International icon of Italian style and award-winning design firm, Pininfarina, has officially opened its first New York City office–representing an exciting next step in the firm’s storybook evolution from bespoke coachbuilder to global design powerhouse.
Founded in 1930, Pininfarina is lauded all over the globe for creating some of the most stunning automobiles ever made while simultaneously becoming one of the premier architectural firms in existence. Its design philosophy is built on that legacy of Italian artistry and a unique cross-fertilization of disciplines, rooted in the values of elegance, purity, and innovation through vast technological, cultural, and social changes.
With offices and branches all over the world, the brand’s new satellite workspace in the heart of Manhattan is more than just another outpost.
“We believe that New York is a key epicenter of creativity and design innovation in the United States, and we are thrilled to be bringing Pininfarina’s human-centric, forward-thinking design approach into the fold,” says Silvio Pietro Angori, Chief Executive Officer at Pininfarina Group, of the firm’s decision to open a second office in the United States. “New York will give us an unprecedented new platform to expand our organization’s breadth of work through exciting new partnership and collaboration opportunities in the Metropolitan area and across the country.”
Cyrela by Pininfarina, the firm’s first branded and built residential completed in 2018 for Cyrela Brazil Realty.
In the 1980s, founder Battista Pininfarina’s grandson Paolo began to evolve the brand beyond its automotive heritage into a 360-degree design house. His vision sought to transmit emotion through subtly and elevate the essential human experience, from activities that span driving a car to relaxing at home. It was this commitment to elegant living, hallmarked by a distinct functionality of design, that gave way to a gradual process of diversification into kitchen, furniture, product design and architecture
Under the supervision of Paolo Trevisan–Vice President of Design at Pininfarina of America–the firm’s first branded and built residential tower was designed in 2014 and completed in 2018 for prominent Latin American developer, Cyrela Brazil Realty, in São Paulo, Brazil. In the years since, Pininfarina has spearheaded hundreds of initiatives from its American headquarters in Miami, including nearly a dozen award-winning residential and commercial buildings across Latin America alone. The success of its first architectural translation of Pininfarina’s signature style has paved the way for long-lasting, powerful partnerships with numerous real estate development and construction groups all over the American continent.
In 2016, the firm was named fifth in a ranking of the Top 100 Architecture and Design Companies operating in Italy and since 2020 has been recognized as one of the top three worldwide players in the branded residences market by Savills–with the vast majority of the firm’s current portfolio of active work being developed or constructed in the Americas. Some of those projects include an event campus for Miami’s state-of-the-art automotive country club, The Concours Club; Millecento in Brickell; Bosque Real’s Torre Designo in Mexico City; Cyrela Heritage in São Paulo; Pasqualotto>’s Yachthouse and Vitra in Santa Catarina; and numerous others soon to be announced.
The Pininfarina designed events campus for The Concours Club will feature multiple unique elements to facilitate automotive events.
To further support the firm’s continued growth of the architecture business in the region, Pininfarina’s Chief Architect Samuele Sordi who oversees Pininfarina’s global architecture portfolio, recently joined the Miami office. Pininfarina’s performance-oriented design approach is centered around delivering clients a world where design enables people to seamlessly live, work and move. Simultaneously, the company has also continued growing its portfolio of transportation, industrial design, and nautical projects, with each new design uniquely celebrating the human experience and wellbeing from the inside-out.
“Working on design across different verticals gives us a unique perspective that enables us to offer solutions that focus on functionality, innovation, and above all, beauty,” says Trevisan. “This cross-fertilization of disciplines embraces 92 years of human-centered innovation through a boundary-pushing and forward-thinking design approach. More than a process, this has become our DNA as a brand, informing all that we do.”
Building on its seemingly unstoppable momentum–inspired by its Miami studio’s unprecedented 50% year-over-year growth for the first half of 2022– Pininfarina set its sights on New York City.
“With our unique proposition of 360-degree-service capabilities and commitment to design excellence across all disciplines we see this location as an exciting opportunity to continue building on the groundwork we’ve laid as a company and as a premium exclusive brand,” says Claudio Da Soller, SVP and General Manager at Pininfarina of America. “Pininfarina’s competitive advantage has long been its ability to translate complex technological innovations into practical terms. Channeling its experience styling, engineering, and manufacturing the world’s most stunning automobiles, the firm has developed a reputation of masterfully bringing beauty into reality.”
Located in the heart of Manhattan, the new satellite workspace underscores Pininfarina’s steadfast commitment to its growth in the North America market, with the ultimate goal of improving quality of life through design. Providing a local anchor to better service both current and future clientele, the New York City office will bring a new level of dexterity to the legacy brand, positioning the firm to further advance new collaboration and partnership opportunities across the United States in Product and User-Experience Design, as well as Architecture, Interiors, Nautical, Aviation, and Transportation Design and Mobility Solutions.
“Our investment in New York City reflects our commitment to current and future clients and our excitement to create places where people and communities thrive,” says Paolo Pininfarina, Chairman at Pininfarina. “We’re looking forward to the opportunity to transform the built environment and deliver timeless projects that underscore our values of elegance, purity, and innovation. Our vision for the future is focused on bringing intelligent designs into reality that marry innovation with beauty, and we’re excited to infuse a distinct personality into each new project we take on–including the first Pininfarina-designed architecture project in New York City.”