Residential architects open new studio

HOKO Design has opened a studio in Birmingham following a £400,000 investment and a record month for the residential architect described as ‘Uber for architecture’. 

The move into Birmingham and the West Midlands arrives on the back of a best-ever month for HOKO, placing the rapidly growing firm on target to be working on 1,000 projects nationwide by the end of the year. 

Scottish architect and entrepreneur Danny Campbell founded HOKO in 2019 with the mission to fix a ‘broken’ industry by creating the perfect ‘one-stop-shop’ client experience for homeowners seeking to improve their living spaces with the help of architecture and design experts.

The streamlined HOKO process features cutting edge technology including virtual reality (VR) and a full interior design service to help clients realise their interior design visions. 

With more than 450,000 UK home planning applications decided each year and no market leader, HOKO has designs on becoming the household name in residential architecture. The move into Birmingham and the West Midlands is the next stage in that plan.  

The new Birmingham studio will be managed by project architect Jo Ellson, a Birmingham School of Architecture-trained architect who has spent her near 25-year career working at firms across Birmingham, Warwickshire and the West Midlands. Jo will work directly with clients across the city and surrounding areas. 

Danny Campbell, founder and CEO at HOKO, said: “The HOKO mission has always been to provide the perfect home remodelling experience for homeowners. The traditional architecture process can be complicated, inaccessible, and out of line with advances in customer experience in other industries, and that’s why hundreds of homeowners are turning to HOKO.  

“As news of our success spreads, we have seen rising demand for our brand of residential architecture across the West Midlands, particularly during lockdown, and Birmingham is the perfect place to base our operation.   

“Jo is part of our team of talented architects working nationwide to deliver HOKO’s streamlined one-stop shop experience, customer experience. Working with a fantastic network of local suppliers and tradespeople, we are able to take the hassle out of home improvement, and deliver the highest quality projects from start to finish.” 

Jo said: “The response to our arrival in Birmingham has been excellent, and already we are working with clients across the West Midlands who are loving the HOKO experience. It’s a privilege to be part of such a forward-thinking business, which is seeking to make positive, client-focused changes to an industry that needs a refresh. It’s a great place to work, and clients love the work we do.”  

HOKO is the architect for homeowners, providing architectural services to people looking to renovate, alter or extend their home and it now employs more than 30 staff who have helped dozens of clients through the home improvement process.