Elsley sits within a diverse and vibrant community of media and creative industries at the heart of Fitzrovia. The stunning 1930s building fronts onto Great Titchfield Street and has been significantly redesigned and refurbished over several years. Today, light filled floors, roof terraces, distinctive detail and contemporary finishes recall the building’s art deco past.
At the end of 2016, we started exploring a change of use for the lower ground and ground floor showroom to unlock further value. Having stripped out the space we engaged with the architect practice HKS, who needed 11,000 sq. ft. of office space in Fitzrovia for their new bespoke headquarters and wanted to work with an established developer. As a forward-looking architect, focussed on sustainability, health and wellbeing, an integral part of their brief was a WELL Building Standard certification and a BREEAM Excellent rating for their fit-out.
Through early engagement and collaboration, we created a more agile, flexible space with sustainability and wellbeing designed in from the outset. New openings in walls and between the floors have introduced light and connectivity. Previously underutilised pavement vaults have been reclaimed to provide showers, lockers, a cycle store and WCs, without compromising the existing office areas. The original fine metal windows have also been painstakingly restored with micro double glazed units greatly improving their thermal performance.
The end result is a bright, contemporary office space that promotes a healthier, sustainable working environment, sympathetically positioned within the authentic fabric of the building.
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"One of the most satisfying parts of my job is taking the bare bones of a building, imagining its potential and then designing and managing the process to see that potential become a reality. When you undertake that journey in partnership with the end user, working together to produce an outstanding new headquarters for their business, it is even more rewarding."
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"It was a great experience for us to partner with a landlord who shares our values of good design, collaboration and innovation. Through those values, we have created a new home that is ‘Well’ standard accredited and reflects the nature of our business and we are rightly proud of it."