Wandel Lorch GmbH

What Wandel Lorch GmbH does

Wandel Lorch Götze Wach GmbH is a German architecture and urban planning firm headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, with additional offices in Saarbrücken and Stuttgart. The firm was founded in 1985 as Wandel Lorch Architekten by Prof. Andrea Wandel and Prof. Wolfgang Lorch, subsequently operated as Wandel Hoefer Lorch + Hirsch and Wandel Hoefer Lorch, and adopted its current name in 2016 when Florian Götze and Thomas Wach joined as managing directors (Geschäftsführer). It specializes in contextually-reflective design for cultural, sacred/religious, and memorial architecture, with a documented portfolio spanning synagogue reconstruction, museum design, concert halls, memorial sites, and urban planning across Germany and select international locations including Poland, Georgia, and France.

The firm operates as a professional services studio with no packaged software products. Its core 'technology' is a design methodology built around project-specific concept development and contextual responsiveness, applied across service categories that include public buildings, building in existing structures (Bauen im Bestand), transformation projects, administrative buildings, sacred architecture, exhibition and scenography design, memorial culture, residential housing, and urban planning. Revenue is generated through architectural design fees structured under the German HOAI framework, and project acquisition is dominated by participation in architectural competitions (Wettbewerbe) — the standard public and private commissioning channel in Germany. Marketing reach is built through an Instagram profile, listings on Baunetz and German-Architects directories, and a continuous stream of competition entries and trade-press publications.

The client base spans religious communities (notably multiple Jewish congregations including Hamburg, Koblenz, München, and the MiQua project in Köln), cultural foundations and museums (Bröhan Museum Berlin, Stiftung Brandenburgische Gedenkstätten), municipalities (Stadt Stuttgart), and universities (Universität Hamburg). The firm maintains a wholly-owned project subsidiary (Wandel Lorch WHL GmbH) and a regional entity in Saarbrücken, holds professional liability insurance through VHV Allgemeine Versicherungen AG, and is privately held by its four partners with no external investors. Recent momentum includes first-prize competition wins for MSC Headquarter Hamburg and Historisches Museum der Pfalz (2024) and Das Bremer Konzerthaus – Die Glocke (2025), alongside a 2025 recognition cluster including the Iconic Award and BYAK Preis Bauen im Bestand.

Name

Wandel Lorch GmbH

Legal name

Wandel Lorch Götze Wach GmbH

Website

https://wandellorch.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Wandel Lorch Götze Wach GmbH is a Frankfurt-based German architecture and urban planning firm specializing in cultural, sacred, and memorial architecture, serving religious communities, museums, municipalities, and universities across Germany and select international markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architecture Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Architectural Services (54131)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Urban planning services
• Sacred architecture
• Memorial architecture
• Cultural buildings

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt am Main

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Revenue generated through fees for architectural design services, including competition participation, planning, and project management for buildings ranging from cultural institutions to sacred spaces and urban planning projects

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Wandel Lorch Götze Wach is a German architecture and urban planning firm providing professional architectural design, planning, and project execution services. The firm delivers projects across public buildings, building in existing structures, transformation projects, administrative buildings, sacred architecture, exhibition architecture, scenography, memorial architecture, residential housing, and urban planning. Projects are acquired primarily through participation in architectural competitions and are executed for institutional, religious, municipal, and private developer clients across Germany and select European locations.

Product overview

Wandel Lorch Götze Wach is an architecture and urban planning firm offering a comprehensive portfolio of architectural services across multiple specializations. Their core service offering spans public buildings, building in existing structures, transformation projects, administrative buildings, sacred architecture, exhibition design, scenography, memorial culture/commemorative architecture, residential housing, and urban planning. The firm also participates extensively in architectural competitions and tenders. They do not offer packaged software products; rather, they provide professional architectural design, planning, and project execution services across these domains. Their project portfolio includes cultural institutions (museums, concert halls), religious buildings (synagogues, churches, mosques), memorial sites, commercial and residential developments, and urban planning schemes across Germany.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Buildings Architecture (Öffentliche Bauten) Architectural design services for public sector and civic buildings, including museums, administrative buildings, and university facilities, delivered for government, foundation, and institutional clients in Germany and select European locations.
• Building in Existing Structures (Bauen im Bestand) Architectural design and renovation services for heritage and existing buildings, including adaptive reuse, conservation, and integration of new construction with historic fabric, delivered for institutional and public clients.
• Transformation Architecture Architectural design services focused on transformation projects that adapt and reconfigure existing buildings or sites for new programmatic uses, delivered for cultural, institutional, and public clients.
• Administrative Buildings Architecture (Verwaltungsbau) Architectural design services for administrative and office buildings, including corporate headquarters (e.g., MSC Headquarter Hamburg, 1st prize 2024) and public-sector administrative facilities for institutional and corporate clients.
• Sacred Architecture (Sakralbau) Architectural design services for sacred and religious buildings, including synagogues, churches, chapels, and community centers, delivered for Jewish and Christian religious communities and their governing bodies across Germany.
• Exhibition Architecture (Ausstellungsarchitektur) Architectural design services for museum exhibitions and cultural institution interiors, including exhibition layout and spatial design for cultural institutions and museums across Germany.
• Scenography (Szenographie) Architectural scenography services for cultural and exhibition projects, including the design of spatial narratives and stage-like environments for museums, exhibitions, and cultural events.
• Memorial Architecture (Erinnerungskultur) Architectural design services for memorial and commemorative buildings addressing historical, political, and societal themes, including documentation centers and memorial sites for foundations and public authorities.
• Residential Architecture (Wohnen) Architectural design services for residential complexes and housing developments, including contemporary and sustainable housing delivered for private developers, housing associations, and corporate clients in Germany and select European locations.
• Urban Planning (Stadtplanung) Urban planning services for public space design, master planning, and municipal development schemes delivered for cities, public authorities, and foundations across Germany and Europe.
• Architectural Competition Services (Wettbewerbe) Participation in public and private architectural competitions (Wettbewerbe) as the firm's primary project acquisition method, with documented wins including the Bremer Konzerthaus Die Glocke (2025), MSC Headquarter Hamburg (2024), Erweiterungsbau des Historischen Museums der Pfalz (2024), and Stadtmuseum Wilhelmspalais Stuttgart.

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and core.

• Jüdische Gemeinde HamburgflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 September 2022Feasibility study for reconstruction of the Bornplatzsynagoge Hamburg - one of the largest Jewish houses of worship in Europe before its destruction in 1938. The project is supported by over 100,000 supporters worldwide and backed by the German Bundestag and Hamburg Parliament.
• miqua blog / Construction UpdatesminorOthersExternal blog documenting the construction progress of MiQua - Jewish Museum in the Archaeological Quarter Cologne
• Bröhan Museum BerlincoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExpansion and reorganization of the Bröhan Museum in Berlin-Charlottenburg - one of the most important German museums for Jugendstil, Art Déco and Functionalism

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Max Dudler Architekten: German architecture practice with strong cultural and civic-building portfolio, similar firm size to WLGW, and shared competition-driven GTM in the German market.
• Staab Architekten: Berlin-based practice with similar cultural and sacred-architecture portfolio and comparable firm size. Direct peer in competition-based German architecture for museums, sacred, and civic projects.
• Ortner & Ortner Baukunst: Austrian architecture practice with strong cultural, museum, and sacred-architecture portfolio comparable to WLGW. Similar firm size, design philosophy, and competition-based GTM; a near-direct peer on cultural commissions.
• Barkow Leibinger: Berlin and Frankfurt-based architecture firm with comparable firm size and award-winning cultural/civic portfolio. Comparable to WLGW in German competition circuit and design-led positioning.
• Kuehn Malvezzi Architekten: Berlin-based architecture firm with comparable size, cultural-institution focus (Museum Berggruen, Jewish Museum Berlin additions), and competition-driven GTM. One of WLGW's closest direct peers in German cultural architecture.
• Hascher Jehle Architektur: Berlin-based German architecture firm with comparable size and cultural/sacred/civic portfolio. Directly comparable to WLGW in competition participation and project scale.

Broad incumbents

• HPP Architekten: Large German architecture firm with strong cultural-institution portfolio (e.g., Museum Ludwig renovation). Competes with WLGW on major civic commissions but operates at much larger scale and broader building-type coverage.
• gmp · Gerkan, Marg and Partners: One of Germany's largest and most awarded architecture firms with extensive cultural and public-building portfolio. Operates broadly across all building types rather than specializing in WLGW's cultural/sacred niche, but competes for the same major commissions.
• David Chipperfield Architects: Internationally renowned architecture practice with strong cultural and museum portfolio (e.g., Neues Museum Berlin, James-Simon-Galerie). Highly comparable to WLGW on cultural-institution specialization, competition-based project acquisition, and German heritage, though at significantly larger scale.
• HENN Architekten: German architecture firm with strong cultural and education portfolio (e.g., Museum Brandhorst). Competes with WLGW in German cultural commissions and operates at larger scale with broader building-type coverage.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/wandellorchgoetzewach
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wandel-lorch-gmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wandel Lorch GmbH