Nicoll Russell Studios

What Nicoll Russell Studios does

Nicoll Russell Studios is a privately held, RIAS Chartered architectural and interior design practice founded in 1982 and headquartered in Broughty Ferry, Dundee, Scotland. It delivers the full RIBA Plan of Work - from feasibility studies and concept design through statutory approvals, technical design, tendering, and contract administration - across a broad sector mix that includes private homes and extensions, public and corporate commercial developments, arts and community venues, education, healthcare, hospitality and leisure, transport and infrastructure, masterplanning, and conservation of listed buildings. The practice differentiates through Director-level personal involvement on every project, in-house Conservation Accreditation, Certified Passive House Designer and BREEAM Associate credentials, ISO 9001 registration, and CAD/BIM/NBS tooling.

Revenue is generated through professional services fees on a project-by-project, quote-based model tailored to scope, scale, and complexity; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The go-to-market is sales-led and direct, relying on a portfolio website, an active blog, professional community involvement (lectures, design reviews, Civic Trust and Chamber of Commerce participation), and reputation-driven referrals evidenced by multi-decade repeat engagements with named clients such as Hillcrest Housing Association, St Andrews Links Trust, University of St Andrews, New Victoria Hospital, Shell, and Jacobs. Geographic reach spans Scotland (primary), England, and selected projects in Europe (Spain).

Name

Nicoll Russell Studios

Legal name

Nicoll Russell Studios

Website

https://nrsarchitects.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nicoll Russell Studios is a Dundee-based RIAS Chartered architecture and interior design practice founded in 1982, delivering full RIBA Plan of Work services across private, public, and corporate clients in the UK and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Interior Design Services (541410)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG)

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Interior design practice
• Building conservation services
• Sustainable architecture design
• Masterplanning urban design

Headquarters

HQ city

Broughty Ferry

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architectural Services: Full architectural service providing design through all stages of projects, from brief development through to completion on site. Services tailored to individual client needs across all building types and scales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Nicoll Russell Studios is a chartered architecture and interior design practice providing a full architectural service following the RIBA Plan of Work, from feasibility studies and concept design through statutory approvals, technical information, tendering, and contract administration on site. The practice serves both private homeowners on houses and extensions and public/corporate clients on commercial, arts, community, hospitality, conservation, education, health, and infrastructure projects, with specialist in-house capabilities in conservation, masterplanning, and sustainability (Passive House and BREEAM).

Product overview

Nicoll Russell Studios is a multi-award winning architecture and interior design practice offering a comprehensive suite of professional services. The core offering is the Full Architectural Service, which follows the RIBA Plan of Work from initial brief through to project completion. Supporting service modules include Feasibility Studies, Interior Design and Space Planning, Conservation Services, Masterplanning, Private Homes and Extensions, and Sustainability Services. The practice has developed specialized expertise in BREEAM assessment and Passive House design, with in-house Certified Passive House Designer and BREEAM Associate qualifications. Services are delivered through a collaborative, studio-based approach with Director-level involvement on all projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Full Architectural Service

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• AHR (formerly Aedas UK): Large UK-headquartered architecture and building consultancy covering residential, education, healthcare, leisure and commercial work. Competes with Nicoll Russell Studios on larger public sector and corporate tenders where broader service lines matter.
• Foster + Partners: Global architecture incumbent with a UK practice covering commercial, cultural, transport and masterplanning work that overlaps with Nicoll Russell Studios' portfolio at the high end of corporate and public commissions.
• NORR Architects: International architecture and engineering firm offering similar multi-sector services including commercial, education, healthcare and infrastructure work. Significantly larger and broader but competes for the same public and corporate framework mandates.

Direct peers

• Page\Park Architects: Scottish chartered architecture practice of comparable size based in Glasgow with multi-sector expertise including heritage/conservation, cultural, education and commercial work. Highly comparable firm operating in the same regional market with a similar boutique, award-winning profile.
• HTA Design LLP: UK chartered practice with comparable expertise in residential/housing, sustainability (Passivhaus, BREEAM), conservation and placemaking. Closely aligned on sustainability credentials and sector mix, particularly housing association work.
• Anderson Bell + Christie: Long-established Scottish chartered practice with a similar blend of conservation, education, healthcare and commercial commissions. Direct regional peer with overlapping heritage specialism and award profile.
• Reiach and Hall Architects: Edinburgh-based chartered practice with a similar 40+ year heritage, comparable multi-sector portfolio (cultural, education, healthcare, commercial) and award-winning profile. Directly comparable mid-sized Scottish architecture firm.
• Halliday Fraser Munro: Scottish architecture practice with comparable multi-sector coverage including residential, commercial, healthcare and education. Closely aligned regional competitor with similar scale and project types.
• Purcell Architecture: UK-wide architecture firm with deep heritage/conservation specialism and a multi-sector portfolio similar to Nicoll Russell Studios' conservation, education and cultural work. Comparable on niche expertise in listed buildings and adaptive reuse.
• Allies and Morrison: UK architecture practice with comparable multi-sector expertise across housing, cultural, education and conservation projects. Similar mid-size chartered practice profile with strong public-sector portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nrsarchitects
• Facebookfacebook.com/nrsarchitects
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nicoll-russell-studios-ltd

Compliance2 records

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 Nicoll Russell Studios