Office Design Stands as a Metaphor for the World of Commerce

Via worldarchitecturenews.com
Designer: M-S-D-S Studio
All photos: Paula Wilson via worldarchitecturenews.com

As a company focused on e-commerce software and on how its clients can better sell their products, Shopify designed their newly (and partially) completed office in Toronto around the very concept of today’s commerce. Dreamed up by M-S-D-S Studio, the space is a physical reminder of the company’s field of work and the principles it follows.

Since Shopify prides itself on its transparency, the office was built to symbolize that. Solid room dividers were kept to a minimum and replaced with large glass partitions and louvers. The open plan allows light to fill the space, giving it a fresh, airy and invigorating feel.

But the symbolism goes further than the simple open plan. The entire office is designed around the elements of today’s commerce. The long main corridor symbolizes the market world and is even built as a market street, store signage included. Rooms are built around themes that have to do with specialty stores.

Another area is occupied by meeting rooms with facades enhanced by aluminum louvers. The simple yet vibrant colors are reminiscent of those of shipping containers, taking the design metaphor into the world of shipping.

The same concept is evoked by the presence of large metal enclosures that not only give the place a dramatic feel, but fall in line with the whole symbolism of product transport.

Finally, the Toronto office design is meant to create an atmosphere in which the main goal of the company (making commerce easy for its clients) is never forgotten. The reception area, for instance, is built as a pop-up shop promoting clients’ products – a nice touch for a company that takes serving its clients seriously.

Please take a look at our Before and After images of selected projects from 2015 HERE.

If you are thinking to open up a new business or in a process of rebranding and remodeling your existing business, contact us to get a free consultation from Mindful Design Consulting. Click HERE to price your project design.

Also, take a look at “Branding By Interior” e-book, the only book written on this subject at this time. It brings insight on how you can turn your business into a market-dominating competitor by using human cognitive responses.