Image Credit : Shannon McGrath Photography
Project Overview
From the moment the lift doors open at Quintessential there is an immediate sense of a friendly, collegiate professional property group, one that invests in its people and has an eye for detail. Walking through to a collaboration space – this design was part of their open and welcoming approach to their investors and partners.
A bold visual display of branding through the large neon ’Q’ captures your attention as you enter the new workplace. This is also a reference back to the newly refurbished iconic signs throughout Melbourne such as the Pelaco and Skipping Girl Vinegar neon signs.
Continuing through the workplace to the breakout area, a huge emphasis of the main café space was to enhance the culture and provide a platform for social gatherings and bonding. This space flows into the breakout area and into the acoustically sensitive meeting rooms with wonderful views onto the 19th Century gardens of the Melbourne Club.
For Quintessential Equity there was no better representation of being a part of Melbourne than what was around them; from the Melbourne gardens and plane trees on Collins Street, to the sounds from the trams on the street. These elements and vistas influenced the configuration and materiality of the office space without any need for cliché laneways or graffiti walls.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Simon Pole (Global Director, Design)
Alex Brookes (Designer)
Project Brief
The aspiration of Quintessential Equity’s new workspace was to enhance collaboration and support a flexible working environment for the entire team while demonstrating the fresh energy Quintessential Equity is bringing to the Australian property market.
Their new workplace needed to be welcoming with an industrial look and strong branding. The brief was to create an open reception area for a welcoming experience; increasing focus and collaboration spaces; and formal meeting areas with more choice and control.
Project Innovation/Need
Quintessential Equity is a diversified property group with a key business focus on regenerating buildings in the commercial and industrial sectors. Over the past few years their profile in the market has increased significantly and their team has expanded to outgrow their existing Melbourne office.
Through a two-phased occupied refurbishment, Quintessential Equity redeveloped their workplace while linking it back to the heritage of Melbourne through the design and context of their location.
Quintessential’s new workplace provides their clients with a hint of what it’s like to work with them, while the design is a subtle nod to the type of developments they typically invest in and develop.
Design Challenge
Quintessential Equity invests in B grade and C grade properties, re-positioning and rejuvenating while adding value by generating long term secure income for its investors. The key design challenge was to design a workplace which reflects the business. The question we asked ourselves at the very start was - how do we take a building located at the Paris end of Collins Street, and reflect the essence of what the business does? This was achieved through the application of brick, simplifying the materials and utilising terrazzo flooring. All of these elements are reflective of the era of buildings Quintessential Equity acquires.
Sustainability
Sustainability is an integral part of our methodology and we adopted a best practice approach for the space. Recycled materials were used where possible and access to natural light was maximised as well as the feature garden walls, linking the inside through to the outside gardens of the Melbourne Club.
Interior Design - Corporate & Commercial
This award celebrates innovative and creative building interiors, with consideration given to space creation and planning, furnishings, finishes, aesthetic presentation and functionality. Consideration also given to space allocation, traffic flow, building services, lighting, fixtures, flooring, colours, furnishings and surface finishes.
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