with full-service architecture, interiors, and urban planning offerings that broadly encompass SGS's service categories.

Regional players

• Hastings Architecture: Nashville-based architecture and interior design firm working across multifamily, hospitality, and commercial projects, directly competing with SGS in the same local market.
• Gresham Smith: Large Nashville-headquartered architecture and engineering firm serving similar building types across the Southeast, overlapping with SGS on urban and institutional work at greater scale.
• Tuck-Hinton Architecture & Design: Nashville architecture and design firm working on civic, adaptive reuse, and mixed-use projects, a direct local competitor in SGS's core geography.
• ESa (Earl Swensson Associates): Established Nashville architecture and interior design firm competing for regional commercial, hospitality, and mixed-use commissions in SGS's home market.

Direct peers

• Dwell Design Studio: Southeast architecture and interior design firm specializing in multifamily and mixed-use residential, competing directly for the developer clients SGS targets.
• Looney Ricks Kiss (LRK): Southeast-based architecture, interior design, and urban design firm focused on multifamily, mixed-use, and community planning, closely mirroring SGS's integrated 'Complete Places' model.
• Niles Bolton Associates: Atlanta-based architecture, planning, and interior design firm concentrated in multifamily and mixed-use development, a close functional peer to SGS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/smithgeestudio
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smith-gee-studio

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 SGS