Office Spotlight: 11 East 26th St

In 2015, JIDK completed the design for the software company Persado‘s office in New York. JIDK generously provided us with the following information.

Can you walk us through the space?
The raw space left by the landlord’s whiteboxing was stunning, and we wanted to preserve as much of that openness and transparency as possible because it suited both the space and the tenant. Persado is a thoroughly modern company, and a high degree of openness was requested. By placing the main conference room and lounge area with tea kitchen right at the entry, we emphasized the south end of the space with its incredible views – but also ensured that the area around the conference room got activated throughout the day. The lounge area has rows of marble topped standing tables inviting you to enjoy an espresso while waiting for your meeting to start – or to have casual meetings with co-workers without the commitment of sitting down at a meeting table. In the narrow middle part of the space we located the communal pantry area, the canteen, and two more meeting rooms. The canteen is busy throughout the day, and provides additional seating for hotelling employees. It’s also the all-hands meeting space and birthday party gathering spot. The back of the office, the north side, is quiet and focused on the engineering and management functions. A large open space provides ample desks, and nearby phone booths the privacy that’s also needed. The CEO is in the furthest office, which doubles as a meeting room. Overall the space feels mostly open with a bold central corridor, but closer examination reveals many smaller spaces for the comfort and flexibility needed by the employees.

What were the objectives for the space? What was the design intent?
Openness is a very common ask from our clients, but it’s a difficult challenge to make it comfortable. Long rows of desks can be both intimidating and loud, so we need to make sure there are plenty of secondary spaces to duck into or hide out in. We want the office to be transparent, but we don’t want anyone to feel they are under day-long scrutiny. There needs to be places to get up and go to, as well as places that accommodate different moods. Here we were asked for a bright and bold atmosphere, so among other things we used surfaces to provide the various zones without spelling it out too directly. Communal areas have polished concrete floors, meeting areas have warm gray carpets, whereas private space have bold red carpeting. The interplay is dynamic and works well with Persado’s branding. We hoped to encourage the employees to use the entirety of the office and not feel stuck at their desks – if nothing else so they get to enjoy the spectacular views!

How does the design speak to the Persado brand/mission?
The design is clean and elegant with a bright energetic angle. It’s efficient but not cold and it’s powered by humans (Persado makes automated algorithms for marketing)

What is the color palette for the space?

We used the Persado Red to deliver the punch, and left the rest of the furniture and surfaces in the natural range. Warm shades of gray with accents in beige or white marble

What else should we know?

This was a very fast project for a dynamic client, and we believe it landed in a very good place. The client has a strong NYC office with flexible floorplan and some space to grow.

Photographer: Peter Kubilus

Designer: JIDK