New York City is home to the largest population of designers in the country. Over 45,000 creatives work within the city limits each day making it a global hub for inspiration and creativity. NELSON New York is proud to be part of this community, designing some of the city’s most innovative environments, from corporate offices to retail flagships. To highlight all the exciting things going on “In The City” and at NELSON Worldwide, we’re unwrapping a three-part series that introduces some of our creative leaders and shares their thoughts on New York City’s design landscape.

Part I of our three-part In The City with NELSON NYC series introduces you to Alan Dandron, Creative Managing Director of NELSON NYC.


Q: Who are you as a designer? Tell us more.

As a designer, my goal is to understand and help establish a client’s goals in order to provide the best solutions.  I’m a firm believer that the best design is the product of a  collaborative process. Below you’ll see a few photos one of NELSON NYC’s latest workplace projects!

Q: 6 words that describe what it’s like to be a designer in NYC. Go!

Exciting.
inspirational.
Fast-paced.
Evolving.
Flexible.
Collaborative.

Q: What are some architecture and interior design trends in NYC you’re seeing at the moment?

Today there is a big push for designers to create highly collaborative workspaces.  Successful spaces respond to this by creating an environment that actively encourages and inspires teams to work together in new ways.  These types of workspaces are often highly flexible making it easy for the space to change as teams and organizations do. Another trend I see in workplace design today is the creation of spaces that are informal in nature. These are unique spaces that respond to a more informal way of working resulting in spaces that are specially designed for the acitivites and processes of a specific company.

Q: How has the design landscape in NYC changed over time?

Over time, the pace at which projects are completed in NYC has changed. The design processes of projects are no longer linear, requiring an overlapping of phases.  Technology, specifically Building Information Modeling software has helped us to work smarter and faster as the design landscape advances and changes.

Q: What is the biggest challenge for design/designers in NYC?

In New York City, we are, for the most part working with a very sophisticated client.  This type of work requires keeping up on the latest trends in technology to convey the design story as well as keeping up with the constant shift in workplace design.  Another challenge in the city is navigating the expenses of NYC real estate. It is important to keep cost in mind so that we are creating spaces that will be relevant to the life of the lease for the client.

Q: What are your favorite types of projects to work on?

My favorite projects are the ones where our teams help clients implement a change in work style or culture.  Creating spaces that will reinforce a new way of working is exciting to me and I enjoy the constant collaboration with both the client, consultants, and designers these projects require.

Q: What’s it like to work at NELSON NYC?

At NELSON NYC everyone is extremely supportive of one another. There are no egos and everyone understands the value of feedback and using each other as a resource.  In addition to this, everyone understands that our success is measured by the success of our clients projects.