Ex-CBRE directors launch design firm

Ruumi Studio will operate from Manchester and Dublin, with former director of architecture for UK North Darius Baniabassian leading in the region.

The new venture kicks off with a founding team of five, set up after global property services giant CBRE decided to discontinue the UK and Ireland operations of its Design Collective business.

Projects delivered by the team in its former guise include Le Pole Square in Dublin and XPS Group’s Manchester headquarters.

Ruumi Studio, is being led by Dominic McAndrew, former head of Design Collective for the UK and Ireland, and Baniabassian, who before joining CBRE spent time with Overbury, OBI, who he joined in 2016, and Fairhursts Design Group.

The practice said it will work across commercial, workplace, aviation, industrial logistics and master planning projects for global technology companies, FTSE 100 occupiers and high-growth businesses.

Dominic McAndrew, co-founder and director, set out some of the firm’s founding principles: “We’ve built Ruumi Studio from the ground up using 2026’s best technology and tools to create something fundamentally more human than traditional design practices.

“Our team works a nine-day fortnight. We’re pursuing B Corp certification. These aren’t afterthoughts or perks. They’re how we believe a modern practice should operate, and they make us better at what we do.”

Baniabassian, co-founder and director, added: “Starting fresh means we’re not adapting legacy systems or inherited ways of working. Every process, every tool, every decision has been made with intention. That freedom lets us focus entirely on what matters: great design and genuine partnership with our clients.”