What Fres Architectes does

FRES Architectes is a privately-held architecture and urban planning firm founded in 2004 in Paris by Laurent Gravier and Sara Martín Cámara following their first prize at the Europan 7 competition. The firm operates from two offices — 27 Rue Barbès in Montreuil (Paris) and Route de Jussy 29 in Thônex (Geneva, opened 2010) — and is registered as a SARL in France. It provides professional architectural design services across urban planning, cultural buildings, mixed-use developments, residential housing (social to luxury), and research/educational facilities, primarily in France and Switzerland. Notable completed projects include the award-winning Théâtre de la Nouvelle Comédie de Genève (completed 2020), the 24,000 m² Gare de Renens mixed-use development in Lausanne, the Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay (in collaboration with KAAN Architecten), and a portfolio of social and co-living housing projects in Paris, Lille, Nantes, Béziers and Annemasse.

The firm's go-to-market is almost exclusively competition-led: it acquires projects by winning international and open architectural competitions as well as restricted private competitions for major institutional and developer clients. The customer base is split between public/institutional clients (municipalities, universities, social-housing operators such as Pas-de-Calais Habitat, public transport and rail entities) and real estate developers (Bouygues Immobilier, Altarea Cogedim, Neoximo/Soreli). Revenue is generated as project-specific professional-services fees negotiated by scope and complexity; pricing is not publicly disclosed and the firm has never raised external venture or private equity capital, remaining entirely founder-owned. The founders have personally received major industry recognition, including the Europe 40 under 40 award (2014) and the Prix Oeuvre Originale ARVHA 2021 for Martín Cámara, while the firm itself has accumulated more than fifteen juried awards between 2013 and 2024 for individual projects, particularly the Nouvelle Comédie de Genève, which won WAN Awards Gold 2022, ICONIC Awards Best of Best 2022, Grands Prix du Design 2022, AFEX 2021, and a 2024 Prix SIA longlist.

Name

Fres Architectes

Legal name

FRES Architectes

Website

https://fres.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

FRES Architectes is a privately-held architecture and urban planning firm founded in 2004 in Paris by Laurent Gravier and Sara Martín Cámara, operating from Paris and Geneva offices and serving public/institutional clients and real estate developers through international competition wins across France and Switzerland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Design Services

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Urban planning design
• Cultural venue architecture
• Residential housing design
• Mixed-use development

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 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: The firm generates revenue through fees for architectural design services on projects won via competitions or direct commissions. Projects span multiple scales from urban planning to architecture, covering diverse programs including theatres, housing, educational facilities, and mixed-use developments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

FRES Architectes is an architecture and urban design firm providing professional design services for cultural venues, residential developments, mixed-use projects, and educational/research facilities across France and Switzerland. Projects are typically acquired through winning international open architectural competitions and direct commissions from public institutions and real estate developers. Each project is developed as a research-based strategy addressing site-specific context and themes of density, urbanity, mixity, diversity, and sustainable development.

Product overview

Fres Architectes is an architecture and urban planning firm offering comprehensive architectural services across various program types and scales. The firm's portfolio spans cultural buildings (notably the award-winning Théâtre de la Nouvelle Comédie de Genève), mixed-use transit-oriented developments (Gare de Renens), residential housing (social housing, co-living, and multi-unit developments in France and Switzerland), and research/educational facilities. Their projects consistently address themes of density, urbanity, mixity, diversity, and sustainable development, developed through collaborative design strategies with clients and engineering teams. The portfolio includes Y Building on Île de Nantes, the ZAC Étoile co-living project in Annemasse (recent 2023 competition win), and numerous social housing projects across France.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Théâtre de la Nouvelle Comédie de Genève Architectural design of a theater/performance venue in Geneva, Switzerland, delivered for a public cultural institution client. Project scope covered theater architecture, public cultural infrastructure, and integrated lighting/material design. The completed building has received extensive international recognition.
• Gare de Renens, Lausanne Architectural design and master planning for a 24,000 m² mixed-use transit-oriented development including commerce, offices, and housing adjacent to Renens railway station in Lausanne, Switzerland, delivered for a public infrastructure client as part of the CEVA rail link project.
• ZAC Étoile Annemasse Co-living and Co-working Architectural design of a co-living and co-working building in Annemasse, France, promoting collective housing with social interactions, delivered for a private real estate developer client (Bouygues Immobilier).
• Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay Architectural design of a molecular sciences research institute building for Université Paris-Saclay in Orsay, France, delivered for a public university client in collaboration with KAAN Architecten.
• Y Building, Île de Nantes Architectural design of a 101/124-unit residential building on Île de Nantes, France, delivered for a private real estate developer (Altarea Cogedim).
• Social Housing - Avenue Netter, Paris

Quantifiable outcome

• Théâtre de la Nouvelle Comédie de Genève received Gold Award in Civic-The Arts category at WAN Awards 2022, multiple Iconic Awards, and recognition from International Architecture Awards

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Atelier Kempe ThillcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing collaboration since 2012 on multiple housing projects including 50 housing units at Rue Binet Paris (Équerre d'Argent nomination 2016), 9 social housing units Avenue Netter Paris (Trophées Béton Pro 2019), and Porte de Montmartre project (Palmarès Technal 2017).
• KAAN ArchitectencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay (nominated for EU Mies van der Rohe Award 2019, received Trophées Béton 2019). Joint projects demonstrating international architectural collaboration.
• Bouygues ImmobiliercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloper partner for coliving and coworking project at ZAC Etoile Annemasse-Genève. FRES won 1st prize in restricted competition 2023 for co-living building. Project aims to create collective housing fostering social interactions.
• Neoximo and SoreliminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on 53 housing units at Lille Rives de la Haute Deule project, winner of Pyramide d'Argent 2018 FPI.
• Altarea CogedimminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloper partner for Y Building project - 101/124 housing units on Île de Nantes (Construction Moderne publication 2019).
• Pas-de-Calais HabitatminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial housing developer partner for 23 housing units at Béthune, recipient of multiple awards including ArchiDesignClub Awards 2014, Fritz Höger Preis 2017 Mention, Prix AMO 2013 distinction.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• MVRDV: Dutch architecture firm with a similar competition-winning strategy across mixed-use, cultural, and residential programs. Operates in adjacent market segments with comparable signature design approach but at significantly larger scale and global footprint.
• Snøhetta: Norwegian-headquartered international architecture firm with strong cultural and public-architecture competition portfolio. Comparable design-led positioning and competition-acquisition model, though now operating at global mega-firm scale.
• David Chipperfield Architects: Major international architecture firm with strong European cultural and public portfolio including Pritzker Prize recognition. Operates in the same competition-winning cultural/civic space as FRES but at materially larger scale across multiple offices.
• BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group): International architecture firm that grew from a similar boutique competition-winning origin to global mega-firm scale. Comparable early-career trajectory in signature competition wins, though now operating at vastly different scale across mixed-use, cultural, and residential programs.

Direct peers

• Lacaton & Vassal: French architecture firm with a parallel profile: competition-winning, social housing expertise, and international award recognition (including Pritzker Prize 2021). Directly comparable in program mix (housing, cultural) and French institutional client base.
• KAAN Architecten: Dutch architecture firm that has directly collaborated with FRES on the Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay (Mies van der Rohe nomination 2019). Both are European boutique practices of comparable scale operating through competition-winning strategies across cultural, research, and residential programs.
• Dominique Perrault Architecture: Paris-based architecture firm operating in the same competition-winning, mixed-program model across cultural, residential, and urban projects. Comparable scale and French institutional client base, with similar signature design-led positioning.
• Atelier Kempe Thill: German-Dutch architecture firm in ongoing collaboration with FRES since 2012 on multiple housing projects. Both firms operate a similar boutique European model focused on competition-winning cultural and residential architecture with strong award track records.
• Wilmotte & Associés: Established French architecture firm with cross-program portfolio spanning cultural venues, residential, and urban regeneration — directly overlapping FRES's competition-winning model and French/Swiss institutional client base.
• Ateliers Jean Nouvel: Major French architecture practice with extensive competition-winning portfolio in cultural and public architecture internationally. Comparable in design-led positioning and signature-aesthetic approach, though operating at significantly larger scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/100063554864426
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fres-architectes---gravier-martin-camara-sarl
• Instagraminstagram.com/fresarchitectes

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Fres Architectes