Norwalk, CT Antinozzi Associates opened a branch office in the city in 2012, taking the first step into the firm’s expanding design services to lower Fairfield County. Stephanie Barbagiovannie, NCIDQ, is the local office manger and leader of design.

The premonition that creating an expanded corporate interior practice to the area would place them right in the middle of the action could not be truer. Since opening the office at 301 Merritt 7 and becoming the designated “on-call” architect for the entire 1.4  million s/f office complex, the firm’s corporate design work has grown two-fold.

Obviously excited about the expansion of their corporate design team, office space, and design center, they plan to double staff, create private meeting rooms, and expand workspace in order to cohesively collaborate with corporate clients.

This is not the first expansion/renovation for Antinozzi Associates. In 2007, the firm relocated to the Bijou Theater building in downtown Bridgeport, and did extensive renovating of a space that had not been utilized in 50 years. Conversion of the building’s former ballroom into an 11,000 s/f, two-story open-air workplace with a balcony of architects and interior designers surrounding the main floor studio featured natural lighting, exposed mechanical systems, and open, collaborative conference areas.

The main headquarters of Antinozzi Associates has enjoyed over six decades of success due to hundreds of longstanding relationships, dedicated leadership, staff tenacity, and ‘out-of-the-box’ strategies. The move into lower Fairfield County and becoming more intimately involved with the community only solidified their business. Being at the center of this diverse corporate marketplace enabled the firm to “be present,” and allowed staff to readily engage daily with brokers, building owners, developers, and end users. In addition, participating in industry events and organizations where industry colleagues gather on a regular basis, such as NAOIP, BOMA, and REFA, cemented many design opportunities.

“At first, it was hard to imagine that creating a local office would make such a big difference. However, being in the environment allowed us to truly cultivate our existing relationships, develop new ones, and highlight our talents,” said George Perham, principal and vice president of the firm. “Greater opportunities and challenges have been the catalyst for our expansion.”

The “Antinozzi Experience” has become unique – one where a client can come to understand the difference between exceptional versus average, proactive versus reactive, and accelerated schedules versus common delivery time-frames.

Founded in 1956, Antinozzi Associates is celebrating 62 years as an architectural firm, and three decades with a dedicated interior design department. They are a mid-sized architecture and interior design firm, led by the five principals: Paul Antinozzi, AIA (president), George Perham, AIA, IIDA (vice president), Paul Lisi, AIA (studio operations) Michael Ayles, FAIA (business development) and Michael LaSasso AIA, LEED-AP.