GOODBABY INTERNATIONAL SHANGHAI HQ

In 2015 MUDI participated to the interior design international competition launched by the well-known juvenile products company Goodbaby International (Haohaizi) for their new Headquarters office located at the 10th and 11th floor of Shanghai Hongqiao Sky SOHO designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.The iconic architecture of the building certainly affects the interior space and enhances the representative role as the headquarters of the company.

The design brief asks for a very ambitious space program with an employees growth rate of 54% over the following two years. Therefore, strictly following the given brief requirements would lead to a highly dense floor plan layout, overcrowded with work-stations and without any spatial quality. It’s common knowledge nowadays that a healthy work environment is paramount for the well-being of the workers, including seemingly harmless professions as white-collar jobs. Studies show that 55% of employees are concerned by stress in the workplace and 20% of the causes of such stress are related to a bad work environment. By simply adopting few design improvements such as a flexible, dynamic and spacious layout in a bright and colorful office space, is possible to increase workers productivity by 20%.

The office space accessible by two independent entrances which separate the workers and visitors flows avoiding any overlaps. The two sets of elevators don’t reach the eleventh floor, therefore the two floors are internally connected by two staircases linking the departments.

A clear functional distribution divides the space to ease the work flows within the different departments and separates private and public areas. An array of public and private areas is also distributed within the work space at both tenth and eleventh floor.

Buffer areas that don’t necessarily require natural light are located along to the central core spine of the building in order to free more space along the sides. The spacious main lobby welcomes VIP’s and visitors to a bright and colorful waiting area; a grand spiral staircase next to a vertical green wall leads to the administration and private meeting areas at eleventh floor.

The materials for the main lobby are chosen following a specific design philosophy. Here, visitors and clients are welcomed in a bright and warm environment where the red color of furniture and walls enhances the company identity and the lush green of the living wall reflects the safe, healthy and sustainable nature of the company’s products.

From the main lobby visitors reach the large exhibition space where the latest company products are exposed. Visited tours can be arranged for visitors and VIP’s and guided by the reception staff.

Located at the eleventh floor in the most prominent area of the building, the administration and CEO’s private rooms area all facing south and have the best views. Reached by the grand spiral staircase from the main lobby, the management team’s luxurious offices will host private meetings with clients and VIP’s.

Several breakdown areas puncture the office space, allowing the possibility of resting and relaxing, but also working at a different work-station alternative the regular desk.

Our aim is to create a bright, open and welcoming space experience for both customers and workers that could reflect the already established brand’s values. The office layout is efficient and the functional distribution is clear; work-stations are organized comfortably and generous break-out areas are seamlessly distributed along the main wings. Overall, we managed to fulfill all the brief’s requirements without sacrificing the space quality and actually overachieving the amount of some of the facilities such as the work-stations and the restrooms.