2016: Business Models with the Power to Change Practice. David Marks, Marks Barfield Architects

David Marks discusses the practice's origins, starting from their studies at the AA in the 1970s and how they met by addressing their own housing needs through direct action. They later formed a model-making company and worked with prestigious architectural firms like Rogers and Foster, gaining valuable experience before establishing their own practice in 1989. Marks emphasizes the importance of generating their own projects and not just waiting for clients.

Marks recounts how the 1990s recession led them to develop the idea for the London Eye after seeing a competition for a millennium landmark. Despite not winning, they pursued the idea themselves, becoming 'creative entrepreneurs' and setting up the Millennium Wheel Company (later London Eye company). This project taught them about land ownership, planning applications, and embedding themselves within a project as minor shareholders.

After the London Eye, the practice focused on housing problems, proposing community-based high-rise dwellings with triple bottom line benefits (economic, environmental, social). They also explored ideas for urban wind turbines to generate green energy within cities. Marks highlights the challenges of working with the public sector and ensuring fair delivery of their ideas. He also discusses generating income through royalties from furniture design and leveraging development opportunities to fund park maintenance.

Marks presents a classic business plan framework and stresses the importance of considering social, environmental, and economic benefits. He compares the contents of their architectural practice's business plan with that of the British Airways i360, noting their similarities. He explains that architects are well-equipped to coordinate various disciplines and manage reports, making it a natural progression to expand into development services and become major shareholders in projects. The key difference, he notes, is the increased involvement of lawyers in development.

Marks introduces the British Airways i360 in Brighton, a 162-meter high slender steel tower that carries a 200-person pod to a height of 138 meters. He describes the innovative construction method using a jacking frame and highlights the tower's Guinness World Record for slenderness. The i360, built on the site of the former West Pier, aims to offer a unique experience and has already attracted over 200,000 visitors in its first three months. The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip, officially opened it, praising its engineering and environmental aspects.

Marks details the market research conducted for the i360, highlighting Brighton's significant tourist and resident population within a two-hour drive. He discusses factors affecting visitor numbers, seasonality, and learning from other local attractions to project over 700,000 visitors annually. The i360 is expected to positively impact Brighton's tourism, bringing more visitors, encouraging longer stays, increasing footfall, and fostering local employment and businesses.

Marks explains the community benefits model, similar to the London Eye, where a percentage of ticket sales goes to regeneration. This includes discounts for local residents, free entry for school children, and support for seafront repairs. He reveals the project's development cost of £46 million and discusses the innovative financing model after traditional bank lending dried up. The council acted as the senior lender, securing a long-term loan from the Public Works Loan Board, enabling them to generate a significant profit from the project, which can be reinvested in local services.

In the Q&A, Marks addresses how they finance their initial ideas, explaining that they've put personal assets and reputations on the line. He emphasizes the need to take risks and describes how profits from successful projects, like the London Eye, are reinvested into new ventures with social and environmental benefits. He also discusses gaining cooperation for sites by presenting strong business plans and the niche market they've carved out with experience-based attractions.

Marks discusses the due diligence involved to mitigate risks, especially concerning visitor number projections. He assures that expert advice is sought to ensure the business case is robust and the risk to the council is minimal. He also touches upon the internal decision-making process for allocating resources to speculative projects and competitions, explaining that it's a collaborative decision with other directors, balancing turnover, affordability, and the potential for innovative problem-solving.

Finally, Marks clarifies British Airways' role in the i360. Unlike the London Eye where they were significant shareholders, for the Brighton project, British Airways is solely the naming rights sponsor, providing substantial annual payments without equity or operational involvement. He also lists the various stakeholders involved, including the local council, the West Pier trust, and local community representatives, emphasizing the collaborative nature of the project.