Relocation and growth. Case studies.

Relocation and growth.

Relocation and growth.

Relocation can be brought about by the need

to serve new markets better, gain access to

new skills, attract the best staff, lower costs,

upgrade facilities or change the perception of

your business. But the single biggest reason

by far is growth.

Whether you’ve just experienced growth or you’re anticipating it, there comes a point when ambitious businesses quite simply need more space. And if your current office can’t accommodate, it’s time to relocate. Choosing the right space requires the right information, whether it’s understanding your space needs in relation to growth, changing

perception to help to attract and retain the best staff or creating an environment that reflects your brand.

Whatever your objective, relocation can be a business game-changer. This ebook shows how we’ve helped a wide range of clients to relocate and accommodate growth successfully.

We helped legal firm Weightmans understand

its space needs in relation to growth before

narrowing its building shortlist from five to one.

This process proved that the seven figure spend

on interior design and build, not to mention the

lease itself, was a true investment in its future.

Relocation comes with cost, so it’s wise to

build growth and flex into space from day one.

Shoosmiths tackled this head on, moving 180

staff into a space which can accommodate 250

comfortably, while still avoiding huge swathes of

empty space in the meantime.

For Maxim Integrated in Bristol, its relocation

was a response to growth, leaving serviced

office space for a branded office environment of

its own.

John West had a similar plight to Maxim

Integrated, using its relocation to create an

environment befitting its brand.

Weightmans.

Liverpool.

Award-winning legal firm Weightmans embraced a relocation

project to create a welcoming client suite with a wow factor and

a great place to work for their 550+ members of staff. Claremont

impressed with an in-depth analysis of the brief and a flexible

and personal approach to the firm’s requirements, securing all

elements of the project, including EOS workplace consultancy,

design, fit-out, furniture and audio visual solutions.

The brief.

Weightmans welcomed a lease break of their existing office premises at India Buildings to evaluate their current space and requirements and decided that 100 Old Hall Street would be a much more suitable headquarters office location.

The overall aims of the office move were to create a client suite with a wow factor and a great workplace environment for new and existing staff.

The project included the ground, first and second floors, including a mezzanine above reception. It was important to maximise natural light within the new office and have a totally open plan working environment with a generous space allocation for individuals. The new office also had to be modern, progressive and functional and provide innovative storage solutions.

Claremont provided in-depth analysis of the brief, including a detailed storage audit and EOS workplace consultancy, and was able to demonstrate the best understanding of their requirements.

The scope.

Interior design Fit-out Furniture

Audio visual

The result.

Claremont delivered Cat A and B fit-out to the ground floor reception and client suite and category B works to the first and second floors. The impressive bespoke reception area includes an illuminated curved feature wall that extends up to the first floor, providing a welcoming space for visitors.

Furniture and audio visual solutions were provided for the open plan office, boardroom, eight client meeting rooms, ten quiet rooms and two seminar rooms, which can be opened up to create a larger presentation space.

With Weightmans’ new clear desk policy, Claremont implemented a storage solution that accommodated all of the firm’s requirements, providing everyone with a pedestal, storage tower and centralised rolling storage to maximise the daylight within the office.

The new office design is totally flexible to accommodate future staff changes. David Lewis, head of Weightmans’ Liverpool office said, “Claremont impressed us from the outset with their strong vision for the space and their ability to get under the needs of our particular brief. This office isn’t just about giving us a new, purpose-designed working environment; it’s also about cultural integration as we bring together our teams from India Buildings and Dury House.”

“Claremont impressed me with their people. They went beyond

what was written in the brief and their design of our new office is

bound to improve not only productivity, but the whole development

of Weightmans’ business.”

David Lewis, Office Head, Weightmans

Breakout spaces infused with brand colours reinforce the brand identity of the firm.

John West.

Liverpool.

When John West, the UK’s leading canned fish brand, relocated

its headquarters to No. 1 Mann Island in Liverpool, Claremont

delivered its vision for an office environment that conveys its

brand values and creates a truly memorable space for staff and

visitors alike.

The brief.

John West’s relocation project was driven by the desire to have a UK headquarters that befitted their well known brand and products, while also allowing for future growth plans. The business decided that No. 1 Mann Island, a new 13-storey building on Liverpool’s waterfront, was the perfect location for their new home.

John West’s brief required a high quality reception and visitor facilities in addition to the customary meeting spaces and centralised facilities. The chosen design needed to reflect John West’s brand and provide an environment that both visitors and staff find stimulating. The office move was also seen as an opportunity to re-organise teams and maximise communication between internal departments. Claremont impressed with an office design that captured all of the above.

The scope.

Fit-out Audio visual

The result.

Working with project managers Matthews & Goodman, Claremont created a contemporary and stylish office environment, that provides room for John West’s future growth. The open design encourages a one-team ‘can do’ work ethic and enables individuals to work smarter, share knowledge and stimulate positive attitudes. The new working environment ensures that staff, visitors, suppliers and VIPs understand John West’s proposition the moment they land on ‘their shores’.

Claremont put John West’s brand and values at the heart of its office design, using the corporate colour palette, iridescent finishes, soft shapes and fluid forms throughout. The design optimised the natural light and prevented obstruction to surrounding views by using glass

partitioning wherever possible. The new office includes a reception, board and meeting rooms, a tasting kitchen with a product display area, departmental offices as well as open plan office space, breakout areas and a staff kitchen.

The reception creates a strong first impression and its location allows the office environment to act as one space. Having kept the cellular spaces grouped in small sections, the space flows and takes into account the prime views. Shared resources have been scattered around the floor plate to serve each department. Central breakouts and an informal hub around the core act as meeting points and encourage departmental collaboration.

“John West was looking for the best partner to design

and deliver an iconic water-front head office that reflected

our brand and personality. With Claremont, we found that

partner. The end result is fantastic. Our staff love their new

environment and the many new ways and places to work.

We’re now proud to welcome VIP guests from our group,

suppliers and customers - something we avoided in our

prior location.”

John Glennon, Group IT Director, John West

Withers & Rogers.

Bristol.

Withers & Rogers is one of the leading intellectual property law

firms in the UK and Europe. Claremont was appointed to carry out

the phased office refurbishment works at One Redcliff Street in

Bristol. This also included the supply and installation of new office

furniture, while the client remained in occupation throughout the

duration of the project.

The brief.

Withers & Rogers wanted a contemporary workspace environment to reflect their brand and accommodate all partners in cellular office spaces. The firm needed to be able to efficiently maximise square footage to increase employee numbers, while keeping current storage levels and print areas. In a sublet space on an additional floor, the firm required a new client suite with a large boardroom area to hold up to 32 people as well as a number of smaller meeting rooms.

Claremont was appointed to undertake the works based on the ability to demonstrate a clear understanding of the brief to provide a contemporary office design while working with existing elements of the building, and to illustrate a clear programme of works, including two decants of staff in four phases over an efficient 14 week period.

The scope.

Refurbishment Furniture

The result.

Claremont’s office interior for Withers & Rogers incorporates the firm’s branding throughout. The new glass partitioning with branded coloured manifestation form the cellular offices and provide a light and more open feel to the space.

Neutral carpets with accent colour features were laid throughout and feature lighting installed. Claremont fitted out the space, re-using all existing ceiling tiles, lighting and floor boxes and supplemented these where necessary. New furniture was installed, which included Staverton desking, Orangebox seating and meeting tables from Wiesner Hager. The result of the new office design and refurbishment successfully maximises the square footage of Withers & Rogers’ workplace while providing space for future expansion. Claremont has created a light and contemporary place to work with welcoming meeting facilities for staff and their clients.

Shoosmiths.

Birmingham.

The fast pace of growth in the Birmingham office of top 40 legal

firm Shoosmiths initiated an office move to the city’s largest floor

plate— 40,000 sq ft at Two Colmore Square. Effective acoustics

management and brand expression were at the heart of this

project.

The brief.

Having outgrown their office of 11 years at 125 Colmore Row, Shoosmiths sought a new environment that would better represent the business and accommodate its growing team.

Nurton Developments’ recently refurbished office building, Two Colmore Square was deemed the perfect location, as it allows Shoosmiths to have its whole team on one, open plan floorplate for the first time.

The brief was to provide open plan working for Shoosmiths’ 180 staff and create a state-of-the-art client suite with the look and feel of a London law firm. Claremont took over the space at ‘shell and core’ status, which enabled the Cat A and Cat B fit-out to be managed simultaneously.

The scope.

Fit-out Furniture

Audio visual

“Claremont has delivered a very high quality project

which makes the space work for Shoosmiths and

reflects the quality of the accommodation in Two

Colmore Square as a whole.”

Rupert Young, Development Director, Nurton Developments

Colourful breakout spaces were created to cater for Shoosmiths’ growing team.

The result.

The new environment supports a more collaborative and open style of working and expresses Shoosmiths’ brand values and working culture, helping to differentiate the practice in a highly competitive market.

By working with a shell and core space, Claremont started with a completely blank canvas and was able to provide an office interior design and fit-out that was fully tailored to Shoosmiths’ requirements. Claremont also handled move management for the 180+ members of staff over the course of a bank holiday weekend to avoid disruption to the legal firm’s day-to-day activities.

One of the most important aspects of this project was the need to manage acoustics. This was achieved through an unprecedented combination of sound absorption and masking techniques and products to reduce noise, echo and reverberation.

Soundproofed meeting rooms with eye-catching visuals were made to reflect the firm’s working culture.

One year on…

“Shoosmiths has held a significant number of major

client presentations and meetings as well as evening

events in our superb client space, with our existing

and new clients still being wowed by this space. The

client space has become the hub of Shoosmiths, in

part because of its location in Birmingham but also

as it continues to set the standard for the business.

The staff remain happy and enjoy their working

environment and we always look to Birmingham

when planning other refurbishments and new

offices. The quality of the fit-out and design speaks

for itself.”

BDO.

Bristol.

BDO is part of the world’s fifth largest accountancy firm.

Relocation from One Victoria Street to Bridgewater House allowed

the Bristol office to accommodate future growth and gain more

effective ways of working together. An in depth understanding of

the brief, and a flexible and pro-active approach made Claremont

the successful partner for this project, which included the design,

fit-out, furniture and audio visual solutions.

The brief.

BDO used a lease expiry to explore how new office space could accommodate future growth plans and provide more effective and efficient ways of working and bringing staff closer together.

The brief requested a dramatic entrance and memorable design for staff and visitors which befit the profile of the business and its Grade A office location at Bridgewater House in Bristol, while also delivering outstanding value, sustainability and space to grow for the future. The project encompassed a reception area, client suite, breakout space, flexible workplace space with ample hot-desking and appropriate storage. Claremont’s in depth understanding of BDO’s requirements and willingness to change and adapt as the brief evolved, was instrumental in securing this turnkey project.

The scope.

Fit-out Furniture

Audio visual

The result.

When entering reception, staff and clients are welcomed by a striking design comprising wood panelling and leather furniture. The client suite contains its own kitchen and four meeting rooms, two of which can be combined to become a 60 seat theatre style auditorium.

A mixture of cream walls, black leather seating and walnut veneer give this space a business lounge look and feel. The general office is an agile working space with flexible desking and storage solutions for up to 100 members of staff. The office also holds a centrally located desk area for use by the partners.

Claremont used Staverton’s effective workbench range ZD and Orangebox’s soft furniture throughout. Staff can enjoy a break in the new bright kitchenette and breakout area. All audio visual solutions for the reception, client suite and meeting rooms were supplied by Viewpoint.

Claremont created a simple yet beautiful and flexible design for BDO in Bridgewater House and took advantage of the vast amount of natural light within the space.

This was complemented with light silver, turquoise, blue and purple shades. In addition, manifestations of Bristol landmarks have been used throughout the office to demonstrate BDO’s commitment to the city. Claremont delivered a well engineered and competitively priced project which is sustainable for the future. BDO now has a working environment that enables the company to follow its ethos of operating with flexibility and freedom, whilst also providing the tools for every member of staff to operate effectively and efficiently. The new space will also support the firm’s focus on retaining and attracting the best talent in its field.

PADI EMEA.

Bristol.

PADI is the world’s leading scuba diving training organisation

with over 135,000 PADI professionals and more than 6,000 dive

shops and resorts worldwide. The company decided to call The

Pavilions in Bristol home for its EMEA (Europe, Middle East and

Africa) headquarters. Claremont won the opportunity to fulfill the

office design, fit-out, furniture and audio visual solutions for this

relocation project.

The brief.

PADI’s previous office was located in a warehouse on St Philips’ industrial estate in Bristol. Over the years the organisation had grown in this space, resulting in a disjointed and cramped workspace that could no longer cater sufficiently for staff meetings and breakout space. PADI decided to move to a new office building, The Pavilions, which contains a communal ‘street’ that includes a newly refurbished reception, café, shop, gym and meeting rooms which are available to all tenants.

The aim of the relocation was to provide a more productive, spacious and welcoming working environment, bringing the majority of EMEA staff under one roof in Bristol. PADI was impressed with Claremont’s design and understanding of the new space in providing an office interior solution that kept within the organisation’s budget and therefore appointed Claremont for this turnkey project.

The scope.

Fit-out Furniture

Audio visual

The result.

PADI’s new office environment encompasses a large open plan office space, which includes room for expansion and a number of individual offices. The synergy between Claremont’s office design and the building’s central atrium allow the light to shine through the workplace, providing a sense of space and openness.

The highlight of the new environment is the view from the breakout area across the office, providing space for staff to relax, communicate and collaborate. The colour palette includes a variety of blues and creams with splashes of green, orange and turquoise - replicating a sea theme without being too literal. Office furniture from Teknion, Orangebox and Boss was installed to create a contemporary feel.

PADI now enjoys an office space that works cohesively and supports communication and collaboration between the different teams. The PADI team were particularly impressed with Claremont’s vision for the new space.

“Claremont’s designer became a member of the PADI

team and helped us with the change management

process. Our new office will definitely help with staff

retention and recruitment as it is a fantastic environment

in which to work. It’s now much easier for our employees

to get to know each other and everyone seems much

friendlier. Stress levels have reduced dramatically

and we’re enjoying being able to communicate and

collaborate in a more productive and effective way.”

Neil Fishburne, Vice President of Finance and Operations, PADI

Maxim Integrated.

Bristol.

Headquartered in the USA, Maxim Integrated invents highly

integrated solutions to make technology seamless. Following a

recent acquisition and rapid expansion in Bristol, the company

decided to leave its serviced office and move into its own space.

Claremont was appointed to conduct the building analysis of

two potential options. Following a competitive selection process,

Claremont won the turnkey project for Maxim’s chosen office

location at Redcliff Quay.

The brief.

Claremont conducted a building analysis to help Maxim’s team decide which of their available options would be most suitable. Located in the heart of Bristol with good access to public transport and the motorway, and providing great views over the river Avon, the waterfront office development of Redcliff Quay proved to be the most suitable and preferred choice for the company’s new home. Maxim’s brief included design, fit-out, furniture and audio visual services for the new office space, including several meeting rooms, a general lab, a test area, open plan office environment, tea points and breakout space, switch and comms rooms.

The scope.

Fit-out Furniture

Audio visual

The result.

Claremont put the emphasis on incorporating Maxim’s new branding and colours purple, orange, yellow and turquoise as features and furniture throughout the new office. Rather than a traditional reception, Claremont provided a more informal holding area with soft seating for up to eight people.

The open plan layout accommodates work stations for the 45 employees, but can be expanded to cater for a total of 54 as the company expands. The highlight of the new office is the breakout space overlooking the river, which has been designed to encourage communication and collaboration. Audio visual technology including the presentation equipment in the meeting rooms were installed. This includes a mix of projection and LCD display screens with button panel controls.

Claremont’s solution has provided Maxim with a working environment The tea point creates a strong sense of belonging to staff with vibrant colours and modern design.

that supports better internal communication and collaboration thanks to the combined effect of the open plan layout, furniture choices and new technologies.

The office puts a real focus on bringing the company’s newly revived brand to life and creates a strong sense of place and belonging, something that the company could not do in its former serviced office. Maxim’s new environment will support the business as it continues to grow.