The eBay offices in San Francisco were created by design firm Gensler with a layout that focuses on the company’s principles: experiences, relationships and stories.

The designers integrated items sold on eBay as part of the design and incorporated them into the furniture, graphic elements and art in the office. The sixth floor office supports a diversity of work styles while connecting employees with the eBay experience. Experiential spaces are scattered throughout the floor with a large open kitchen/lounge area to bring employees together. Small “think” rooms, with height adjustable desks, offer private spaces to work in the otherwise open-plan environment. Teams also have access to more laid-back comfortable areas to work undisturbed.

(h/t) officesnapshots.com

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Travelstart, one of Africa’s leading online travel agencies, has moved into new, stylishly designed offices inspired by the movie The Intern.

The CEO of the booking agency, now in its second decade of successful business, wanted the new office in Longkloof Studios, just off of the bustling Kloof Street in Cape Town, to showcase Travelstart’s brand identity while simultaneously expressing a sense of creative and collaborative functionality.

Designed by South African design studio Inhouse, the space features a reception room with a wow-factor. The main counter was made in light of Travelstart’s logo and dominates most of the reception area. It is made up of a massive circular blue light box and backed by a coffee bar and a twenty-four seater communal work table that was carved from a large tree trunk and tastefully set on a contrasting steel frame.

A two-metre long model aeroplane hangs from the ceiling of the triple volume space, lending a playful nod to one of the travel agency’s main functions. The spacious area sees Travelstart’s colour scheme (blue, grey and white) used as a prominent theme throughout. The office boasts a kitchen, stadium seating space, a meditation room, recreation rooms, various offices, a main boardroom and glass panelling that allows for a degree of privacy without interrupting the open plan flow of the easily accessible workspace.

View more projects by Inhouse here.

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The Yacht Club is a new Cape Town development situated adjacent to the V&A Waterfront. Headed up by The Amdec Group, this R1.2 billion project is set to include residential space, office units and a hotel.

The nautical-inspired design reflects The Yacht Club’s canal side location. The project, which aims to be completed mid-2017, will be the biggest of its kind in the Roggebaai Precinct.

Apart from the flexible proposed office spaces, The Yacht Club will also offer stylish one- and two-bedroom apartments, ranging from 54m² to 95m². The apartments will start at R2.4 million. Energy-efficient double-glazing and LED lighting will be used throughout the build.

Not surprisingly, there is already demand for the residential units. “The response to our initial marketing campaign has far exceeded expectations, with enquiries from Johannesburg, Durban and locally in the Western Cape,” says Basil Moraitis, area manager for Pam Golding Properties in the City Bowl and Atlantic Seaboard.

Joint MD of Amdec Property Development, Nicholas Stopforth, confirms that the development might include a hotel and serviced apartments, with negotiations currently underway with a well-know hotel group.

For more information, visit theyachtclub.co.za.

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The World Design Capital 2014 team crowd-sourced a temporary work environment in Cape Town’s East City precinct.

The WDC2014 office was a community collab project. “We were told that we can’t pay rent because we are spending ratepayers’ money,” says Alayne, clarifying that they had to find an abode in the municipality’s buildings. “Then, one Sunday night, I was sitting at home and I got this email. Ting! From Steven Harris. A group of property owners in the East City precinct made a formal bid to house our offices. It was the first serious gesture of goodwill and generosity from the community.”

Turning blue-sky ideas into a reality would not be possible in a stuffy, cubicle-locked office painted in shades of drab. Instead, a collaborative area was required with lots of wall space for drawings, whiteboards and all manner of organograms, calendars, flowcharts and post-its.

It is these types of projects and ways of working that made creative consultant Etienne Hanekom’s first interior-design draft inappropriate. “They probably just gave me the brief so they could reject it,” he laughs. “Most clients I work with don’t really know what they want until they see what they don’t want.”

Instead, Etienne broke up the boardroom monolith into a number of meeting spaces of varying privacy and formality. Offices are arranged around the perimeter of the space, and the central area is where all the action happens, with hot-desks for temporary staff and various arrangements of tables and chairs for collaborating.

The structural skeleton of the office layout is a custom-made recycled-steel frame that, when the offices are broken down after 2014, can be melted and reincarnated again. The recycled plywood and translucent corrugated Duroplastic used for partitions were also chosen for their green credentials, but moreover to allow the natural light coming in from the windows to shine through the entire office. 

A lot of the furniture is secondhand and rejuvenated, but much more of it has been donated by local designers and manufacturers, including the likes of Gregor Jenkin, Pedersen + Lennard, Design Team, Skinny laMinx, Woodbender and Xanita. Paint was supplied by Plascon and the pendant fluorescent lights by Radiant Lighting and Electrical. 

Yellow crates from the WDC2014 stand at Decorex Cape Town were repurposed as shelving, seating and partitions. Alayne calls it – “cr’ative”. Speaking of yellow, Hirsch’s donated a bright yellow SMEG fridge that Alayne reportedly kissed when it arrived. “It just makes my day, every time I look at it,” she beams.

For more information visit wdccapetown2014.com

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Bridging the divide between work and living space, these four divergent open-plan offices give dull grey cubicles a run for their money.

GARDEN VARIETY
Bring the outdoors in by combining natural and contemporary elements to chic effect in this tranquil botanical den.

GET THIS LOOK: 

• Paint the front wall with Plascon Double Velvet Cape Cliffs (G7-E1-1). Add a natural, yet modern twist by covering the back wall with a sheet of plywood.   
• Throw traditional wall art positioning notions out the window by layering two-dimensional images to create a wallpaper effect and mixing in more three-dimensional, framed images on top.   
• Fill empty glass jars with interesting images instead of plants. When choosing natural elements, go for cleaner, more contemporary materials such as plywood. By using wood with a cleaner, more modern finish, you’ll get a look that’s natural, yet graphic and modern.  
• Collect old boxes and crates to stack against the wall for an eye-catching sculptural arrangement that doubles as a storage solution.

Accessories:
Plywood sheet wall covering, Baltic Timber. Wall-mounted pot-plant holder, Thingking. Succulent, Stark Ayres. Selection of storage boxes, Coco Karoo, Continuum, Mid-Century Modern and The Treasury. Hanging succulent, Opus. Pressed plant (framed), Coco Karoo. Botanical print (framed), L’Orangerie. Botanical print (canvas), Block & Chisel. Diesel with Foscarini Duii lamp, Créma Design. Green Wonki Ware jug, Blink. Glass jar (with print inside), o.live. Vintage green glass vase, Prêt-à-Pot. Wooden chest of drawers, Artefect. Succulents in drawers, Stark Ayres. Glass dome, Obelisk. Succulent in terracotta pot, Opus. Green chest, Continuum. Leather journal, Baraka. Wooden log, Nap. Side table, Saks Corner. Chair, Weylandts. Green carpet, Gonsenhausers Fine Rugs. Model wears: Panama hat, Baraka; Uno linen dress, Habits; Rare Earth belt, Poetry; Ida Elsje brass-and-stone ring, Olive Green Cat

INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
Industrial doesn’t have to mean drab – bright colours and fun décor elements bring a fresh new look to this nine-to-five haven.

GET THIS LOOK: 

• Paint the back wall with Plascon Double Velvet Gold Finch (Y4-B1-2), while keeping the front wall white to offset the rest of the palette.   
• Draw barcode lines on the wall with a laser or spirit level, mask the lines with masking tape, then paint them using Plascon blackboard paint.   
• Create three horizontal rectangular blocks below the barcodes with a spirit level and masking tape, then carefully fill in the blocks with Plascon Cloud Terrace (P6-B1-1), Go Go Red (R4-A1-1), Sunset in the Desert (O3-B1-1) and Gold Finch (Y4-B1-2).   
• Photocopy barcode numbers to size and cut the numbers out with a craft knife, creating a stencil. Attach the photocopies to the wall on top of the different-coloured rectangles and paint over the stencil with a sponge roller using Plascon blackboard paint.   
• Finally, paint the repurposed door-turned-tabletop in Plascon Velvaglo Cloud Terrace (P6-B1-1).

Accessories:
Fire extinguisher box, Vamp. Bicycle, Woodheads. Skeletor sway bench, JesseJames Design. Trestles, LIM. Doorframe used as tabletop, Baltic Timber. Mezzadro stool, Mid-Century Modern. Urban Steed cruiser skateboard, JesseJames Design. Clock, Mid-Century Modern. Humanscale Horizon LED task light, Créma Design. Robot pencil holder, Abode. Stationery (wrapping paper, pencils, eraser, sharpener, notebooks), The Deckle Edge. Red “Keep Calm & Carry On” tin, Quirky Me. Black cabinet on wheels, @home. Dolly chair, Kartell. 

PATTERN PERFECT
A trendy geometric wall design and eye-catching chandelier give this fashion-forward workspace the edge.

GET THIS LOOK: 

• Liven up the front wall with a geometric Moroccan pattern in Plascon Double Velvet Rafter (P6-E1-1), Nautilous (B6-D1-1), Stony Field (R6-E2-1) and Ivory White (Y4-B2-3). Draw straight horizontal lines with a laser or spirit level, add vertical lines at 45-degree angles, then fill in the shapes with the different colours. Wait for one colour block to dry before painting the adjacent block, using masking tape on the dry areas to create perfect sharp edges.   
• Paint the back wall in Plascon Double Velvet Rafter (P6-E1-1). The warmer tone in the background will offset and highlight the pattern in the foreground while differentiating the two spaces.  
• Paint the repurposed hollow door-turned-tabletop with Plascon Velvaglo Rafter (P6-E1-1).   
• Offset the busy wall pattern with clean-lined accessories. 

Accessories:
Grey chandelier, Weylandts. Bed, Tafelberg Furnishers. Linen pillowcase, Aldona Pure Linen. Scatter cushion, The Fabric House. Linen throw, Aldona Pure Linen. Linen sheet, Artefect. Silk carpet, Fibre Designs. Clothing rail, Weylandts. Black hangers, Swift Dry Cleaners. Clothing on rail: Aldona Pure Linen and Isabel de Villiers Clothing. Trestles, LIM. Doorframe used as tabletop, Baltic Timber. Wooden shoemaker moulds, Vamp. Selection of linen, The Fabric House. Purple shoes, Kingdom. Antique scissors, Artefect. Comback chair, Kartell. Model wears: aubergine jeans, Ronald Sassoon; watercolour print tank, Jo Borkett; ring, Imagenius; Daniella Michelle boots, Queue Shoes; model holds Aldona Pure Linen dress.

CRAFT CORNER
Shrugging off their former girly image, pastels get a new lease on life in this crafty home studio.

GET THIS LOOK: 

• Paint the back wall with Plascon Double Velvet Fat Alley Cat (B7-E1-2) and the bar stool with Plascon Velvaglo Mystic Copper (O3-C1-1). The front wall gets a coat of You’re My Sweetie (O4-C2-2).   
• Cut hardboard into interesting shapes and paint in You’re My Sweetie (O4-C2-2), Fat Alley Cat (B7-E1-2), Mystic Copper (O3-C1-1) and Happy Ending (Y5-B2-3). Stand them upright along the floating shelves for an offbeat alternative to traditional wall decorations.  
• By layering and combining elements within a contained space – like these floating shelves – you can achieve an interesting visual effect without making the space look too cluttered.   
• Upcycling has never been more on trend. Give new life to antique furniture – like this deconstructed armchair – by reupholstering it. 

Accessories:
Gert Hulme paintings, Coco Karoo. Armchair, Artefect. Silk carpet, Fibre Designs. Scaffolding planks used as shelving, Ross Demolition. Belinda Ormond black ceramic vase, Blink. Printed jar, o.live. Wood and metal moulds, Artefect. Painted zebra skull, Africa Nova. Karen Henstra ceramic vase, Wunders. Belinda Ormond clay men, Blink. Selection of confit jars, Artefect. Wooden baboon skull, Africa Nova. Trestles, LIM. Doorframe used as tabletop, Baltic Timber. Rice paper rolls, Nap. Belinda Ormond black ceramic vase, Blink. Michael Guy copper candleholders, Haas. Antique paintbrushes, Artefect. Copper skull, Imagenius. Large confit jar, Artefect. Terracotta Wonki Ware crockery, Melissa’s. Wooden stool, LIM. Stacked paper, Block & Chisel. Vintage chair, Continuum. Mid-century copper lights, Mid-Century Modern.

For more handy tips, visit plasconspaces.co.za

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The offices of advertising agency Ogilvy in Johannesburg promote creative play through tongue-in cheek decor.

A mischievous element of play is not immediately apparent when you caste a glance around the grounds of Ogilvy & Mather in Bryanston, Johannesburg. Based around an original Cape Dutch farmhouse the complex spills out into neat gardens, a soothing duck pond and a large office complex, which on appearance could belong to any means of business from insurance to market research. From the outside there’s little to give away that the buildings are those of one of South Africa’s leading advertising agencies – responsible for promoting mainstream brands from Cell C and KFC to DStv and Audi.

It’s only when you look up to the rooftop that you get an inkling of the creative minds buzzing inside the office walls. Grafted to the roof tiles is a rainbow of brightly molded plastic lettering in the style of alphabet fridge magnets, which spell out the words “Dream Humungous”.   

It’s the first of a series of details that illustrate the company’s precepts of “playfulness” and “idealism”. Large-scale dreaming certainly worked for the company’s founder, David Ogilvy, who started out as an AGA salesman and went on to be dubbed the “father of advertising” in the 1950s and 60s, to the extent that in 1962 Time called him “the most sought-after wizard in today’s advertising industry”.

There is continued evidence of this idealism and joyful spirit as you wander through the buildings. Some sections have colour-coded beanbags for chilling in while others offer a nod to the founders of advertising with posters of ads from the 50s and 60s. From the tongue-in-cheek plastic ducks in the canteen, which reference the duck pond outside, to offices clad in bold photographic floral wallpaper.

In some ways the decor is disjointed but this is because sections are divided according to clients – so you’ll have the entire DStv team working in area and KFC in another. Their client-based loyalty is taken to its zenith with details such as a colour-coded guardhouse and decals on the entrance doors to promote DStv’s screening of the Brazil World Cup. The PR department is known internally as “the heart of the business” and is decorated accordingly with desk dividers upholstered in a textile print featuring a human figure with a bright red heart on its chest. 

Pulling it all together is an enormous Lego wall comprising 10 000 large-scale Lego blocks, which originally spelled out the word “play” in primary coloured glory. These days it features some brand names and meandering squiggles, obviously built by some creative dreamer on a coffee break. After all, if you’re going to spend your days at work, it might as well be as good as play.

jogilvy.co.za

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