Johnson Favaro
Johnson Favaro is a privately held, 12-15-person architecture firm founded in 1988 in Culver City, California, specializing in libraries, K-12 schools, higher education facilities, civic buildings, and community centers for Southern California municipalities and educational institutions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1988
- HeadquartersCulver City, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Johnson Favaro does
Johnson Favaro is a privately held architecture firm founded in 1988 by Steve Johnson and Jim Favaro and headquartered at 5898 Blackwelder Street, Culver City, California. The firm specializes in public-realm architecture, with a practice focused on libraries, K-12 schools, community colleges and universities, civic buildings, parks, cultural institutions, and select private residences. Its client base is concentrated among Southern California public-sector and institutional buyers — including Los Angeles Unified School District, UCLA, USC, Chaffey College, the cities of Riverside, West Hollywood, Costa Mesa, Manhattan Beach, Beverly Hills, Culver City, and Rancho Palos Verdes, plus private clients such as Mirman School.
The firm operates as a single integrated practice of approximately 12-15 team members, structured around two principals (Steve Johnson and Jim Favaro), associate principals, senior design associates, design associates, a marketing and business development manager, and an office manager. Services span master planning, programming, feasibility studies, facilities assessment, cost planning, conceptual design, building design, document production, and construction administration. Notable completed work includes the LEED Gold-certified Manhattan Beach Library (22,500 SF), the LEED Gold-certified Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library (30,000 SF; $28M), the UCLA Extension Administration Headquarters (75,000 SF; $18M), the Norma Hertzog Community Center, the Riverside Main Library, and the West Hollywood Library — several of which have received AIA and industry awards.
Revenue is generated through project-based professional fees quoted on the basis of scope, complexity, and construction cost (disclosed project construction values range from $1.5M to $28M). The firm acquires work primarily through direct client relationships, municipal and institutional RFPs, and design competitions, with the principals' relationships and an award-credentialed portfolio serving as the primary demand-generation mechanism. Geographically, the practice is centered on Southern California, with selected engagement extending into adjacent markets.
Johnson Favaro firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Johnson Favaro
- Website
- https://johnsonfavaro.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1988
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Johnson Favaro is a privately held, 12-15-person architecture firm founded in 1988 in Culver City, California, specializing in libraries, K-12 schools, higher education facilities, civic buildings, and community centers for Southern California municipalities and educational institutions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Johnson Favaro is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Culver City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Johnson Favaro business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Architecture and Design Services: Professional architecture services including master planning, programming, feasibility studies, facilities assessment, cost planning, conceptual design, building design, document production, and construction administration. Revenue is generated through project-based professional fees for institutional, municipal, and private clients.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Johnson Favaro product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Johnson Favaro is a full-service architecture practice providing master planning, programming, feasibility studies, facilities assessment, cost planning, conceptual design, building design, document production, and construction administration services. The firm specializes in civic, educational, and cultural buildings including libraries, K-12 schools, higher education facilities, community centers, parks, arts and cultural institutions, and select private residences, primarily for Southern California public-sector and institutional clients.
Product overview
Johnson Favaro is a full-service architecture firm founded in 1988 in Culver City, CA, specializing in public realm architecture. The firm operates as a single integrated practice offering master planning, programming, feasibility studies, building design, and construction administration services across project types including Libraries, Arts + Culture, County/Municipal/Community, Higher Education, K-12 Schools, Master Planning, and Private Residences. Their portfolio includes notable projects such as Riverside Main Library, Costa Mesa Donald Dungan Library, UCLA Hedrick Study, and Manhattan Beach Library. The firm also produces editorial content through their Perspective blog and short films documenting their work.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Architecture and Design Services
Quantifiable outcome
- LEED Gold certification achieved on multiple projects including Manhattan Beach Library and Costa Mesa Dungan Library
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Johnson Favaro
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Johnson Favaro technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Johnson Favaro partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- HED (Hoffman Architects)minorCollaborated with HED on the Manhattan Beach Library project. HED served as structural/engineer of record while Johnson Favaro provided architectural design services.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Johnson Favaro competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- DLR Group: National architecture and engineering firm with a substantial civic/education practice serving school districts, universities, and municipalities. Comparable on target clients and project typologies, though at much larger scale.
- Dougherty + Dougherty Architects: Southern California architecture firm specializing in K-12, higher education, and civic projects. Closest comparable in geography, scale, and civic/education focus.
- Lake|Flato Architects: Award-winning civic and community architecture firm emphasizing contextual, sustainable design. Comparable on design philosophy around public-realm buildings and community-centered practice.
- TMP Architecture: Education-focused architecture firm serving K-12 districts and higher education. Direct overlap on school design, master planning, and institutional client engagement model.
- SmithGroup: Integrated design firm with longstanding practice in civic, education, and cultural architecture including libraries and higher education campuses. Overlapping client base and design philosophy around public-realm buildings.
- LPA Design Studios: Large California-based architecture firm with deep civic and educational practice serving K-12 districts, higher education, and municipalities. Most directly comparable on sector focus, project types, and California public-sector client base.
- Fanning Howey: Specialist education design firm focused on K-12 and higher education campuses. Comparable client base (school districts and universities) and similar specialization-driven positioning.
- CannonDesign: National architecture and design firm with strong education and civic practice. Comparable project typologies in higher education, K-12, and public buildings.
Broad incumbents
- Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with extensive civic, education, and cultural portfolios including libraries and universities. Overlapping project types but operates at significantly larger scale and broader geographic scope.
Others
- HED (Hoffman Architects): Architecture and engineering firm that collaborated with Johnson Favaro on the Manhattan Beach Library project. Relevant as a known project partner and as a comparable civic/education design firm.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Johnson Favaro social profiles
Digital presenceJohnson Favaro financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Johnson Favaro leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Johnson Favaro funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Johnson Favaro 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 Johnson Favaro
What does Johnson Favaro do?
Johnson Favaro is a full-service architecture practice providing master planning, programming, feasibility studies, facilities assessment, cost planning, conceptual design, building design, document production, and construction administration services. The firm specializes in civic, educational, and cultural buildings including libraries, K-12 schools, higher education facilities, community centers, parks, arts and cultural institutions, and select private residences, primarily for Southern California public-sector and institutional clients.
Is Johnson Favaro a public or private company?
Johnson Favaro is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Johnson Favaro founded?
Johnson Favaro was founded in 1988. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Johnson Favaro based?
Johnson Favaro is headquartered in Culver City, United States, in the North America region.
How does Johnson Favaro make money?
One revenue line is on record: architecture and Design Services.
Who are Johnson Favaro's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are DLR Group, Dougherty + Dougherty Architects, Lake|Flato Architects, TMP Architecture, SmithGroup, LPA Design Studios, Fanning Howey and CannonDesign. Perkins&Will is listed as a broad incumbent. HED (Hoffman Architects) is listed as an others.
Does Johnson Favaro have an API?
No public API is recorded for Johnson Favaro.