alma-nac

What alma-nac does

alma-nac is a London-headquartered collaborative architecture practice founded in 2009, operating as a UK private limited company with a secondary studio in Sheffield and a team of approximately 10 staff. The firm delivers full-service architectural design across four primary typologies — residential (Live), workplace (Work), education (Learn), and community/public (Gather) — serving a mixed client base that includes private individuals, independent schools (notably Dulwich College), local authorities (Bexley Council), NHS bodies, charities (Trelya, L8 Matters CLT), and commercial occupiers (Magdrive). Its work is organized through a participatory design methodology that engages clients and end users from concept through completion, with stated principles of joyful, innovative, and sustainable design.

Core technical capabilities centre on sustainable and low-carbon architecture, including Certified Passive House design, net zero carbon new build and retrofit (e.g. Dulwich College Lower School Library), and conservation of heritage structures (Dulwich Barry Buildings). The practice operates BIM-based digital workflows under a dedicated sustainability lead and runs the externally facing 'Design for All' pro-bono programme for charities and the Net Zero Accelerator programme for the Department for Education spanning 25 schools. The practice holds RIBA Chartered Practice status and B Corp certification (achieved 2024), and has accumulated a dense portfolio of industry recognition including RIBA National Awards, AJ Retrofit Awards, and 2025 Architect of the Year Awards in both Net Zero and Education categories.

The business model is professional services revenue, with fees typically structured as a percentage of construction cost or fixed-fee per project scope, billed against multi-year contracts. Go-to-market relies on direct client engagement, competitive tendering (notably in public-sector education and community work), and referrals, supplemented by organic digital presence (website portfolio, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter) and earned media through award coverage in industry publications such as the Architects' Journal, RIBA Journal, Dezeen, and the Financial Times. The firm is founder-owned with no external investment, no subsidiaries, and no disclosed M&A or funding activity.

Name

alma-nac

Legal name

alma-nac ltd.

Website

https://alma-nac.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

alma-nac is a UK collaborative architecture practice (London and Sheffield) delivering sustainable, net zero and participatory design across residential, education, workplace, and community sectors for private, public, and charity clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architectural Services: Full-service architectural design from concept through construction completion, serving residential, commercial, educational, and community clients. Revenue is project-based, typically a percentage of construction cost or fixed fee for scope of services.
2. Retrofit and Conservation: Specialized retrofit architectural services focusing on energy efficiency improvements and heritage conservation, including Passive House upgrades and net zero carbon retrofits.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

alma-nac is a collaborative UK architecture practice delivering full-service architectural design from concept through completion across residential, education, workplace, and community sectors. The practice emphasises participatory design, sustainability, and net zero carbon solutions, including Passive House-certified and retrofit projects. Services are organised into typologies of Live, Work, Learn, and Gather.

Product overview

Alma-nac is a collaborative architecture practice offering comprehensive architectural design services across residential, education, workplace, and community sectors. The practice operates as a unified service model where architectural expertise is delivered through participatory design processes, with individual projects organized by typology (Live, Work, Learn, Gather). The portfolio includes named projects such as the award-winning House-within-a-House retrofit, Net Zero schools programme, Passivhaus-certified housing, and community facilities. The practice also runs the 'Design for All' pro-bono support programme for charitable organisations. Key service categories span residential architecture (new build and retrofit), education architecture (mainstream and SEND schools), workplace/commercial spaces, and community/public projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architectural Design Services Full-service architectural design practice offering participatory design, sustainable architecture, and innovative solutions across all work stages from concept through construction completion.
• Residential Architecture

Quantifiable outcome

• Barking Energy Centre powers 10,000+ homes, saving 12,000 tonnes of Carbon
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• ErectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Imperial College 'Commons' competition project at White City campus, working together on design featuring dynamic light installations and sparkling materials
• Jason Bruges StudiominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Imperial College 'Commons' competition project, providing light installation expertise for the design celebrating cathedral-like spaces beneath the Westway
• Design for All ProgrammecoreOthersProud participant in Design for All programme providing professional expertise to small charities and community organisations for building projects. First recipients were L8 Matters CLT for Lodge Lane affordable housing project. Also supported Trelya Nursery and Deeplish Community Centre through this programme.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mikhail Riches: Award-winning UK practice specialising in sustainable, Passivhaus and net-zero residential and housing projects; closest peer to alma-nac on sustainability credentials and residential/retrofit expertise.
• Cullinan Studio: London-based practice focused on sustainable architecture, conservation and education projects, sharing alma-nac's net-zero and heritage retrofit orientation.
• Haworth Tompkins: Independent London-based architecture practice of comparable mid-size scale with strong education, theatre and cultural-sector portfolios and RIBA award track record — directly comparable to alma-nac in size, market and award positioning.
• Proctor & Matthews: Independent UK architecture practice with notable education, residential and conservation work and strong RIBA award record — overlapping UK mid-market positioning with alma-nac.
• Haworth Tompkins (alternate) / Coffey Architects: Independent UK mid-size architecture practice active across residential, education and community sectors — comparable in scale, breadth and project typologies to alma-nac.
• Project Orange: Mid-size UK architecture practice operating across residential, workplace and community briefs with a similar RIBA-recognised award profile.
• RCKa: Independent London practice with a community-driven, social-housing and public-realm focus — comparable to alma-nac's Design for All community participation approach.
• Featherstone Young: Small UK architecture practice with a participatory-design ethos and community/regeneration portfolio; similar size and methodology to alma-nac.

Broad incumbents

• Allies and Morrison: Major London practice with established education, residential and conservation portfolios — a broader, larger incumbent competing for the same award-tier and public-sector briefs.
• Make Architects: Large UK architecture practice where alma-nac co-founder Chris Bryant previously worked; serves as a benchmark incumbent operating across sectors including education and workplace.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/almanac_arch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alma-nac
• Instagraminstagram.com/almanac_arch

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 alma-nac