Nokia Music

The challenge

OD2 (On Demand Distribution) were originally an independent company (partly funded by the musician, Peter Gabriel), specialising in the development and distribution of digital music. The company was purchased by Nokia in 2006.

Claremont Group Interiors won the tender process for the design and fit-out of the company's offices across 3 floors - a process that, whilst identifying a basic requirement for the business, simultaneously allowed tendering contractors to develop additional proposals and costings based upon a more considered design process. It was this aspect in particular which proved an important factor in Claremont winning the contract.

The solution

The overall concept was to give the new Nokia Music team a funkier, more stimulating and creative place to work - an environment that would be both modern and light and provide more space than their current offices. With a commitment to delivering a fully-integrated mobile music experience, it was clear that musical influence needed to be integral to the design. Album artwork was incorporated on the glazing in the open plan areas and on the meeting rooms to add interest to the open plan floor, whilst simultaneously providing an element of privacy. On the 5th Floor (Reception floor), we also held an image competition open to the staff of Nokia Music to submit images of what music meant to them. These images were then incorporated in the manifestation and the winning image was installed on the glass doors in the lift lobby. Additional manifestation also featured images of renowned buildings relating to the Bristol music scene - e.g. St. Georges Hall, Thekla and Lokota, whilst the musical theme was continued as rooms adopted the names of influential global music artists, as suggested by the employees.

As Nokia is a global company, Claremont also brought in the idea of themed rooms to reflect the diverse nationalities of its staff and clients. Global themes and influences were incorporated throughout the scheme and were particularly recognisable in the employment of colour finishes and digital wall coverings. Global musical influence and Nokia's corporate history & identity were also notably referenced by adopting a "Scandinavian" room (Nokia being a Finnish company) and a "British" room (Nokia having a base in the UK).

Designated breakout spaces were also created to allow for relaxation and eating. This was created by installing t-point/bars on each floor, with the 6th floor expanding into a cafe breakout space with tables and soft seating, a pool table, plasma screen and games consoles. As a flexible space it would also be large enough to be used for company meetings and presentations with drop down screen and AV provision, or evening meetings and social occasions. Semi-private quiet spaces were also provided in the form of phone booths to further promote comfortable, informal communication between staff.

The result

Nokia always conduct an office satisfaction questionnaire, and the score was 93%. John Grinham, founder of OD2 said:

"I know it was a very tight timescales with little design time - but the result is excellent. The work Claremont did made a real difference."

Neil Hildreth, Real Estate Manager for Nokia in Europe was equally delighted with the results.

"We created a deliberately vague original brief because we wanted to encourage novel designs from the firms bidding for the work. Claremont's response was head and shoulders above the rest of the companies who responded and the results are there to see. What was important was that we were able to introduce new ideas that were clearly related to the business and its identity but which did not necessarily take the Nokia corporate identity completely literally. So it was a chance for us to challenge conventional standards and thinking and come up with something genuinely innovative. What is really pleasing for me is that although the project had kicked off before we got involved and so timescales were strictly limited, we still had the opportunity to create something so fresh and exciting."

See some images of the Nokia Music redesign