The Studio

Seven people.
Three cities. One room.

Zal Forge is part of the Zal Collective — a small federation of studios and platforms working on premium software, commerce, hospitality, and education. We share infrastructure, principles, and weekend retreats.

Origin

Founded in 2024 in Lagos, with a stubborn idea: the best digital work happens when the strategists, designers, and engineers share an office, a payroll, and a stake in the outcome.

We grew out of frustration with how studios are usually shaped — strategists in one building, designers in another, engineers offshore, and a producer trying to stitch the seams. The seams always show.

So we built something different. Seven people, eventually nine, working on no more than five engagements at any given time. Every engagement is led by one of three partners. Nothing — design, development, infrastructure, content — is outsourced.

In two years, we've shipped twenty-six engagements across fourteen countries. Our clients renew. Our partners refer. We've turned down work worth twelve million dollars to protect the bench.

The Bench
YK

Yusuf K.

Founder · Strategy

Reading: How Buildings Learn

YA

Yara A.

Partner · Design

Reading: How Buildings Learn

TB

Tomi B.

Partner · Engineering

Reading: The Pattern of the Chinese Past

MA

Mira A.

Senior Designer

Reading: How Buildings Learn

RT

Reza T.

Senior Engineer

Reading: The Practice of the Wild

AD

Ana D.

Producer

Reading: How Buildings Learn

SO

Sami O.

Engineer

Reading: Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth

Lagos

Bench HQ. Strategy, design, engineering.

London

Client partner desk. Two engineers.

Lisbon

Content, brand, motion.