Garvin Design Group celebrates 20 years

Columbia-based architecture, interiors, and planning firm Garvin Design Group marked its 20th anniversary on June 26, 2023. Scott Garvin established his firm in the Vista’s historic Gervais Place building in 2003 following many successful years practicing architecture in Greenville and Columbia. Corporate partners Terry Buchmann, Mark Timbes, and David Sickinger joined Scott within the firm’s first year. Twenty years later, Garvin Design Group has grown to include 24 team members, amassed more than $1 billion worth of project experience, and earned more than 70 awards.

Several high-profile projects enabled Garvin Design Group to establish an all-important foothold in the local business community. Some of the firm’s earliest projects – including the adaptive reuse of the Olympia and Granby Mills, 701 Whaley, and Gervais Place – catalyzed its success and cemented its role in revitalizing Columbia’s urban core. Garvin Design Group quickly established expertise in design for adaptive reuse, retail, higher education, athletics, and worship spaces. The firm’s portfolio has since expanded to include civic, commercial, hospitality, and multifamily residential projects.

Since its inception, Garvin Design Group has been committed to the needs of its clients and the well-being of its team, and the health of its community. The firm is regularly represented in more than 30 public service organizations and makes significant charitable donations annually. In 2019, the American Institute of Architects – South Carolina chapter (AIA SC) honored Garvin Design Group’s contributions to the architectural profession and the community with its prestigious Firm Award. It was only the 12th time AIA SC had conferred the Firm Award in its then 26-year history.

“We want to take this opportunity to say thank you to our clients, consultants, and construction partners for the many successful projects we have completed together over 20 years,” said Scott Garvin, President of Garvin Design Group. “It is also such a blessing to work alongside the amazing and talented people in this firm, they really make this company great.”

Major projects in Hilton Head, Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Conway, and the Upstate have extended Garvin Design Group’s work beyond the Midlands. Recent projects in New Haven, Salem, Virginia Beach, and other regional sites have taken the firm even farther afield, including Halls Chophouse in Nashville and Club Wyndham/Margaritaville Vacation Club in Atlanta. The firm’s latest local projects include Smoked on Main Street, Gadsden Place Apartments in the Vista, and the adaptive reuse of Rosewood Baptist Church into apartments and retail. Higher Education projects continue to form a significant portion of the firm’s portfolio, including athletics, academics, and student life spaces for Clemson University, Coastal Carolina University, Lander University, and the University of South Carolina.

For more information about Garvin Design Group and to see the firm’s 20th-anniversary video, visit www.garvindesigngroup.com.