In the heart of Toronto’s financial district on Bay Street, the global design firm IBI Group, has just completed a fantastic new Canadian headquarters for Capital One. We know Capital One to be in the banking business, but the banking institution has eyes toward the future; one where financial institutions must take on the “fintech” moniker. Fintech, or financial technology, comprises new technology and innovation that will compete with, and improve, traditional modes of financial services.
Capital One requested a design concept that would support its collaborative culture, attract and retain top talent, and allow an untethered use of technology, enabling its people to move freely through the workspace. Capital One came to the table with a workplace strategy team that provided standards for its staff workstation and private office design; beyond that, they looked to IBI Group to guide the design process from top to bottom.
Brookfield Place, the client’s chosen site, is an office complex popular with the financial businesses that take up quarters in Bay Street, Toronto’s equivalent to New York City’s Wall Street. Surrounded by other financial and asset management companies, Capital One wanted to set itself apart.
“They’re really a tech company that does banking, with a lot of programmers that bring a tech-y energy,” noted Jane Juranek, senior interior designer at IBI Group, in an officeinsight interview.
IBI’s main design challenge to solve for was the building’s existing floorplate. Each floor has a series of underutilized service spaces that run through its middle, impeding both visibility and use of valuable square footage. IBI Group had worked on projects in that building in the past, and so were familiar with its challenges. The corridors measure 11-feet wide by 80-feet long, with low ceiling heights.
“Most people in the building don’t usually see it as an attractive space to be in, so it’s often used as storage or for back-of-house functions,” noted Ms. Juranek. But this space does come off the elevator bank, and also connects the east and west sides of the building – so it’s an important space. We saw it as an opportunity to reactivate space.”
The design team turned its view of these “unusable” spaces upside down, catapulting them into the spotlight as the focal point of the entire office. It sought to give new life to these central corridors by making them into five unique destination spaces, “creating a vital connected link between the east and west sides of the office.”
“Bringing back the public realm into these spaces helped fulfill a number of design goals, from creating a dynamic wayfinding motif throughout the space, to allowing for the adoption of multi-functional “scrum” areas throughout the office – fostering collaboration and the flexible use of space,” notes the project description.
“We started to think about how cities go about redeveloping underutilized spaces,” said Ms. Juranek. “We were inspired by places like New York City’s High Line path, and a similar High Line design planned for Toronto.”
The five corridor design concepts represent “introspective, inspiring spaces that encourage creativity and contemplative thought.” The corridors serve as a refuge for staff from the traditional workplace – each one a unique experience, and all tied together through names that nod to the word “In”: In-stinct, In-line, In-time, In-focus and In-sight.
For the design of the 16thfloor’s In-stinct corridor, in blue, IBI worked with a custom fabricator to design structurally sound geometrical forms of powder-coated steel, upholstered in blue for softness; the result is an enticing expanse of touchdown seats snaking through the corridor.
The 17thfloor’s In-line corridor, in green, had the design team back at the drawing board several times.
“There’s this undulating curve of light continuously flowing along the wall, evoking movement,” said Ms.Juranek. “At first, we were designing it for the floor, but after three or four versions of that, we weren’t getting it quite right. We flipped the visual and moved the curve and the light to the wall instead. There is a lot of movement and light in the space, and all of the furniture in the middle is flexible and movable.
“When we photographed the space, it was completely new and untouched, but the whiteboards in that corridor are now filled with work and post-it notes. The space is really being used properly now.”
The new offices support 750 staff members, with just eight private offices and the remaining workstations in an open office. Aside from making sure it had the right amount of spaces, Capital One tasked the IBI design team with developing a flexible enough workspace where team members can move among floors.
“When visitors and staff step off the elevator at reception, their sensory experience includes leather paneling with steel frames and mirrored black ceilings,” notes the project description.
Departing from the traditional aesthetics common at many other financial offices in the building, Capital One opted instead for a fashionable boutique hotel experience. The offices’ strong color palette is notable, with each floor having its own primary color scheme.
“Rather than relying on white with smaller pops of color, we chose to pick certain larger elements and wash them in colors,” said Ms. Juranek.
“A stacked plywood wall anchors the lobby area, featuring a giant, CNC-cut Capital One logo and a floating bench for waiting guests,” notes the project description. “Adding to the lobby’s dramatic features, black glass walls allow the logo to be reflected back to visitors, amplifying the brand’s presence throughout the space.”
The lobby opens into a flexible conference center supporting formal and informal meetings, training sessions and other events. The center is partitioned by an “acoustical glass wall and configured from one to three rooms depending on the event by vertical, stacking Skyfold walls. Designed for internal and external guests, the conference space provides an extension of the lobby’s hospitality lounge-vibe, complete with a spacious amenity area for informal gathering and refreshments.”
“We activated almost every space with whiteboards – every wall that’s available has a whiteboard on it,” said Ms. Juranek. “We wanted to create little niches for people engage in work-oriented collaboration wherever they need and want.”
On each floor, an open collaborative zone is located directly off the elevator bank.
“With the corridors serving as impromptu collision and gathering spaces, more formalized collaboration hubs were created on each floor to accommodate Capital One’s need for flexibility of work space,” details the project description. “These hubs are open concept with seven-foot-high freestanding walls. Each hub is designed in a unique color scheme and features a custom steel-top table with built-in storage and technology. There is also a lounge area with a stunning view of the city, offering a feeling of open space and tranquility for inspiring creativity.
Other amenities on each floor include a technology lounge, café and banquette seating areas unfolding “in a dynamic sequence of connected, geometric cubes.”
Branding the new office and filling it with unique experiences was a top priority, and IBI Group worked to develop a series of custom art pieces for Capital One in that endeavor. At the entrance to the 18thfloor’s conference center, IBI Group designed a series of peculiar pieces.
“We took hand sketches of all of our design concepts for the project and CNC laser etched them into clear acrylic panels, then edge-lit them with LED lighting,” notes Ms. Juranek.
And in addition to custom art and branding projects developed by IBI, Capital One has an extensive art program rotating every two months to bring fresh artistic perspectives to its walls.
“Capital One was a really unique client to work with, and an amazing one – and very open to new ideas,” said Ms. Juranek. “It was an incredible experience to work on a project like this one.”
On a tight 20-week construction schedule, IBI Group was able to finish the project on-time and under-budget. To complete the project, itworked with JLL as Project Manager, Govan Brown as Construction Manager, and Eventscape on all custom fabrication.