Modo Headoffice
Tenant Improvements
Modo the Car Coop's head office is reimagined as a 'client-facing' reception and flexible office area that emphasizes their commitment to community and car-sharing.
Located in a heritage building in downtown Vancouver, Modo wished to reinvent their generic office space into an office that promoted their brand presence, added functional staff spaces, increased privacy in their call centre, and provided a client facing reception area for visiting co-op members. '
We worked in collaboration with Becoming Design Office to redesign 3000sf of floor area, including custom furniture, collaborative work spaces, lunch booths, storage and hot desk spaces. The scheme was strongly connected to 'driving,' from the choice of lighting that references car headlights, to the use of recycled car tire surfaces on the boardroom table.
With a constrained budget, we developed a plywood peg system that allowed for a strong material presence to unify the look and feel of each space, while referencing Modo's logo; the red circle.
A custom-designed peg board system using two sizes of pegs provides flexibility in the display walls and a functional system for shelving and hooks throughout the office.
Custom Designed furniture gently references car design, from the lines used in the reception desk, to the custom embroidery in the seating area.
A challenge associated with this project was installation; the office was not able to suspend operations, so every element was carefully designed to be installed quickly and easily, then made offsite and installed over the course of a weekend. The project was further constrained by the site conditions of a busy, pedestrian focused downtown location and an early 1900's building without a freight elevator.
The call centre is managed through hot-desking, where staff change their working location with every shift. We designed a system of felt accessories that staff could bring from one station to the next, providing them with a sense of ownership while at the office. Each staff member had their own locker to store items in between shifts.
The Reception area was designed to reflect the constant shifting and changing landscape of car-sharing, with a focus on member profiles. We designed this space to be easily updated to reflect future brand initiatives, creating a 'gallery' that could be curated by the marketing team on an ongoing basis.
