March 12, 2025

Genuinely unmissable workplace events are thin on the ground. The Workspace Design Show is one of the best

by Mick Jordan • Features, Workplace design

For some unknown reason the Business Design Centre was once derided, disliked and generally dismissed by many in the workplace sector. We never really understood this. Why would an industry with a hub just down the road in Clerkenwell not like the idea of visiting an exhibition centre that is so local? Why would they not be happy to come to Islington, with its enviable array of restaurants bars cafés etc? It’s not as though anyone’s being forced to head out to a slightly random, innocuous residential area of London. For those not based in and around Clerkenwell and the City, communications in and out of Islington are extremely good, unlike some of those more problematic destinations to the west of London. (more…)

November 19, 2024

The new digital issue of Works magazine would look just dandy on your screen

by Mick Jordan • Premium Content, Workplace design, Works Magazine

The new digital issue of Works magazine is available for you here. In this issue: we report from Orgatec with mixed feelings; we have four project stories from Toronto, Salford and London; interviews with Karim Rashid and Oskar Zieta; consider how the 21st Century Office has its roots in 20th Century Holland; ask where all the furniture icons went; profile Future Designs; and all the regular commentary, company news and features you need. (more…)

June 20, 2024

Damp but unbowed. Clerkenwell Design Week 2024 review

by Mick Jordan • Premium Content, Workplace design, Works Magazine

Over the past couple of weeks, you might have read a few Clerkenwell Design Week reviews. For a while there, you couldn’t go to LinkedIn without seeing people’s experiences of and opinions on the event. This look back at those three days in May might be somewhat different from the vast majority you’ve already read/scrolled past. We’re not going to start by telling you how ‘super excited’ we were. Not that we don’t look forward to CDW or enjoy the festival. Far from. It’s just that this is actually our job and not a fun few days out of the office. (more…)

May 21, 2024

Looking forward to a whale of a time at Clerkenwell Design Week

by Mick Jordan • Briefing, Features, Workplace design, Works Magazine

As the majority of you will know, Clerkenwell is home to more creative businesses and architects per square mile than anywhere else on the planet, making it truly one of the most important design hubs in the world. And, for three days each May, it truly feels like it. To celebrate this rich and diverse community, Clerkenwell Design Week will showcase the borough’s creative residents, alongside visiting brands and emerging design talent. And we have a special show preview to help you get the best from it. (more…)

May 14, 2024

Marcie Incarico: a tribute

by Mick Jordan • Comment

We were deeply saddened to hear that Mix Interiors’ board director, Marcie Incarico, had lost her battle against cancer. Marcie was a tour de force, bringing boundless energy and strong leadership to her team. Marcie always strived for excellence, whether working on behalf of her clients or delivering her own company’s products and events. This, of course, was most visible through the Mixology and Mixology North events, where Marcie and the team built on the successful model developed by me and Henry Pugh – a model that put celebration of the industry at its heart. (more…)

March 19, 2024

New issue of Works magazine focuses on sustainable office design

by Mick Jordan • Environment, Premium Content, Workplace design, Works Magazine

As you’ll see as you make your way through this new issue of Works magazine, we’ve spent even more time than usual discussing and learning about sustainable office design – and in particular how the interiors industry is determined to keep sustainable products, business practices and processes at the forefront of our thinking. (more…)

February 12, 2024

Workspace Design Show reveals a raft of thought-provoking features for 2024

by Mick Jordan • Company news, Events, Workplace design

This year’s edition of the Workspace Design Show (27-28 February 2024, Business Design Centre, London) will once again present an impressive array of features, ranging from an immersive forest stage to an interactive lighting installation, which bring together some of the industry’s leading designers, architects and built environment partners. We’ve been given an exclusive early look at what we can expect to see at this year’s design extravaganza. (more…)

October 27, 2023

Works Magazine issue number 8 lands

by Mick Jordan • News, Premium Content, Workplace design, Works Magazine

The new digital issue of Works magazine is available for you to read, download, print and share right here. In this issue: we report on the inaugural Works Place event at Material Matters in London in September; visit three new offices in London that show how outstanding offices are retaining their role in making the capital a great place to work; we speak to Andreu World about their partnership with design legend Philippe Starck; and catch up for a drink with our friends Rawside who are maintaining Clerkenwell’s reputation as a new design powerhouse. (more…)

August 25, 2023

Show some Summer loving for the new issue of Works magazine

by Mick Jordan • News, Workplace design, Works Magazine

Take a little time out from your well-earned summer break (or your ongoing nose to the grindstone) with the latest issue of Works Magazine. Issue 7 features all the relevant news, features, products, businesses and people from the world of the workplace, including an exciting new initiative from Works and sister title, IN. (more…)

July 5, 2023

All we are saying is give lease a chance

by Mick Jordan • Features, Furniture

By their very nature, trends come and go. What we are now seeing with sustainable, responsible product and material sourcing goes way beyond trend or fad, of course, and in recent discussions we’ve had (and we’ve had quite a few) on the subject, the question of furniture as a service or a furniture lease model has arisen on a number of occasions. So often, in fact, that we decided we should look deeper into the subject, to ascertain its pros (and cons) and to decipher whether this is merely a hypothetical – certainly at any large scale – that the industry would like to adopt or is a very real here and now. (more…)

June 28, 2023

Works roundtable explores the changing face of wellbeing and how to deliver it

by Mick Jordan • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design, Works Magazine

The first day of Clerkenwell Design Week also marked the first birthday of Works, and we celebrated with a number of industry friends at the Goswell Road showroom of Andreu World. Before we could enjoy a birthday drink, however, we had to earn it, and did so by hosting a panel discussion on the subject of Designing Wellbeing at Work. Together with our elite panel of industry greats – comprising Alice Aldous – Associate at Squire and Partners, Beatriz Gonzalez – Director at Scott Brownrigg, Chris Crawford – Studio Director and Senior Associate at Gensler and Alejandro Pardo – North Europe Area Manager for our generous hosts, Andreu World – we looked to lift the lid on the strategies used to foster wellbeing, productivity, and employee satisfaction in the workplace. (more…)

June 20, 2023

The digital edition of issue 6 of Works Magazine just dropped

by Mick Jordan • News, Premium Content, Works Magazine

I recently received a copy of the book Office Shock by ‘prominent futurists’ Bob Johansen, Joseph Press and Christine Bullen. Described as a guide to creating better futures for working and living, the book imagines the future of work and the workplace. While reading a passage aimed at leaders, I was suddenly aware that a number of the words were simultaneously being spoken aloud in the background. There was a break in the cricket I had been watching that morning (cricket has a few of these breaks!) and the England captain, Ben Stokes, was being interviewed about his own leadership style. (more…)