GLASGOW-based Hoskins Architects has announced a re-structure to “better reflect its growing international business” and at the same time a transition to employee-ownership.
The firm, which has 35 staff in Scotland and 13 in Berlin, Germany, said that the move “enshrines our long-held company ethos, reflecting our core vision and collaborative, collegiate approach to our work”.
The company, hailed for projects including the National Gallery of Scotland, Aberdeen Art Gallery, and National Museum of Scotland, was founded by Gareth Hoskins in 1998. Mr Hoskins died in 2016.
The firm operated as a sole trader until 2003 when Gareth Hoskins Architects Limited was incorporated. In 2007 shareholding was divided between Mr Hoskins and two other directors, Chris Coleman-Smith and Jen Guillain, who remain in post today.
The Berlin branch office was officially established in 2014 and in late 2021 Hoskins Architects Group Limited was incorporated, as the first move to restructuring as an employee-owned company.
HAEOT Limited, the corporate trustee for the Employee Ownership Trust, was incorporated in February and Hoskins Planungs GmbH was registered in March. On July 1 2022 the assets of the Berlin branch office were transferred to Hoskins Planungs GmbH.
“Under the new structure there is no change to our contractual appointments in the UK and, as far as project delivery is concerned, it’s very much business as usual,” the firm said.
Hoskins Architects said: “The process has been driven by a desire to engender a sense of ownership across our team, rewarding the loyalty and low staff turnover our practice has always enjoyed, and to recognise the positive contribution that every member of our team makes.
“We have developed a business structure we believe will continue to put purpose and people first, maximising staff engagement and productivity to the benefit of colleagues, clients and consultants alike.
“From our studios in Berlin and Glasgow our team of 48 colleagues delivers considered, sustainable projects that focus on the needs and experience of building users. Our projects have been recognised in numerous architectural awards including many RIBA national awards, the European Museum of the Year Awards and twice winning the RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award.
“The last decade has seen some significant changes in our company, including the untimely loss in 2016 of our friend, founder and major shareholder, Gareth Hoskins OBE, and the formation and development of our branch in Berlin, now delivering major projects across Europe. These changes have strengthened the bond between two studios led by a management team who have now worked together for more than 20 years.
“Over the past five years, we have carefully considered how Hoskins Architects could develop in a way that reflects the connections between colleagues and our shared vision, enhances how we work and meets the needs of our team in both the UK and Germany. The resultant re-structuring sees us move from three individual shareholders to employee ownership, through an Employee Ownership Trust model."
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