A newsletter published for clients and friends of Smarter Interiors.
| www.smarterinteriors.com | Vol. I, Issue 2, April, 2009 |
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Perspectives Design Trends For Your Office Space Today, we are finding that business owners are far more savvy and accepting of design trends than they were in the not too distant past. Why this shift in the paradigm? The reality is that corporations are realizing that office interiors project the appropriate image for their company and in turn sets them apart from the competition in the eyes of their clients and the public. This in turn helps attract new business and increase sales. With our second issue of Smarter Times, we are please to launch a multi part series examining the trends in office and furniture design. This month, we are interviewing internationally renowned expert Greg Dunlop, IIDA, ASID, the National Director. Architecture and Design with Allsteel, Boston Massachusetts. To see more of Greg, check out his video on YouTube, "International Man of Furniture". For a glimpse into a Virginia based insurance titan, make sure you check out the article on James River Insurance Group. To find out how we helped reduce build out costs for James Limousine's new headquarters while giving them the upscale image they needed, make sure you read "Smarter Interiors Helps Drive A Luxury Transportation Company's Brand Image Cost Effectively". Please let us know your ideas and thoughts for future issues of Smarter Times. If you would like to have your company spotlighted in upcoming issues, please send us an e-mail. And make sure you share Smarter Times with your colleagues.   Greg Campbell Randy Alderson Partners, Smarter Interiors MEET DAWN WINECOFF Director of Sales Administration Meet our Director of Sales Administration, Dawn Winecoff, who keeps our Smarter Interiors Team on task, on target,  and makes sure the day to day operations run smoothly. She is extremely organized and thorough and is highly proficient in specifying and ordering products, tracking shipments, and customer invoicing. Dawn's expertise in using industry systems such as Design Express™ and Team Design™ is second to none. Her ability to establish relationships with installers all over the US and Canada, as well as friendly daily contact with a wide variety of customers, make her an invaluable asset to Smarter Interiors. "The one secret of good customer service... you will be judged by what you do, not what you say." With a degree in Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University, Dawn finds working with people and customer service the most enjoyable part of her job. She knows that good customer service is all about bringing customers back and sending them away happy.
Medically Speaking: Today's Healthcare Environment The waiting rooms of many physicians' offices are places where the public receives the first glimpse of a professional practice.  Because patients spend a great deal of time here, it is often the room that leaves a lasting impression for them. A waiting room interior design needs to feel comfortable, welcoming, and provide some entertainment or educational opportunity for the visitor. It should leave the best lasting impression on patients while creating an environment in sync with a practice's healthcare mission. Anti-bacterial or anti microbial flooring and furniture and special non-toxic paints or other materials can be used in physician waiting rooms to improve indoor air quality and decrease the amount of toxins present. Color schemes and furniture can be utilized to help soothe visitors, and relax them, and take their minds from their illnesses. Try a new interior design in the waiting room to invigorate a physician's office and practice. For smarter furniture design solutions for your practice, contact Smarter Interiors. Smarter News: Smarter Interiors Scores Huge Win at Fort Lee The Company Beats Out the Competition To Outfit 500,000 Square Feet of Office Space at Army Logistics University Smarter Interiors is starting off 2009 with a bang! The company was recently awarded the contract to install 400 workstations, 85 private offices, conference rooms, a lobby and more over 250,000 square feet at the Army Logistics University's Simulation Center, Education Center and Bunker Hall at Fort Lee. "We couldn't be more pleased," states Randy Alderson, Smarter Interiors principal. "This is a huge win and an enormous project. We believe our experience and products solution, which included a combination of the Reach product line from Allsteel and Gunlock, met the Army's exacting requirements." Installation is scheduled to begin in April. |
Case Study: Smarter Interiors Insures Guaranteed Service and Performance for James River Group Overview: Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, James River Insurance Company is a specialty insurance company that writes policies 48 states and the District of Columbia. It currently employees over 300 people and distributes its products through a number of surplus lines brokers.  When the company started in 2002 with just three employees and extremely tight budgets, finding a company who could deliver cost effective office furniture solutions that could grow with them can present a challenge. James River Insurance Company was faced with this challenge but with furniture industry veterans Randy Alderson and Greg Campbell of Smarter Interiors, they were able to find both durable, cost effective and easy to reconfigure office space solutions—and a trusted partner.
Smarter Interiors and James River Insurance: Reasons for Success
"I've always had a special place in my heart for James River because the company started with us when we were just getting started ourselves. When you start with a company and watch them grow, like James River Group has, it's a very exciting experience."
With over 20 years of experience, Alderson and Campbell knew that when budgets and space had to be maximized, recycled, remanufactured furniture would be the ideal solution. Anticipating growth, James River started with 25 workstations. In just two years, the company expanded their workforce to 150 employees and a new location and Smarter Interiors stayed right in step with their growth, adding 80 additional workstations and outfitting a conference room and multiple executive offices. By 2007, James River's continued expansion meant relocating its headquarters once again and they set their sights on multiple floors in a 200,000 square foot building under construction in Richmond's new Reynolds's Crossing. Wanting their new space to align with the company's innovative corporate culture, along with Smarter Interiors, they harnessed the interior design talents of Randy Blankenship and Evolve Architecture. "Randy and his team at Evolve were very skilled at working with us to help guide James River Group's vision for the new space," states Smarter Interior's partner Randy Alderson. "In the end, the company decided on a more open space design that mirrored their corporate culture." Results: Smarter Interiors furniture solution included 200 contemporary Reach workstations from Allsteel, which allowed the staff to maximize usable work areas by sitting and working anywhere along the surface. Marker boards were also added to capture notes from brainstorming meetings. The small conference rooms scattered throughout the space were furnished with small tables from Jasper, fully equipped to handle today's communication and networking devices. The contemporary employee café/break room was furnished with brushed aluminum café tables and seating. The executive conference room was furnished with a custom designed cherry with olive ash and burl overlays table from CCN International that was as beautiful as it was environmentally sound. Smarter Interiors Helps Drive Luxury Transportation Company's Brand Image Cost Effectively  The Challenge: Creating an open, inviting environment for customers and employees while expressing the company's brand
James Limousine Service is one of Richmond Virginia's oldest and largest luxury ground transportation companies, with a growing staff and a fleet of 22 vehicles ranging from Town Cars and stretch limousines to Executive SUVs, min-vans and motor coaches.
"Part of creating the new brand image for my company was to find a new location that would provide an open, inviting environment for our clients and employees and accommodate our greatly expanded fleet. Smarter Interiors worked with us closely to create the vision of what our new space could be and then they made it a reality’Äîplus saving us build out costs.
They delivered everything they promised and more—on time, on budget." When the company's owner, Randy Allen, purchased the business in 2007, he knew that he needed to find a new location that would match the company's luxury brand image, accommodate the expanding fleet and business growth. A 27,000 square foot art deco building built on The Boulevard in Richmond fit the bill. While the 1947 building was undergoing a major renovation, Allen knew they needed a look that would match their aesthetic standards, while at the same time accommodate his budget and future expansion. Randy Allen, Owner James Limousine Smarter Interiors: Bringing an Upscale Look For Less With decades of experience and a broad range of resources, the Smarter Interiors Team worked with James Limousine to understand their needs for the new facility. Of special importance was helping the owner furnish his new space as cost efficiently as possible while aligning with the company's luxury brand image. Smarter partner Greg Campbell and his design team came up with a winning solution of recycled, refurbished and new furniture that met all expectations and closely matched the new corporate blue, black and gray brand identity. Detailed for Success Smarter Interiors was able to provide a solution that allowed Allen to configure and reconfigure his space as his needs without incurring costly remodeling charges. "Our solution included Allsteel and Herman Miller recycled and refurbished work stations for the James Limousine office staff and one executive work station for owner, Randy Allen---all recovered and repainted to look like new at a much lower cost," states Campbell. Additionally, Smarter Interiors found a moveable, glass, wood and fabric tiled wall to give Allen privacy and a 12- foot conference room table surrounded by moveable fabric panels. As a good chair is arguably the most essential office element, new, fully adjustable chairs were provided for the entire staff, customers and the conference room—all backed with a lifetime warranty. "With the flexibility and material versatility of our products and design solutions, we were able to bring James Limousine's corporate vision to life," concludes Campbell. How Trends in Office Design Will Affect How You Use Space THE NEW WORK MODEL: MANAGING MULTIPLE GENERATIONS IN THE WORKPLACE (Editors note. This begins a five-part series looking at trends in the workplace and they will mean to your business. We are interviewing international design expert Greg Dunlop, IIDA, ASID, National Manager, Architecture and Design, for Allsteel )  Q. in today's workplace and more so in tomorrow's, there are multiple generations working side by side. What do the differences and expectations of each of these groups mean to the workplace? Greg Dunlop: There are four generations in today's workplace and they are defined as Traditionals, born between 1928 and 1944; Baby Boomers, which are those born between 1945 and 1964; Generation X, which are people born between 1965 and 1979; and Generation Y, the oldest of which began entering the workforce as college grads in 2001. Each of these groups can have dramatically different expectations for the workplace: what they want from their employers, how they want to structure their days, how they view job loyalty and employee hierarchy—even the kinds of furnishings and amenities they expect in the work environment and the office at large. Traditionals and Boomer workers expect hard work, loyalty, and playing by the rules to result in promotions, pensions, and a life of leisure sometime down the road. Conversely, those in their 20s and 30s may think that talent trumps experience, hierarchy is irrelevant, and there are no rules other than making a path that is uniquely their own. The challenge will be to create workplaces that make each group feel valued and rewarded and encourage them to reach their highest levels of performance. Q. Changes in the economy and in demographics trends are creating one of the most highly diverse workforces ever. Could we talk for a moment about the characteristics of each group? GD: Baby Boomers still predominate in the workplace and will continue to do so in the near future. Those over 65 are finding that they can and want to work longer. In fact, the growth rate of the 55 and older group is projected to be 4.1 percent through 2014. This age group has tended to see success at work as synonymous with success in life. Long hours, moving up the corporate ladder, being loyal to your employer—all resulted in visible, measurable rewards: a bigger, more private office, dedicated administrative support and increased compensation. Entitlements that confer a degree of status such as preferred parking spaces, exterior windows, and materials and furnishing that speak to tradition and prestige. By contrast, generations X and Y are turning away from the idea that your job is synonymous with who you are, and are often looking for a different, more nuanced approach to work, where the lines are often more blurred, professional life is integrated with private life and both support goals that are tangible, personal, and individualistic. The term "work/life balance" was coined with these employees. Generally, Gen X tends to shy away from values and ideals of their parents and embrace more "lifestyle" brands that express what they perceive as a more individualized, meaningful sense of self. Often stereotyped as self centered, latte drinking, cell-pone addicted, individuals, Gen X in reality values advances in technology, education, cultural diversity, and the pursuit of self improvement. In work they want flexible hours and the ability to express themselves in work and the work environment. They see the work environment as a direct reflection of how much their employer's value them. Gen Y takes several of these trends to the next level. This generation has never known a world without technology, see celebrity as a logical path to success and have little faith in status quo, public figures or institutions from government and Wall Street to corporations. They are entrepreneurial and see themselves and everyone else as fundamentally equal and they want to work for organizations that are fun, friendly, and concerned about social and environmental impacts as well as the financial bottom line. Q. Now that you have defined the different values and expectations that each generation brings to the workplace, would you discuss what things these generations may find important? GD: Interestingly, Traditionals like the "Community Center" concept developed during the Dot.com era. It is reminiscent of the village green and the places where people come together to interact and meet each other. Baby Boomers tend to place higher importance on workstation size, lighting, temperature and sufficient storage while younger counterparts want more flexibility and autonomy for where they work and on-site amenities and space dedicated to group activities, both for work and socializing. According to the latest studies, the increased demand for work/life balance is one of the top 10 trends (rated #4) and predicted to have the greatest influence on the workplace in the next decade. In the next issue, we will continue our interview with Greg Dunlop, ASID, IIDA, as we discuss generational ways of working. Make sure you stay tuned for this.
Smarter Choices The Right Office Furniture Helps Set the Tone for Your Company When selecting office furniture, there is more at stake than just selecting colors and styles. Office furniture, in concert with a well-designed space, supports the brand and image your company is trying to present. "Understanding the kind of work environment and image you want to create along with developing a budget is the first step," says Brandi Friday, interior designer and account executive with Smarter Interiors. "If it is a significant purchase for your company, we often work in tandem with an architecture firm to help to determine the requirements for your office space and furniture. The requirements are usually price, style, durability, design and quality."
However, not all businesses select new office furniture. Used or "recycled" office furniture can be the right choice because of the significant savings. "We sell about 20 percent used office furniture," says Greg Campbell, Smarter Interiors' partner." The recycled furniture is furbished, repainted and recovered so it looks new, but can cost half as much. Plus, with a global environmental consciousness, recycling can be the right choice. " The bottom line is that the goal of interior design in work environments is to foster the productivity of your employees and the profitability of your business. Today's business owners are much more savvy and accepting of design trends that will attract new business and increase sales. |
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