April 12, 2022

Sustainable office design relies on everybody sharing knowledge

by Harsha Kotak • Comment, Environment, Workplace design

Back in 2018, I launched a group called Women in Office Design. I wanted to inspire and empower women involved in the profession of office design and creation. The opportunity to develop and enhance my skills and understanding was a fundamental reason why I formed WOD. Reading and research is beneficial but it’s important to take the time to reach out to others in the industry, especially on the most important issues of our day such as sustainable office design. (more…)

March 9, 2022

Workspace Design Show reveals new theme and announces new Amsterdam event

by Freddie Steele • News, Workplace design

With 12 months to go, ‘Destination Workplace’ has been unveiled as the theme for the second edition of the Workspace Design Show. Taking place at London’s Business Design Centre on 27-28 February 2023, the Workspace Design Show will once again be bringing together the entire commercial interiors community to discover and discuss tomorrow’s workspaces. The Workspace Design Show has announced the members of an advisory board and is also launching an Amsterdam counterpart. The Amsterdam show will have a special focus on bringing UK exporters an opportunity to sell to the Benelux market. (more…)

March 1, 2022

Office furniture giant Flokk acquires Connection, doubling footprint in UK

by Mark Eltringham • Company news, Workplace design

Flokk, one of the leading European manufacturers of office seating and office furniture products, has acquired UK-based office furniture manufacturer Connection, expanding its footprint in the strategically important UK market and underpinning its international growth strategy. “Having Connection join the Flokk group moves us into the major league of Europe’s second-largest office seating market. We roughly double our size to about EUR 30 million in the key UK market. The transaction is another example of Flokk continuing to consolidate the fragmented European office seating market through targeted and value-creating acquisitions of attractive companies and brands,” says Lars I. Røiri, CEO of Flokk. (more…)

March 1, 2022

Mindspace signs up for two new locations in Berlin

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Property

Flexible office provider Mindspace has announced it will occupy 7,000 square meters of office space, a lobby and several roof terraces in Berlin’s FÜRST. The landlord for the project is the FÜRST Projektgesellschaft. The premises are part of the first construction phase of the district development, which was already completed in October 2020 on Berlin’s well-known Kurfürstendammwith a total of 19,000 square meters of commercial space and an additional parking garage with more than 500 parking spaces. In addition, Mindspace has also announced the appointment of its new global VP of Real Estate and Projects, Ana Nekhamkin.

The FÜRST Projektgesellschaft is developing a site of 20,000 square meters in the prime Kurfürstendamm location in an area that extends over 97,000 square meters of commercial rental space for retail, office, lifestyle and art. Based on the design of the architectural firm Kleihues + Kleihues, in addition to the revitalisation of an entire block, a new public square will be created for Berlin’s City West.

With Ku’damm being one of the most important shopping streets in Germany, Mindspace secures yet another flex office of over 7,000 square meters in a AAA Berlin location.

Besides FÜRST, Mindspace is opening a second new location in Berlin on Zimmerstraße, which marks the 10th German location for the company. The two new locations in Kurfürstendamm and Zimmerstraße are scheduled to open in July 2022 and both will be close in proximity to the three existing Mindspace offices on Berlin’s Friedrichstraße, Skalitzer Straße and Krausenstraße (pictured).

The new Mindspace Zimmerstraße can be found at the historic border of the Berlin Wall and covers 4,500 square meters on eight floors.

“Germany is a key market for Mindspace and our expansion in Berlin is one of the many to come. Currently our occupancy rate in Germany is over 95 percent and in some cities, even more. Mindspace is on a path of growth and we’re excited to have such great partners by our side for the journey,” says Oliver Lehmann, General Manager Mindspace Germany.

Mindspace currently operates 32 locations in 17 cities, and following their recent funding of $72 million of equity capital, the company is following through on its promise to continue expanding its proven offerings to meet the high demand. A significant part of the expansion is planned for Germany, and specifically Berlin as it’s a hub for startups, tech companies and creatives.

February 25, 2022

The philosophy of wellbeing: Elina Grigoriou in conversation

by Neil Franklin • Podcasts, Premium Content, Wellbeing, Wellbeing Matters, Workplace design

Elina Grigorou is the author of a fantastic book called Wellbeing in Interiors: Philosophy, Design & Value in Practice. The book looks not only at the ways organisations can use design to address the wellbeing of individuals, but also the impact this approach has on them as individuals in terms of their creativity and productivity. This in turn can have a transformative impact on the organisations for which they work. (more…)

February 20, 2022

New flooring design from IVC explores the principles of architectural geometry

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Flooring

The new Contour carpet tile collection from IVC Commercial applies the principles of architectural geometry to carpet tile flooring design in two styles to mix and match with other collections. In Perspective, biomorphic principles express the structural integrity of honeycomb, while View is a design of intersecting lines that explores geometrical projection. (more…)

February 9, 2022

Climate change risk should be factored in to investment decisions

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News

Ahead of mandatory requirements to disclose climate change related risks coming into force in April 2022, the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) has published a new Framework providing businesses with a consistent methodology for measuring climate-related risks across their built assets, as well as empowering asset owning businesses of all sizes to better understand and plan for the physical risks of climate change. (more…)

February 4, 2022

Office furniture maker Connection announces move to new £8m head office and factory

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Furniture

In a planned strategy to capitalise upon unprecedented recent growth in sales, Huddersfield-based British office furniture manufacturer Connection is moving to a brand-new purpose-built state of the art building, which will encompass a head office, showroom and manufacturing facility under one roof. Connection have been based at their Dogley Mills home in Huddersfield since their founding in 1997 but after 25 years at the facility required a substantially larger space with the intent to double both manufacturing capacity and turnover. (more…)

January 27, 2022

Urban and real estate recovery driven by talent and innovation focused firms

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News, Property, Technology

Innovation-oriented industries and talent concentration are driving urban and real estate recovery, with notable hot spots in parts of the US, Europe and Asia, according to JLL’s new report, Innovation Geographies (registration). The authors claim that cities that perform best on these measures will be best positioned for economic growth post-pandemic, demonstrating a strong link between innovation, talent ecosystems and real estate performance. (more…)

January 17, 2022

Is your office worth the journey it takes to get to it?

by Despina Katsikakis • Comment, Flexible working, Property

A couple of years ago, in the wake of a surge in self-care start-ups and viral diet fads, Forbes declared 2019 as the year of the “wellness revolution”. Three years and a global pandemic later, the revolution appears to have swept our offices. Why? Quite simply, we have woken up to the fact that we could be productive remotely, while also realising the risks of not accommodating employee wellbeing in the office. (more…)

January 13, 2022

Flexible workspace users express confidence in future

by Neil Franklin • Company news, Flexible working, Property

Members of flexible workspace provider LABS have expressed confidence over their businesses’ prospects heading into 2022, with 92 percent of respondents to a survey, conducted by LABS, expecting their companies to grow over the next three years. (more…)

December 16, 2021

Pandemic highlights the need for smarter, more adaptable offices and cities

by Cedrik Neike • Features, Technology

The coronavirus pandemic is a new experience for every one of us. It has changed life as we know it – at work, at home and for public interactions. As some countries start to ease restrictions on public life, how can we go back to ‘normal’ while still maintaining social distancing and feeling safe? How do we manage crowded public spaces like shopping malls, cinemas and restaurants? How do we optimize safety in our offices and factories? More importantly, how do we avoid shutting down entire cities and countries when the next pandemic hits? (more…)