Interior Design Services
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 15,200 interior design firms in the US plan, design, and administer projects in interior spaces to meet the physical and aesthetic needs of customers. Revenue comes primarily from design services and product sales. Companies may specialize in a particular sector (hospitality, health care, institutional, residential), room (kitchens, bathrooms, closets), or style (contemporary, traditional).
Demand Driven By Construction Trends
Interior design services are often tied to new construction and remodeling projects.
Design Driven By Trends And Fads
The interior design market is often driven by styles and trends in the fashion world.
Industry size & Structure
The average interior design service provider operates out of a single location, employs 3-4 workers, and generates about $1.3 million annually.
- The interior design services industry consists of about 15,200 companies that employ about 55,000 workers and generate $19.3 billion annually.
- The industry is highly fragmented; the top 50 firms account for 15% of industry sales.
- Large companies that offer interior design as part of a portfolio of services include Gensler, HOK, and Perkins+Will. The majority of firms are small, independent companies with localized operations.
Industry Forecast
Interior Design Services Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Dec 23, 2024 - Office Conversion Market Conditions Improve
- High office vacancies have pushed down property valuations, making office to residential conversions more economical, according to The Wall Street Journal. A housing shortage and a glut of office supply made conversions seem like an obvious solution to both problems. However, until recently, conversion project economics were challenging to pencil out, even for an aging office building. That is changing as plummeting values for older office buildings in second-tier locations are prompting owners to take what they can get, making conversions more economically viable. According to real estate firm CBRE, there have been 73 US conversion projects so far in 2024, up from 63 in all of 2023. There are about 309 office conversions in the planning stages, and about 75% of them are office to residential. In all, about 38,000 housing units are in the pipeline. A rise in office conversions could boost demand for interior design services.
- Sales of existing US homes increased by 4.8% in November from October and were up 6.1% year-over-year, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said, "Home sales momentum is building. More buyers have entered the market as the economy continues to add jobs, housing inventory grows compared to a year ago, and consumers get used to a new normal of mortgage rates between 6% and 7%. Existing homeowners are capitalizing on the collective $15 trillion rise in housing equity over the past four years to look for homes better suited to their changing life circumstances.” Existing home sales help drive demand for interior design services.
- Demand for building design services dipped slightly in November from the prior month, but there are signs that the architectural services market is gradually improving, according to a December report by the American Institute of Architects (AIA). The AIA’s Architecture Billing Index (ABI) fell to 49.6 in November from October’s reading of 50.3. Any reading of 50 or more indicates growth in architectural billings. The score for new project inquiries was 54.1% in November, unchanged from the October reading, and the index for the value of new design contracts increased from 45.3 to 48.3. The steady rise of new project inquiries is a positive signal of future business opportunities. However, architecture firms are unlikely to see a significant uptick in design activity soon as new design contracts fell for the eighth consecutive month in November.
- After two years of high interest rates and home prices hindering home sales, the US housing market is expected to improve in 2025 and 2026, according to a November forecast by National Association of Realtors chief economist Lawrence Yun. New home sales are forecast to increase by 11% in 2025 and 8% in 2026. Existing home sales are expected to rise 9% year-over-year in 2025 and then climb 13% in 2026. Key demand drivers include a healthy labor market and population growth. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage over the past 52 weeks has ranged between 6.08% and 7.44%, according to Freddie Mac. Yun says he believes mortgage rates will be near the bottom end of that range in 2025 and 2026.
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