The key for a small company to weather major economic downturns and stave off larger competitors is to stay ahead of the curve, according to Heidi Hendy, who 40 years ago began H. Hendy Associates.
“We’ve really had to pull the organization together and have the ability to have the foresight of what’s happening in the future for our client,” Hendy said.
“We’re probably one of the last homegrown interior architecture firms in the county, so we compete on a daily basis with very large global organizations.”
The work has paid off.
The Newport Beach-based interior architecture and planning firm—which has 48 employees, including three architects—posted revenue of $10 million last year, up nearly 25% year-over-year.
The firm also stands apart from its competition in terms of longevity. It’s been named one of Interior Design magazine’s top 200 architecture firms for 32 years in a row.
Notable local and national clients the company works with include Nike, Verizon, Toyota, Rockwell Collins and Pacific Sunwear.
Hendy was honored on March 12 with a Business Journal’s Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award (see profiles of other winners, pages 1, 4, 6 and 8).
Another winner was Reza Jahangiri of American Advisors Group, a reverse mortgage lender in Orange. Hendy noted the fast-growing lender was a client of hers.
‘Never Slowed Down’
H. Hendy Associates has gained a reputation over the years as a company that can transform the interior office space of clients from just about any industry type, whether it’s footwear maker Olukai, accountancy Squar Milner or motorcycle firm Kawasaki Motors Corp.
The goal is to help maximize productivity of interior space while still remaining stylish and comfortable for employees.
“Space not only has to look great but it has to work great,” she said. “What does work great mean? It means we’re increasing the productivity and bottom line profitability for our client.”
Last month, the company wrapped up a 40,000-square-foot renovation project of Easterseals’ Irvine chapter, a nonprofit organization servicing children and adults with disabilities and their families. H. Hendy helped integrate the organization’s autism therapy and disability services with its administrative offices.
It also finished outfitting the 230,000-square-foot Santa Ana headquarters of Behr Paint Co., one of the nation’s largest suppliers of architectural paint and exterior wood care products.
“We’ve never slowed down,” Hendy said. “The purpose is to keep our clients in a situation that their facilities become a tool for their success.”
Drawing Table
Hendy launched the firm in 1979 with $2,500. She paid $100 a month to rent a small space inside the San Antonio Wine Cellar in Newport Beach.
The first year was a struggle, noting that “kids today don’t understand what it is to have an interest rate of 20%.”
She got her start helping developers with tenant improvement drawings, as well as taking on architectural projects in East L.A. and the Garment District in downtown L.A.
Working with manufacturers and industrial engineers, Hendy noticed how they examined each piece of equipment then would develop project performance and return on investment reports, which would then help inform a floor’s layout.
“I thought, ‘Why are we not doing this in the office space?’” she recalled.
So Hendy developed a program similar to industrial engineers where she studied process flow for clients and financial projections for a specific project.
It proved a success—helping her charge through the recession of the early 1990s.
During the 2008 recession when the company’s revenue was off about 75%, Hendy once again tweaked her business model to improve the business and keep her core staff.
H. Hendy created segments of the business that she calls “thought leadership studios” that help clients with everything from promoting wellness to creating a fluid work environment to evaluating how employees work away from their desks.
Hendy believes the shift in how it delivers services has helped it remain competitive, especially during the recent push for more creative office space.
