What dwell design studio, llc does

Dwell Design Studio, LLC is an architecture and planning firm founded in 2009 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with seven US offices spanning the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southwest, and Mountain West (Charlotte, Dallas, McLean/DC, Orlando, Richmond, and Salt Lake City). The firm delivers professional architectural services — master planning, schematic design, design development, construction administration, and interior design — for multifamily, mixed-use, retail, hospitality, senior living, and student housing developers. Its client roster includes repeat enterprise developers such as Greystar, Trammell Crow Residential, Allen Morris, Woodfield Development, Terwilliger Pappas, NRP Holdings, The Ritchie Group, Trademark Property Company, and Watercrest Senior Living, with anchor projects including Stella at Star Metals (327 units, Atlanta), The Leo (2,300 beds, Tempe AZ), and Shivers Farm (40-acre mixed-use, Southlake TX).

The firm's underlying product layer combines traditional architectural services with two proprietary, pre-priced prototyping systems. ArchType™, developed in partnership with construction firm Catamount Constructors, is a customizable Build-to-Rent kit-of-plans engineered to deliver BTR communities with cost certainty and reduced design-to-build lead time. RAD (Residential Affordability by Dwell) is a garden-style multifamily prototype offering 3-story and 4-story configurations at 35–48 units per acre, with disclosed savings of up to 22% on heated net rentable area and average savings of $2.4 million per project in vertical transportation costs; fully coordinated, permittable drawing sets are deliverable in as little as 45 business days. Dwell also operates "Radically Polished," an industry podcast covering design, construction administration, senior housing, and mixed-use development.

The firm operates as a privately held, founder-led LLC with CEO Jason Shepard (career volume of 400,000+ multifamily units designed) and CFO Tiffany Shepard, supported by a Managing Principal/Regional Director structure in each market. Revenue is generated through project-based professional services fees tied to scope, complexity, and project size, with go-to-market executed via direct enterprise engagement with real estate developers, business development led by a Principal-level team, and industry event participation. The firm has been recognized among Atlanta's largest architectural firms by Atlanta Business Chronicle (Bizjournals) in 2020 and 2024, and received the AIA Georgia Firm of the Year Honor Award in 2023.

Name

dwell design studio, llc

Legal name

Dwell Design Studio, LLC

Website

https://dwelldesignstudio.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Dwell Design Studio is a private Atlanta-headquartered architecture firm with seven US offices delivering multifamily, mixed-use, retail, hospitality, senior living, and student housing design for enterprise real estate developers since 2009.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (54131), Interior Design Services (54141)

SIC

Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Independent Living Community Development & Construction (Senior Housing Developers) (HLADAAAH), Senior Living & Assisted Living Facility Construction (IMAFACAJ)

Keywords

• Multifamily architecture
• Mixed-use design
• Senior living design
• Student housing design
• Build-to-rent design

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Project-based fees for architectural design services including master planning, schematic design, design development, and construction administration for multifamily, mixed-use, retail, hospitality, senior living, and student housing projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

dwell design studio is an architecture and planning firm that provides full-service architectural design for multifamily, mixed-use, retail, hospitality, senior living, and student housing projects. the firm is headquartered in atlanta, ga, was founded in 2009, and complements its design services with proprietary products such as archtype™ and the rad prototype that standardize and accelerate multifamily design delivery.

Product overview

Dwell Design Studio is an architecture firm founded in 2009 that provides comprehensive design services for the built environment. The company's portfolio includes specialized product offerings such as ArchType™ (a Build-to-Rent solution developed with Catamount Constructors providing pre-priced, customizable kit-of-plans for BTR communities) and RAD (Residential Affordability by Dwell), a garden-style multifamily prototype achieving cost savings of up to 22% and offering 3-story and 4-story configurations. Beyond these named products, Dwell offers a broad range of design services organized by project type including Master Planning, Multifamily, Mixed-Use, Retail, Interior Design, Student Housing, Senior Housing, Hospitality, and High-Rise design. The firm also produces the 'Radically Polished' podcast as content marketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ArchType: A ready-to-build, fully integrated solution for the Build-to-Rent market developed in partnership with Catamount Constructors, Inc.
• RAD (Residential Affordability by Dwell)
• Radically Polished

Products and services

• Multifamily Architecture Services full-service architectural design for garden-style, mid-rise, and high-rise multifamily housing developments, including unit plan design, amenity programming, and construction documentation. intended for real estate developers and operators building rental and for-sale multifamily communities.
• Mixed-Use Architecture Services architectural design for mixed-use developments integrating multifamily residential with ground-floor retail, hospitality, or parking components. intended for urban infill, town-center, and transit-oriented developers.
• Senior Living Architecture Services architectural design for independent living, assisted living, and memory care senior living communities, addressing acuity-driven unit design, code compliance, and operational workflow. intended for senior living developers and owner-operators.
• Student Housing Architecture Services architectural design for purpose-built student housing communities, optimizing unit mix for bed-count density and amenity-rich common areas within academic-year delivery cycles. intended for student housing developers and operators.
• Hospitality Architecture Services architectural design for hospitality projects including select-service hotels and branded residential developments, aligned with brand standards, operational efficiency, and guest experience requirements. intended for hotel brands, hospitality operators, and mixed-use developers.
• Retail Architecture Services architectural design for retail-anchored and standalone retail projects, integrating storefront, tenant, and parking requirements with site planning and entitlements. intended for retail developers and mixed-use project sponsors.
• ArchType™ proprietary standardized multifamily design system that accelerates and standardizes unit plan and building type production for developer clients. functions as a reusable design asset library supporting the firm's multifamily architecture services.
• RAD Prototype proprietary rapid apartment development (rad) prototype design library that compresses design timelines for multifamily projects. functions as a repeatable prototype set used within the firm's multifamily architecture services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 22% cost savings on heated net rentable area with RAD Prototype
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Catamount Constructors, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDwell Design Studio and Catamount Constructors co-developed ArchType™, a ready-to-build, fully integrated solution for the Build-to-Rent (BTR) market. The partnership combines Dwell's architectural design expertise with Catamount's construction experience to deliver a customizable, pre-priced kit-of-plans that provides developers speed to market, predictable pricing, and confidence in execution.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Humphreys & Partners Architects: The largest US architecture firm focused almost exclusively on multifamily housing (market-rate, affordable, student, senior). Directly comparable because, like Dwell, it concentrates on multifamily developers and runs proprietary design systems for high-density product.
• Niles Bolton Associates: Atlanta-headquartered architecture firm with deep multifamily, student housing, and mixed-use practices across the Southeast. Closest geographic and segment competitor to Dwell in the Atlanta/Charlotte/Dallas footprint.
• KTGY Group: National architecture and planning firm specializing in multifamily, mixed-use, and active-adult housing with offices across the US. Competes with Dwell for the same enterprise developer clients on mid- and high-rise residential work.
• Torti Gallas + Partners: Urban-design-driven architecture firm known for town-center, mixed-use, and multifamily urban infill projects. Overlaps with Dwell on mixed-use developer clients and walkable, experience-led design approaches.
• Cooper Carry: Atlanta-based architecture firm of similar size serving multifamily, mixed-use, retail, and hospitality developers. Local peer competing for the same Allen Morris / Post Properties-style Atlanta-region developer relationships.
• Stonehill & Taylor: Design-led architecture firm with a strong multifamily, hospitality, and high-rise portfolio. Comparable to Dwell in pursuit of distinctive, experiential residential architecture for institutional developers.
• BKV Group: Mid-sized architecture, engineering, and interior design firm with significant multifamily and senior living practices. Comparable in scale and segment mix, including affordable and market-rate housing developers.
• LRK Inc. Multidisciplinary design firm with multifamily, mixed-use, and senior living work across the Sunbelt. Direct competitor for Dwell's enterprise developer clients in Dallas, Charlotte, and Atlanta-corridor projects.

Broad incumbents

• HKS, Inc. Large national AEC firm with significant multifamily, hospitality, and mixed-use practices. Competes with Dwell on high-rise and large mixed-use commissions but operates across healthcare, sports, and commercial as well.
• HDR Inc. Global AEC firm with multifamily-adjacent and senior living capabilities. Comparable as a scaled, full-service design firm that competes for large integrated development commissions where Dwell also bids.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/dwelldesignATL
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dwell-design-studio
• Instagraminstagram.com/dwelldesignstudio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 dwell design studio, llc