MBH Architects
Great Design, Great People
By Karen Walrond
The first time you encounter MBH Architects, it strikes you: there's something about this firm that is undeniably different. MBH is a large organization with an impressive body of design work and a long list of distinguished and satisfied clients. However, there's something more - more than just their talent, innovation and imagination. There's something in addition to their commitment to ethics and their customer-centered focus. And as you study their portfolio, read the endorsements writ- ten by their clients, and review their strong corporate stance on giving back to their community (which, incidentally, is backed up by their action), it will finally dawn on you: These guys are nice.
200 Brannan, a luxury condominium project located in San Francisco, provides a distinctive central courtyard with brick pedestrian mews and lush landscaping. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
Principals John McNulty and Dennis Heath, the two founders of MBH Architects, will tell you that this "niceness" is an integral part of the firm's culture, an attribute they cultivated from the start. Before they launched MBH in October of 1989, McNulty and Heath were both veterans of Gensler, the venerable and world-renowned architectural firm, where they honed their talents for design and business. Convinced that they could be successful on their own, these two men decided to leave Gensler - and unlike many architects who rely solely upon luck and good design to bring them success, they were determined to create the firm by focusing the business on the principals' individual skills. "We planned for success," recalls McNulty. "We believed that if we were going out on our own, we couldn't have any other thought in our minds, other than we would be successful. Dennis would be the inside guy, and I'd be the outside guy. We understood that successful organizations were based upon the leaders understanding their own strengths, defining their roles and supporting each other. Our personalities are very complementary, and we respect what we each bring to the table. We knew we could build a business with passion and hard work, and most importantly, with the support of our 'families.'" In addition to utilizing their individual talents, the men believed they had something else to offer the industry, as well. Adds Heath: "I said years ago, 'We're nice guys - we'll get work,' and this has been our philosophy from the beginning. In growing our business, we look for designers with initiative and personality - we can train the rest of it."
Serramonte Corporate Center, situated on a high hillside overlooking South San Francisco, is a 100,000-square- foot office building with a roof-top terrace providing a wonderful outside space with 360- degree vistas. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
"The rest of it" includes a strong business focus, which is a work ethic that was imbued in the founders by none other than Art Gensler. "Arthur taught us that the practice of architecture, at its core, is a business. The level to which you understand your clients, as well as the basics of your business, will determine your level of success," says McNulty. "We wanted to build the chassis of a solid business first, and the delivery of quality architecture would follow. We looked to develop a corporate client base that shared our business philosophy, respected the value of quality design and paid their bills!"
The founders based their business on a diversification model - be- ginning first with the retail market in the Bay Area, which they felt was being underserved, and then branching out into tangential work. One of their first major clients was Gap, Inc. "We hit the Gap at a fortunate time," says Heath. "The Gap was just transitioning from 25-foot wide orange mall stores, to moving to the East Coast to do very large projects with street frontage. Our third project was a 35,000-square-foot flagship store at 34th and Broadway in New York City. It helped make us."
P.F. Chang's China Bistro, in Long Beach, is a freestanding restaurant that joins the collection of site-specific themed bistros around the country. With its curved lamella roof and elegant interior, the client's signature attention to design and atmosphere is brought to life. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
Hilton Grand Vacations Club, on the Las Vegas "Strip," at completion will be a 1,214-key timeshare resort, consisting of four high-rise towers set in a pinwheel pattern around a central lobby and several pool amenity decks. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
The success with Gap's flagship store gave them the confidence to market themselves to other retailers. In doing so, the firm caught the attention of Target Corporation, who had recently purchased several stores that needed to be renovated and enlarged to match the retailer's look and feel. At the time, Target was working with two other architectural firms, in addition to enlisting the help of MBH. However, because of MBH's customer-centered approach and their unique view that the projects should be owned by the client (rather than MBH), Target eventually released the two other firms and engaged MBH as their prime architectural firm for the entire West Coast.
"We view ourselves as being part of the service sector, and we're there to help the clients solve a particular problem," says Heath. "We were there to work with Target on what they wanted to accomplish and, given our years with the Gap, we understood what a retailer really wanted. Retailers want the doors to open on time, and they want the cash register or that point of sale to start going. We really learned that from the Gap, and it's served us well in all our retail work."
Woodmark, University Park, located in Palo Alto, successfully integrates high-density urban living into a mature residential setting with expressive elements of California Craftsman architecture. Design architect: BAR Architects, San Francisco. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
"Actually, it's served us well in our other studios, too," adds McNulty. "Our exposure to retail has really enlightened our staff to appreciate drop-dead deadlines, production, schedules, budgets - key factors - how to achieve them and how to plan for them."
This understanding of their customers' business has allowed MBH to diversify their firm's expertise in a unique way. "We started with the idea that we were going to work in retail, and then begin to branch out and expand our market," says Heath. Their work with the Gap and Target allowed the firm to expand their focus. Heath continues: "Shopping center work is related to the Gap and Target. Then we thought, 'wow - occasionally there are projects with retail and housing,' so we had the opportunity to do some housing work. It's sort of continued from there. But it's all first-cousin stuff."
Target, Northridge - Target has turned traditional big box architecture on its heels by integrating modernist simplicity and elegance to the facade. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
These days, MBH is a full-service architectural firm boasting an impressive portfolio of expertise, including large and small retail, hospitality, high-rise multifamily housing, restaurants and now some master planning work. Though they find themselves continuing to be very discriminating in the types of work they take on, they also continue to have fun with their projects. "We've joked for a while that we like to do projects for activities we like to do," says Heath. "We like to shop, so we do retail. We like to sleep, so we developed housing and hospitality studios. We like to eat out, so we developed a restaurant 'studio.'" Their sense of fun and slow-but-steady growth has served them well, as the firm is now designing several mixed-use projects. MBH has received many prestigious awards (most recently the ACE Project of Excellence for Hilton Grand Vacations Club Las Vegas at the 2006 American Resort Development Associate Awards, as well as receiving the Award of Merit, Condominiums - For Sale at the 2005 Builder's Choice Design and Planning Awards), and the list of their major clients is long and distinguished. In addition to Target and the Gap, the firm has strong working relationships with PF Chang's China Bistro, Hilton, Marriott and Apple, among others. MBH is also working locally with Signature Properties, Toll Brothers and the Olson Company, and has recently completed the design for a 26-story high-rise housing tower in Oakland for Lakeshore Partners. In fact, the work of MBH Architects can now be seen all over the Western Hemisphere, including Canada and Puerto Rico, and the company's vision for the future continues to expand.
Post International, in San Francisco, is modern architecture at its best. The mixed-use mid-rise building includes 78 luxury condominiums with accompanying commercial, retail and recreational amenities. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
200 Brannan - The modern architecture of this new nine-story, 191-unit building is pronounced by the juxtaposition of brick and glass throughout the facade. The effect creates a blending of 20th and 21st century aesthetics, connecting the past with the present. (Photo courtesy of MBH Architects)
Ultimately, however, it's the company's focus on their customers that continues to bring them their unparalleled success. "We consider ourselves a counselor to our clients; and, as a result, a lot of clients say they enjoy working with us because we have a good time and we're easy to get along with," says Heath. "Even when we hire people, we hire them based on attitude and initiative." This people-centered focus has enabled them to develop long-term relationships with their clients - and, in the end, bring true meaning to their tagline: "It's our people who make great places."
It is, after all, what makes MBH Architects different.
For more information about MBH Architects, visit them online at mbharch.com
June 2006 Builder Architect Edition Issue
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