A&M Architects

A&M Architects is an architectural practice founded in Athens in 1983 by Michalis Mavroleon and Andy Alexiades, after their professional experience in the USA, bringing together the necessary specialties for the management of complex private-sector projects. Today, A&M continues to build relationships both in Greece and abroad, incorporating the expertise and flexibility required to meet the growing demands of a rapidly changing and ever-closer world.

We spoke with A&M’s Management Committee: Michalis Mavroleon (MM), CEO; Esta Georgala (EG), Design Director; Marika Mavroleon (MMM), Design Operations Manager; Marios Kaklamanos (MK), Construction Operations Manager; Nikos Menagias (NM), Finance Manager; and Zoe Santikou (ZS), Marketing & Communications Coordinator, about the firm’s trajectory, its internal structure, and the transformations shaping its identity.

S.M.: We are used to associating architecture practices with a recognizable “signature” image of their buildings, yet yours show great variety. What remains constant, as a pursuit and as research, in A&M’s architecture?

MMM: Over these 38 years, and especially in the last 15, A&M has had the opportunity to engage with many projects and typologies, creating a diverse portfolio. Since the needs of each project differ, and every client comes with a unique brief, what we create must respond to that individuality.

EG: At the same time, we have the privilege of being a large team, and in architectural composition we enjoy plurality. Having designed several commercial spaces, our aim is to deliver a new product in every project, without repeating ourselves. We travel extensively, and our references are broad. We are interested in making our projects reflect the culture, vision, and needs of those who will inhabit them, whether individual or organization, while always maintaining high aesthetics, expertise, and harmony.

MM: What remains constant throughout our architectural journey is the balanced approach to the data and requirements set by clients, combined with the use of modern building systems and materials aimed at creating quality constructions that convey both impression and aesthetics.

S.M.: Based in Athens, you work on projects both in Greece and abroad. Where are the boundaries of the “Greek market,” and how do they shift?

MM: International projects posed a challenge of professionalism and knowledge for A&M’s people, which was quickly absorbed and became evident in our subsequent projects, as well as in the way we communicate with clients. This also reinforced A&M’s motto, “Building Relationships” – that is, we don’t just build buildings, we build relationships with our clients. In Greece, over the past decade, we’ve seen the evolution of many practices in design quality and standards that compete with international firms. As projects grow in scale, design responsibility often falls to international practices, such as in the Hellinikon Project.

For Greek firms to support such projects, they must have experience in works of similar scale under the umbrella of those international firms. A&M’s involvement in several airports -Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Cairo, Budapest, Moscow, Doha, and most recently Bahrain, equipped us with knowledge strong enough to carry us further, beyond the “boundaries” of the Greek market.

MK: Involvement in these projects was also a challenge for the project management team, giving us the opportunity to collaborate with renowned companies in the field and meet the demands set by international standards. At the same time, we realized how crucial training and the acquisition of the right certifications are in order to be considered equivalent partners, even formally.

S.M.: What are the milestones in the evolution of the practice -both in terms of buildings and in terms of organizational structure and services?

EG: A key milestone in the company’s evolution was 2016, when, due to turnover growth and the doubling of our collaborators, we decided to restructure in order to compete with international firms and organizations. We worked hard to build an organizational structure that enabled us to step into the international arena. We hope that in the coming years, the corporate culture -which has now become our asset- will take us to new synergies and collaborations, as we strongly believe in them.

MMM: A&M began with the philosophy of offering a holistic design service, covering all specialties necessary to complete an architectural project. Thus, we created teams dealing with various fields -Architecture, Engineering, Interior & Graphic Design, as well as Project & Construction Management- specialties that allow us to coordinate and manage projects all the way to delivery. With this Total Design strategy, A&M Group was born: a finely tuned team of people encompassing six distinct specialties that provide services either independently or as a single entity.

NM: Subsequently, the adoption of advanced technology and IT systems was required to support these teams. Over the past year, due to the pandemic we are experiencing, we further developed infrastructures that reduce the dependence of work on being tied to a specific physical space. In this new reality, beyond the challenges we face, we have also observed advantages, and for that reason we are considering maintaining some elements of this organization in the post–Covid-19 era.

Read the full interview in ek issue 256 | April 2021.