San Francisco Design Week

What San Francisco Design Week does

San Francisco Design Week (SFDW) is an annual city-wide design festival produced by Design Bay Area, a nonprofit 501c3 organization founded in 2006. The flagship event, held June 1-12 in 2026 (its 20th anniversary edition), features hundreds of community-hosted events — including studio tours, exhibitions, panels, workshops, brand activations, and the curated Studio Crawl — spanning architecture, interiors, industrial design, communications, user experience, fashion, furniture, lighting, and landscape architecture across the San Francisco Bay Area's nine counties. SFDW also operates the annual San Francisco Innovation Awards (an international design competition running 2018-2026), the May precursor series Design Silicon Valley in Palo Alto/Stanford/San Jose, the Bay Area Made platform for regional maker brands, and the free Design Bay Area mobile app (iOS/Android) for year-round event discovery and community engagement.

The technology stack is intentionally lean: a Boomset-integrated ticketing and registration platform, a mobile app, calendar subscription feeds (iCal/Google), and a WordPress-based website (sfdesignweek.org). The organization's revenue model combines five streams: event host application fees ranging from $100 (individuals) to $399 (for-profits with 10+ employees), centralized ticketing with a $20 minimum and a 50/50 revenue split option for hosts, multi-tier corporate sponsorships (Official, Branding, Venue, Community, Swag — with Adobe, Rivian, Robert Half, Lumens, Pact Studio, and Eames Institute among flagship sponsors), Innovation Awards submission fees ($129 students, $159 educators, $375 professionals), and tax-deductible donations supporting accessibility funds.

SFDW operates with a small team of 1-10 employees (CEO Dawn Zidonis, Chair Alana Washington, Community Coordinator Mariya Shpungina, Production Coordinator Carlos Lopez) and is sustained by an ecosystem of 100+ community partners including AIGA SF, IXDA, AIA San Francisco, IDEO, frog (Capgemini Invent), Stanford d.school, California College of the Arts, and the Service Design Network SF Chapter. The organization is governed as a registered trademark with no equity holders, no venture funding, and no disclosed financials.

Name

San Francisco Design Week

Legal name

San Francisco Design Week (registered trademark of Design Bay Area)

Website

https://sfdesignweek.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

San Francisco Design Week is a nonprofit 501c3 organization producing an annual city-wide design festival and international Innovation Awards competition across the San Francisco Bay Area, serving designers, studios, corporate sponsors, and design enthusiasts through community events, ticketing, and a mobile app.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Design Festival & Community Events

NAICS

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Professional & Certification Expos Organizers (THAHABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Engineering & Technology Congresses (THAHAJAE), Event Theming, Mood Boards & Concept Design (HSACAOAH)

Keywords

• Design festival events
• Design awards competition
• Community design events
• Creative community programming
• Nonprofit design initiatives

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Event Application Fees: Fees charged to community event hosts to list events on the official SFDW calendar. Individual hosts pay $100, small studios/non-profits (2-9 employees) pay $150, non-profits (10+ employees) pay $299, for-profit organizations (10+ employees) pay $399, and Studio Crawl hosts pay $199.
2. Ticket Sales Revenue: SFDW manages centralized ticket sales for community events. Event hosts can choose to donate 100% of revenue or receive a 50/50 revenue split paid within 30 days post-festival. Standard ticket price minimum is $20.
3. Sponsorship: Corporate sponsors support the festival at various levels. Official sponsors include Rivian, IRG Stone, Flowers Winery, Lumens, Eames Institute, Adobe, Pact Studio, Armadillo, Robert Half, Gamma, and others. Includes venue sponsors, branding sponsors, community sponsors, and swag sponsors.
4. Donations: 501c3 nonprofit accepts donations to support design community promotion, event documentation, and free ticket accessibility funds. In 2023, elevated and promoted over 300 community events.
5. Innovation Awards Submission Fees: Award submission fees: Students $129 USD, Educators $159 USD, Professionals $375 USD. Additional fees for printed certificates and glass engraved awards ($99-$250).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

San Francisco Design Week produces an annual week-long, city-wide design festival (June 1-12, 2026 for the 20th Anniversary edition) featuring hundreds of community-hosted events spanning architecture, interior design, industrial design, communications, digital, fashion, and user experience across the San Francisco Bay Area. The festival is complemented by the annual San Francisco Innovation Awards (an international design competition), Design Silicon Valley (a precursor industry-event series held in May), Studio Crawl (curated multi-studio evening tours), and the Design Bay Area mobile application for event discovery and registration. The organization operates as a 501c3 nonprofit under Design Bay Area, generating revenue through event host application fees, ticket sales, sponsorships, donations, and award submission fees.

Product overview

San Francisco Design Week operates as an annual design festival produced by Design Bay Area, a nonprofit 501c3 organization. The core offering is the week-long city-wide San Francisco Design Week festival (June 1-12 annually), which showcases design across disciplines through hundreds of community-hosted events. Supporting offerings include the Design Bay Area App (mobile application for iOS and Android enabling access to events and community posts), the San Francisco Innovation Awards (annual international design competition), Design Silicon Valley (a series of industry-focused events in May), and the Studio Crawl event format. The ecosystem also includes the Design Bay Area website serving as the parent platform for year-round community engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• San Francisco Innovation Awards: An international design competition that honors exceptional work pushing boundaries of creativity, technology, and craft, recognizing designers and teams whose ideas reflect the spirit of experimentation and invention.

Products and services

• San Francisco Design Week Festival An annual, week-long, city-wide design festival (most recently June 1-12, 2026) showcasing design across architecture, interior design, industrial design, communications, digital, fashion, and user experience through hundreds of community-hosted events throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Open to design professionals, students, enthusiasts, and the general public via ticketed and free events.
• Design Bay Area Mobile App A free regional design community mobile application for iOS and Android that provides Bay Area creatives and the public with access to upcoming SFDW events, local community posts by designers and brands, and topic group notifications. Available on Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
• San Francisco Innovation Awards An annual international design competition honoring exceptional work pushing boundaries of creativity, technology, and craft across design disciplines including architecture, interiors, industrial design, communications, and user experience. Open to students ($129 submission fee), educators ($159), and professionals ($375) globally, with submissions historically received from Italy, France, The Netherlands, China, USA, UAE, Japan, Pacific Islands, and UK.
• Design Silicon Valley A series of industry-focused events held in May each year as a precursor to San Francisco Design Week, focused on innovation, interiors, architecture, landscape, tech, start-ups, venture, and art across Silicon Valley locations including Palo Alto, Stanford, and San Jose. Targeted at design and technology industry professionals.
• Studio Crawl A curated evening event format during San Francisco Design Week where attendees move from studio to studio for celebration, networking, and behind-the-scenes access. Offered in South of Market (June 11) and North of Market (June 12) neighborhoods with limited acceptance and a $199 application fee for participating host studios.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 300 community events, brands, design teams and studios promoted in 2023 alone
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers10 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

Integration1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

20 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Design Bay AreacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign Bay Area is the nonprofit 501c3 organization that produces San Francisco Design Week. It strengthens San Francisco Bay Area's creative community through design, culture, innovation, and collaboration. Through year-round festivals, talks, exhibitions, mentorship programs, and community partnerships, Design Bay Area connects designers, artists, businesses, and the public.
• AIGA SFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAIGA brings design to the world, advancing design as a respected craft, strategic advantage and vital cultural force.
• IXDA (Interaction Design Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal network of 50,000+ members dedicated to the professional practice of Interaction Design since 2003.
• AIA San FranciscocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading professional membership association for licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners since 1857.
• RivianflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor of San Francisco Design Week.
• AdobeflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor. Adobe revolutionizes how the world engages with ideas and information through award-winning technologies and software.
• Pact StudioflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Branding Sponsor and 2026 Annual Theme Partner. Mission-based studio committed to developing distinct brand identities.
• LumensflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor with venue at Jackson Square, San Francisco. Provider of design lighting and gallery space.
• Flowers Vineyards & WineryflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor and Awards Ceremony sponsor. Dedicated to crafting elegant and balanced Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
• Eames Institute of Infinite CuriositycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor. 501(c)(3) public charity dedicated to advancing the legacy of Ray and Charles Eames.
• IDEOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner. Human-centered, interdisciplinary design company and early leader in design thinking practice.
• frog (Capgemini Invent)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner. Leading global creative consultancy applying creativity, strategy, design and data to re-invent businesses.
• Stanford d.schoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner. Build learning experiences helping people discover their creative capacity using design methods.
• California College of the Arts (CCA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner and Design Strategy MBA provider. Educates visionary students to become versatile makers with inventive solutions.
• Service Design Network (SDN) San Francisco ChaptercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner. Strives to engage local design community and make San Francisco the US west coast hub for service design.
• MUCHOcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerBranding Sponsor and global boutique design studio creating design with meaning from Barcelona, San Francisco, Paris, and New York.
• Robert HalfflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Sponsor. World's first and largest specialized talent solutions firm connecting opportunities with highly skilled job seekers.
• BoomsetcoreTechnology or IntegrationTicketing and event registration platform used for SFDW event management.
• GantricoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Partner and Bay Area Made host. Premium lighting brand using digital manufacturing and creator-led design.
• Ciel Creative SpacecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVenue Sponsor. 55,000-square-foot hub blending studio rentals, coworking, and event production for fashion, art and creative industries.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sfdesignweek
• Facebookfacebook.com/sfdesignweek
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/65005582/admin/dashboard
• Instagraminstagram.com/sfdesignweek

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 San Francisco Design Week