Woods Bagot, the country's largest architecture firm which began in 1869 in South Australia, has been approached by US firms proposing a takeover in the past two years but has rejected the offers.

“We constantly get approached to both acquire others and be acquired,” Woods Bagot group managing director Ross Donaldson told The Australian at the firm’s conference in Melbourne last week. “But we’re not interested. We’re doing very well, thank you, without worrying about anyone else. We’re the only Australian practice that’s developed a truly global footprint and because the Australian market is so attractive to American practices we’re a prime target,” he said.

Merger and acquisitions activity in the architecture sector is lively, with many American firms looking to create a global footprint by acquiring Australians firms. Woods Bagot has offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East and North America.