Cierto Estudio
Cierto Estudio is a women-led Barcelona architecture firm specializing in collective housing with a gender perspective, sustainable urban regeneration, and social housing design, serving municipal governments in Spain and France through public competitions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersBarcelona, Spain
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Cierto Estudio does
Cierto Estudio is a women-led architecture and urban design firm founded in 2014 in Barcelona by six architects — Marta Benedicto, Ivet Gasol, Carlota de Gispert, Anna Llonch, Lucia Millet, and Clara Vidal. The firm specializes in collective housing design with an explicit gender perspective, sustainable urban transformation, and public space regeneration. Core projects include Illa Glòries (a 51-unit social housing building at Plaça de les Glòries with wood-structure construction and a communal rooftop), Kitch-room (67 public dwellings in El Masnou with a kitchen-centric typology), Caminar des del Centre/Consell de Cent (the Green Axis public space model within Barcelona's Superilla program), LUMI 2.0 in Bordeaux (69 social dwellings plus a 192-unit student residence for Clairsienne), and Casa Adelina and Hotel Flamant in the private segment. The team has expanded to roughly 20 staff including senior architects, junior architects, and a communications manager, with offices in Barcelona (Poblenou headquarters) and Paris.
The firm operates a professional services model, acquiring work primarily through public architecture competitions and private commissions. Primary customers are municipal and regional government bodies in Spain — Ajuntament de Barcelona, IMHAB, IMPSOL, BIMSA, and Infraestructures de la Generalitat — plus French social housing operator Clairsienne, with limited private work in hospitality (byPillow) and education (ESADE). Project fees are not publicly disclosed and are determined through competition awards and direct engagements; there is no indication of subscription, licensing, or other technology-product revenue streams. The go-to-market is enterprise field sales through formal tenders and direct developer relationships, supported by earned media in major architectural publications and conferences. As a bootstrapped, founder-owned practice with no disclosed external investment, parent company, or acquisition history, Cierto Estudio operates as an independent women-led studio.
Cierto Estudio firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cierto Estudio
- Legal name
- Cierto Estudio
- Website
- https://ciertoestudio.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cierto Estudio is a women-led Barcelona architecture firm specializing in collective housing with a gender perspective, sustainable urban regeneration, and social housing design, serving municipal governments in Spain and France through public competitions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Cierto Estudio is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Barcelona
- HQ country
- Spain
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Cierto Estudio business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Public Architecture Projects: Revenue from winning and executing public architecture competitions and government contracts for housing developments, public space regeneration, and urban planning projects.
- Private Architecture Projects: Revenue from private residential, commercial, and hospitality projects including hotels, private homes, and mixed-use developments.
- Urban Planning Consultancy: Revenue from drafting urban models and planning documents for municipal clients, such as the Green Axis Model for Superilla Barcelona.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Cierto Estudio product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cierto Estudio is a women-led architecture and urban planning firm providing architectural design, urban regeneration, and interior design services. The firm specializes in collective housing with gender-perspective integration, sustainable wood construction, and public space regeneration, serving public sector clients through architecture competitions and private clients through direct commissions.
Product overview
Cierto Estudio is a women-led architecture firm founded in 2014 by six architects (Marta Benedicto, Ivet Gasol, Carlota de Gispert, Anna Llonch, Lucia Millet, and Clara Vidal) providing architectural design and urban planning services. The firm operates as a single unified studio offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Their portfolio includes: Illa Glòries (collective housing with wooden structure), Kitch·room (kitchen-centric housing design), Casa Adelina (single-family residence), Hotel Flamant (interior design), Caminar des del Centre (urban planning for Superilles Barcelona), LUMI 2.0 (mixed-use development in Bordeaux), and various other public and private projects. The firm specializes in collective housing innovation, gender perspective integration, and sustainable urban transformation, with offices in Barcelona and Paris.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Architectural Design Services
Quantifiable outcome
- Sound pressure reduction on pacified street (Consell de Cent)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Cierto Estudio
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Cierto Estudio technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Cierto Estudio partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- VLAUcoreCo-development partner for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux with Clairsienne. VLAU provided images and design collaboration for the 69 social dwellings and 192-student residence project.
- Eiffage Construction Nord Aquitaine (ECNA)coreConstruction partner for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux. ECNA is the construction company executing the project designed by VLAU and Cierto Estudio.
- B67 Palomeras ArquitectescoreKey strategic partner for urban projects including Superilla Barcelona Green Axis projects. Laia Palomeras leads B67. Together with Cierto Estudio, they developed the 'Caminar des del centre' proposal and Consul de Cent regeneration plan.
- Lea AtelierminorLandscape architecture collaborators led by Elena Climent and Silvia Pujalte Toledo. Provided landscape design for Consul de Cent project.
- SBS SIMON I BLANCO, SLminorEngineering collaborators for projects including Consul de Cent, led by Pau Codolà Roselló.
- Societat OrgànicaminorSustainability consultancy providing environmental advisory for multiple projects including Illa Glòries, Kitch-room, and Consul de Cent.
- Estudio PVI IngenieríaminorEngineering partner for Consul de Cent urban regeneration project.
- Bernuz-Fernández Arquitectes S.L.P.minorStructural engineering consultants for Illa Glòries and Kitch-room projects.
- Eletresjota Tècnics Associats S.L.P.minorInstallation/engineering consultants for Illa Glòries and Kitch-room projects.
- Franc LlonchminorArchitecture collaborator for Kitch-room project and Plaza de las Glòries urban improvement plan.
- UrbidermiscoreStrategic partner for urban regeneration and public space projects. Lucia Millet serves on Urbidermis and Belloch Forestal's Board of Directors. Urbidermis supports the Superilla Barcelona projects.
- CTE (estructuras)minorStructural engineering collaborators for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux.
- Payet (paisajista)minorLandscape architecture collaborators for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux.
- IngéropminorEngineering collaborators for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux.
- Adi2dminorEngineering and certification consultants for LUMI 2.0 project in Bordeaux.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cierto Estudio competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Carme Pinós: Barcelona-based Spanish architect with a comparable boutique public-project practice; shares the women-led positioning and the public sector / competition-driven GTM pattern relevant to Cierto's differentiation.
- Lacaton & Vassal Architectes: Paris-based Pritzker Prize-winning practice specializing in social housing, sustainable construction, and the transformation of existing buildings. Closest international analog to Cierto's focus on collective housing innovation and low-cost, high-quality public residential design.
- RCR Arquitectes: Catalan architecture firm and Pritzker Prize winner with comparable profile: small studio, international competition wins, public and private cultural/housing projects, and a similar geographic and cultural anchor in Catalonia.
- Barozzi Veiga: Barcelona-founded architecture office with comparable scale, award profile (including Mies van der Rohe nominations), and competition-driven practice. Operates in similar cultural housing and cultural infrastructure typologies.
- B67 Palomeras Arquitectes: Barcelona-based architecture practice led by Laia Palomeras, with overlapping expertise in collective housing and urban regeneration. Most directly comparable as a recurring co-design partner on the Consell de Cent / Superilla Barcelona Green Axis project — same geography, same client base, similar project typology.
- VLAU: Architecture firm co-developing the LUMI 2.0 Bordeaux project with Cierto alongside Clairsienne and Eiffage. Comparable on collective housing and social housing typology, though specific public-facing presence is limited in available sources.
Broad incumbents
- MVRDV: Dutch architecture firm operating at materially larger scale with deep urban regeneration and sustainable housing practice. Comparable on typology (dense urban housing, public space regeneration) but serves as a scaled incumbent rather than direct competitor.
- Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG): Global architecture practice with strong social housing and sustainable urban design portfolios. Comparable on typology and award-driven positioning, but operates at significantly larger scale and broader geography.
- OMA: Global architecture and urban planning practice with extensive public housing and urban regeneration work. Comparable on urban regeneration typology and public-sector client engagement, but at much larger scale and broader typology.
Emerging players
- Studio Gang: Chicago-based practice focused on sustainable architecture and urban ecological design. Comparable on sustainable urbanism and design-led approach to public space, though operating in a different geography.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cierto Estudio social profiles
Digital presenceCierto Estudio financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cierto Estudio leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Cierto Estudio funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cierto Estudio 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 Cierto Estudio
What does Cierto Estudio do?
Cierto Estudio is a women-led architecture and urban planning firm providing architectural design, urban regeneration, and interior design services. The firm specializes in collective housing with gender-perspective integration, sustainable wood construction, and public space regeneration, serving public sector clients through architecture competitions and private clients through direct commissions.
Is Cierto Estudio a public or private company?
Cierto Estudio is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Cierto Estudio founded?
Cierto Estudio was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cierto Estudio based?
Cierto Estudio is headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, in the Europe region.
How does Cierto Estudio make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Public Architecture Projects are the primary driver. The others are private Architecture Projects and urban Planning Consultancy.
Who are Cierto Estudio's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Carme Pinós, Lacaton & Vassal Architectes, RCR Arquitectes, Barozzi Veiga, B67 Palomeras Arquitectes and VLAU. Broad incumbents are MVRDV, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and OMA. Studio Gang is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cierto Estudio have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cierto Estudio.