The furniture you choose for your office has more roles to fill than you might think.
It provides functional comfort, supporting the lower backs, shoulders and necks of employees and clients through the day’s tasks and meetings.
It dresses your space, working in harmony with your interior design scheme, bringing pops of brand colour and adding a finishing touch to your workspace vision.
It offers convenience through its storage, collaboration through its configuration and productivity through its quality.
And it’s a key factor in creating that all-important first impression for clients, partners and new staff alike.
So what do you need to consider when choosing furniture for your workplace?
Furnishing commercial spaces is one of our core services, so we asked our expert team for their best tips…
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Create the right first impression
We humans are fickle creatures. Our brains are wired to form judgments of people, places and spaces in seconds, something we can blame on instincts we forged in prehistoric times.
So first, we must appease the inner cavepeople inside our clients, partners and staff with stylish, considered interior design and carefully curated furniture that work together to create the positive perception your business needs.
Need some expert guidance? Speak to our specialist team
For the right first impression, begin with how you brand your space.
You want to make it unmistakably yours from the moment you enter (find more on this here), so make sure all the visual markers you need are in place - from logos and other monikers to your brand colour palette.
Then, take some time to consider how your brand is perceived by others.
You want to make sure there are no mixed messages between what you say your business believes in, and what people actually experience when they visit you.
For example - if you emphasise your team’s collaborative strength, but your office isn’t configured to facilitate togetherness and teamwork, then you’re missing the mark.
Finally, remember that the most important ambassadors of your first impression are your staff.
Take their views into account on what they need to make their working lives smoother and more comfortable, and you’ll gain their crucial input to that all-important first impression.
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Prioritise comfort and quality
As we discussed above, the furniture you choose for your office needs to fulfil multiple roles, from the practical to the aesthetic.
In practical terms, fundamental items like office desks, chairs and seating areas will withstand a large amount of wear and tear through their lifetimes.
In visual terms, they need to do that and stay looking good, for as long as possible.
And, for happy, healthy employees and delighted clients, they need to do both while offering excellent ergonomic support and lush, plush comfort.
Good quality furnishings will quickly earn their keep, so it’s better to think of your furnishings as a business investment than to opt for a budget fix that, unable to stand up to heavy use, will need replacing much more frequently.
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Add a touch of the extraordinary
A popular home interiors trick of designers is to introduce one stand-out piece into a scheme to create a focal and discussion point.
From stunning statement lighting (see above) to bespoke furniture, this works equally well in a commercial setting - the beauty being that you can go as large or small as you like, based on your available space and budget.
A brilliant example of an extraordinary item in a workplace setting is the incredible central bar we created for Charlton Morris.
Situated on the top floor of their Leeds offices, the industrial-style bar was custom-built by our skilled team to fit the space perfectly, and has already proved a huge hit with staff and clients alike!
Or how about the ultimate in statement biophilia, with a green space indoors?
At Palm Capital, we planted a tree in the heart of the reception space, encircled by a contemporary timber seating area.
Not only does this create an immediate talking point, it also works alongside the other biophilic features which resonate throughout the interior’s design to bring the many benefits of office greenery to this fabulous workplace.
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Consider bespoke
From having something truly unique to your business to the need to maximise a tight floorplan or work within the restraints of your building, there are lots of reasons why you might consider bespoke furniture for your office space.
In period properties, for example, you might be constrained in the extent of work you can undertake.
Choosing custom-crafted furniture can allow you to break up a space effectively without impacting on the fabric of the building, allowing your staff to embrace task-based working across a range of cleverly designed zones.
One example of this can be seen at Shift Commerce (above), where we designed and built a number of bespoke pieces.
From a louvred, double-sided, AV-fitted meeting space to a choice of privacy booths, each piece was created to simply drop into this beautiful period property.
Or how about something really impressive for the boardroom?
At IncSpaces, our talented craftspeople built this stunning AV wall, inset with feature lighting - a fantastic focal point that bursts with personality and instantly sets the right tone for any important meeting
DesignTonic X The Property Buying Company
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Keep it fun!
Last, but certainly not least, it shouldn’t be all work and no play!
Fun elements are such an important part of designing an office interior that truly reflects a company’s culture, bringing happiness to staff through their working days (which in turn boosts productivity and retention) and creating a lasting positive impression for clients and other visitors.
From well-planned breakout spaces and de-stress zones to personality-filled pops of colour, green walls, playful artworks and cheeky messaging (if it fits with your brand), don’t forget to add those finishing touches that bring personality and joy to your office.
