The Studio

A small studio, on purpose.

Ancient Designs builds full-service software suites for institutions that generic software was never built to fit. We started with the Orthodox Church, because we know it from the inside, and we are building outward from there. Every project is carried by the same small team, start to finish.

A workshop, not a factory. Every product is made here, by the people whose names are on it.

Why we exist

We started where the tools fit worst.

The institutions that carry the most history are the worst served by the software on the market. They keep records for generations. They run on calendars older than any software company. And they get handed generic products with a logo swapped in, and a “mode” that pretends to understand them.

We thought that was worth fixing. We started with the Orthodox parish, built Symphonia, and made one complete system for how a parish actually runs. The same approach now carries to dioceses, monasteries, schools, and other institutions that off-the-shelf software has always failed.

The founder

Work directly with the maker.

There is no account layer between you and the work. When you hire Ancient Designs, you work directly with the person leading its design and build.

David Rayahin

Founder

What we believe

You own everything

Your data is yours, always. Exportable at any time, in a form you can read and keep, with us or without us. We build to earn the next year, not to lock you into it.

Built to be kept

Not leased. We make software the way you build something meant to last, and we stay to look after it. Our work should still be serving you in ten years.

Small on purpose

We take on a few clients at a time. The people who design and build your software are the same people who answer when you write. That is the whole arrangement.

The tradition comes first

We learn an institution before we build for it. A generic product wearing a “church mode” was never going to fit, so we start from how a place actually works, not from a template.

Start a conversation.

Building something for a parish, a diocese, or any institution that generic software has failed? We would like to hear about it.

Get in touch →