We're not your typical architecture firm - and that's kinda the point.
Started back in 2012 with just two drafting tables and way too much coffee, Crimson Quintar's grown into something we're genuinely proud of. We've always believed that great design shouldn't come at the planet's expense, which is why sustainable thinking isn't just a service we offer - it's baked into everything we touch.
Look, we could fill this page with fancy architectural jargon and talk about our "holistic design paradigms" but honestly? We just love creating spaces that work. Spaces where people actually want to spend time. Where natural light hits just right, where the flow makes sense, and where your energy bills don't make you wince.
We've done everything from cozy residential renos to full-scale commercial developments across Ontario. Each project teaches us something new, and we're still just as excited about a well-designed mudroom as we are about a 20-story office tower.
Our Toronto studio sits right in the heart of the city we love, and yeah, we're definitely inspired by the mix of old and new that makes this place tick.
Sarah's the one who'll spend three hours tweaking a roofline until it's perfect - and honestly, that attention to detail is why our buildings look the way they do. She came up through heritage restoration work, which gave her this deep respect for how buildings age and evolve.
Before starting Crimson Quintar, she spent six years at a big downtown firm where she got tired of the "glass box" approach to everything. There's more to architecture than maximizing square footage, y'know?
When she's not in the studio, you'll probably find her sketching in High Park or hunting down mid-century furniture at estate sales. She's got this thing about Eames chairs that borders on obsessive.
Education: M.Arch from University of Toronto, B.A. in Environmental Studies from York
Marcus thinks about buildings the way some people think about puzzles - how do all these pieces fit together to make something that actually works? He's the sustainable design guru on our team, always pushing us to think about energy efficiency and environmental impact from day one.
He got his start doing community housing projects in Vancouver, which taught him that good design isn't about budget - it's about priorities. Some of his best work happened on shoestring budgets where creativity had to fill in for cash.
Marcus is basically a walking encyclopedia of building materials and green tech. Need to know the R-value of sheep's wool insulation? He's your guy. Want to debate passive house certification over lunch? He'll talk your ear off.
Education: M.Arch from UBC, LEED AP BD+C, Passive House Designer certification
Sarah and Marcus met at a sustainable design conference (riveting, right?) and realized they both wanted to do architecture differently. Rented our first office space - all 400 square feet of it.
Landed the Riverside Community Center project. It put us on the map and taught us we could handle way more than we thought. Also taught us about municipal permits the hard way.
Hired our first three full-time staff members. Moved to a bigger studio on King Street. Started specializing in heritage restoration - turned out there was huge demand for architects who actually care about preserving character.
Won our first OAA Award for the Parkdale Library renovation. That validation meant more than we'd like to admit. Team had grown to 8 people by year's end.
Pandemic hit, and like everyone, we had to pivot fast. Went fully remote for a while, upgraded our 3D visualization capabilities. Surprisingly, it made us more efficient in some ways.
Moved into our current University Avenue location. Launched our sustainability consulting service as a standalone offering. Started seeing commercial clients who actually wanted to build green from the ground up.
We're 18 people strong now, working on projects across Ontario. Still learning, still pushing boundaries, still obsessing over the details that make buildings great.
Every site has a story - the neighborhood, the light, the history. We're not interested in dropping the same building everywhere. A design that works in Liberty Village might be totally wrong for Rosedale, and that's fine. We spend a lot of time just observing a space before we draw anything.
This isn't an add-on feature you tick off a list. From material selection to site orientation, we're thinking about long-term environmental impact. And yeah, green design usually saves you money over time - we've got the utility bills to prove it.
We love beautiful buildings, but if they don't work for the people using them, what's the point? Whether it's a home office that actually gets used or a retail space with proper flow, the function drives the form. Beauty follows when you get that part right.
We're not here to impose our vision - we're here to bring yours to life in ways you might not have imagined. The best projects happen when clients, builders, and designers are all actually listening to each other. Revolutionary concept, we know.
We're always up for a conversation about potential projects. Whether you've got detailed plans or just a vague idea and a napkin sketch, let's talk it through. Fair warning though - we'll probably ask you a bunch of questions about how you actually want to use the space.
Our process is pretty collaborative, and we're upfront about timelines and budgets from the start. No surprises, no runarounds, just honest conversation about what's possible.
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