Gary Gensler is an American global architecture, design, and planning firm that has its headquarters in San Francisco, California. As per the latest reports of 2021, Gensler is the architecture firm in the United States that was able to generate the highest revenue.
Statistics say that the company generated a revenue of $1.235 billion in the year 2021.
Founded in 1965 in San Francisco, the company currently operates in 53 locations and has an employee strength of more than 7,000, and is estimated to have a client strength of 4,000.
The company is credited for some of the well-known infrastructures in the world like the Shanghai Tower, which is currently the third-tallest man-made building in the world and the highest building in China.
The company offers services in different fields like architecture, brand design, interior design, urban strategies, and design, and many such related areas. There are two CEOs for the company currently and they are Andy Cohen and Diane Hoskins.
Gary Gensler – History
The history of Gensler traces back to 1965 when it was founded by Millard Arthur Gensler Jr. and his wife Drue Gensler. Arthur Gensler Jr. was born in 1935, in Brooklyn. The family later moved to Hartford, Connecticut, where Arthur completed his high school education from.
After graduating high school, Arthur enrolled at Cornell University and earned his B. Arch degree in 1958, and eventually went on to excel in his chosen field.
Apart from the couple, James Follet who is one of their closest associates was also a part of the founding of the company. During the initial days of its operation, the company focused on interior design projects for corporate offices.
The name and trust of the company began to grow after their involvement in the newly constructed buildings like the Alcoa building in 1967 and the Bank of America building in 1969.
With numerous popular projects being undertaken under the company’s name, Gensler began to rise to popularity as one of the major architectural firms in the United States. The 1970s and 1980s saw the rapid growth of the company throughout the entire nation. Gensler was able to establish offices in almost all major cities in the United States throughout these years.
The establishment of their offices in some of the major cities is linked with the construction of some of the major buildings in that particular city. For instance, the company opened its office in Huston in 1972 as they were entrusted with the task of interior designing for the 6000,000 sq ft headquarters for the Pennzoil company.
Just like the establishment of their office in Houston, Gensler’s office in New York City was established in 1979 because of their association with the Mobil Oil Corporations in providing them with interior design and production services for their headquarters in Virginia.
With offices in most of the major cities in the United States, Gensler was ready for international exposure and to take on the overseas market.
The first overseas office for Gensler was set up in London in 1988. The expansion followed its way into Asian coin tires by 1993, when they opened their office in Hong Kong, and in 2002, by opening an office in Shanghai, China, they made their presence in the Asian market even more stronger and permanent.
With their strong and leading presence in the United States and major centers in the world outside the U.S., Gensler became the largest architecture company that had its headquarters in the United States by 2000.
Gensler – Initiatives
While the company goes on expanding its empire, it should also be noted that they have come up with different initiatives which aim at giving back to society. The company has started different initiatives throughout the year to extend support to the most needed sections of society.
One such program that was started by the company is the Diversity Scholarship and the Gensler Brinkmann Scholarship fund.
The former scholarship is aimed to help the African – American students who enroll in an accredited architecture program. The latter also aims at helping deserving students and was established in memory of Donald G. Brinkman who was a former partner and a very talented interior designer at Gensler.
The company has also shown its responsibility towards society not only by helping the needy but also by doing its part to contribute to the well-being of our environment.
Gensler is a strong advocate of promoting practices that work in favor of environmental protection and has taken many steps in reducing the impact of climatic change and other hazards.
The Gensler Cities Climatic Challenge was one such venture which was announced by Co-CEO Diane Hoskins at the 2019 U.N Climate Action Summit. The challenge prompts architectural firms to eliminate all the greenhouse gasses that were produced as a result of their work processes.
Gensler – Services Offered
Having completed his graduation in architecture, Arthur Gensler Jr. started the firm as an architectural firm. With its long and successful history, the company diversified into multiple fields throughout the years.
Currently the biggest name in architecture, the company also offers different services other than interior design for corporate offices, which was their prime area of focus during the initial days.
Some of the services offered by the company include different forms of architecture and design for commercial office buildings, airports, educational institutions, entertainment complexes, consulting, brand design, urban design, sustainability, and a few more.
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Gary Gensler – Popular Image And Honors
There is no donut in saying that Gensler is the biggest name in architecture both inside and outside the United States. The company was able to build up a very reputed and highly appreciated image through their well-executed projects and other initiatives which expressed their concern towards society and also the environment.
The company has also received different awards and recognitions for its unmatched contribution to the field of architecture. They received the Architecture Firm Awards from the America Institute of Architects in 2000.
The company also became the first of its kind to be inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame. The company has also made it to different lists like the top 100 interior design companies, the Best place to work, Top Green Design Firms, and many more by reputed magazines and websites.
Gensler – Notable Projects
Being regarded as the best architecture firm in the United States and even in the whole world, the company is credited with the building of some of the most iconic and popular buildings all over the world. Among the company’s most notable projects are the following:
- Shanghai Tower – The third-tallest structure in the world and the tallest building in China.
- John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, USA.
- The Gate, Dubai International Finance Center, Dubai, UAE.
- City Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
- The Avenues, Phase IV, Kuwait City, Kuwait.
- The New York Times Building, New York, USA.
- Incheon International Airport, Incheon, South Korea.
- Ty William Morgan, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
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