Why These May be the Best Office Furniture Trends Ever

Best Office Furniture Trends Stylex Trim Table

Professional offices are experiencing lasting changes after Covid shutdowns scattered employees who stayed connected through online meetings and other forms of technology. The office functioned outside the walls of the corporate headquarters. Hybrid work arrangements have become normal for many with the corporate office taking on a new role as a hub.  With all these significant work style changes, let’s examine the best office furniture trends, now not just for the main office but also for the home.

Companies in Southern California are adjusting well. In Culver City, Creator IQ allows employees to balance remote work with the main office being a supportive location where there are special times to come in and focus. Offices need to re-think spaces and create a desired destination spot instead of just being a place where people are told to work.

Is there an upside? Yes.

Companies are discovering the best office furniture trends ever. These provide comfort, allow for collaboration, and provide flexibility with hybrid work schedules.

Read on to get ideas to refresh your office, furnish for greater productivity, and give your team an inviting reason to be in the office.

Best Office Furniture Trends: Dynamic Office Spaces

A popular office furniture trend is allowing for inter-office movement.

Photo: Friant System 2 Workstations

Your team may begin at their workstations but decide to move to a more informal area with lounge seating or even the breakroom where they can work on their laptops or take personal calls. Formal conference rooms are giving way to informal group spaces.

Offices can certainly have defined space, but with open layouts and hybrid work arrangements, they’ve become dynamic. Support the changes using the best office furniture.

Best Office Furniture Trends: Collaborative Furniture

Photo: DeskMakers TeamWorx Open Plan Benching

Open office layouts were meant to spur collaboration, but the effort was met with mixed reviews. People need privacy, too.

Photo: OFS Staks Workstations

Cubicles that were seen as dull and gray were redesigned for small group sharing and privacy. One of the best office furniture trends is the ability to have collaboration while at the same time not disturbing others who are working.

Photo: OFS Aptos Open Plan Benching

Bench seating solutions can bring people together for a few hours—while encouraging movement to other areas as needed. Encourage an ebb and flow of work communication.

Resimercial: The Personable Yet Professional Office

Make the office a home away from home. This has been one of the best office furniture trends taking place for the past few years, even before the Covid shutdown occurred.

Resimercial simply combines the look and feel of residential spaces with the durability and professionalism of commercial spaces.

Why is this popular?

Our culture has become more informal and relational while offices are less hierarchical than ever. Employees feel comfortable in a work environment where they can sip coffee while sitting on furniture that have the touches of home, including the fabrics.

Interiors to Brand Your Company

Resimercial isn’t the only design option, though. It’s possible to brand your interior in a way that reflects your company’s overall brand image and design. The promise made to customers on the outside can be made to employees on the inside.

2010 Office has an Inspirations page where you can easily see some of the best office furniture trends in use.

Photo: ODS Lift Height Adjustable Workstations

A minimalist approach is taken with the Scandinavian office while open offices can have a modern industrial look and feel.

Offices in Southern California and nationally make use of local flavors. In Pittsburgh, Google’s office design made a splash when it set up shop more than a decade ago in the 100-year-old Nabisco building. Designers kept some of the original brick, installed industrial-looking catwalks, and had a large picture of the Smithfield Street bridge.

Touchdown: Creating Office Spaces for a Breather

With people coming and going, offices need touchdown spaces. This is another trend where individuals can step aside from noise and distractions to focus or take a break.

Photo: Rouillard Blok Lounge Seating

Small groups of employees who want a meeting away from the formal conference room can use modular lounge furniture to accommodate just a few people, or if need be, make room for a larger group. Make use of moveable whiteboards for charting.

Remote workers stopping in for meetings can use touchdown spaces to work or collaborate while waiting for the official meeting to begin.

Integrated Technology

There’s no escaping our connected worlds and the rapid flow of information. Offices with hybrid schedules and remote workers are making greater use of video conferencing than ever before.

Set aside specific spaces like the OFS Obeya Architectural Structures that are tastefully designed and house necessary technology.

Natural Light and Ergonomic Accessories

Another trend isn’t furniture but it promotes well-being. Maximizing the amount of natural light in a space is proven to be an effective way to boost morale and aid in promoting a healthy sleep cycle for employees.

Use ergonomic lighting accessories to focus the right amount of light at workstations and reduce problems associated with eye strain.

Home Office Furniture Trends

Equipping the home office is another of the best office furnishing trends and has become more important than ever. Some remote workers are full-time while others split time between the corporate office and home office.

Work-from-home furnishings include items that corporate headquarters will have. Sit-to-stand desks and ergonomic chairs can be as useful in a remote office as they are in the home office.

Make sure printers are accessible but not in the way and that the space stays uncluttered with the proper amount of storage.

Stay Up to Date on Best Office Furniture Trends and Office Furnishings

Rely on the team at 2010 Office Furniture to keep you up to date with the best office furniture trends and to plan your office space so you use it well. 2010 Office staff have more than 50 years of combined experience and have served clients who are counted among Southern California’s most recognizable corporations, centers of higher education, and small businesses.

Contact them with your specific project needs and questions.

Read Also: NeoCon 2022 Trends: The Future of Office Furniture
Main Photo: Stylex Trim Table
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: DeskMakers, Friant, ODS, OFS, Rouillard & Stylex

Equipping the Flexible Office for Maximum Productivity and Professional Experience

Flexible Office 9to5 Seating Aria Chairs

With COVID, flexible office work arrangements are more popular than ever. Digital technology has kept employees so connected for the past couple of decades that many need reminders to unplug during vacations and long weekends.

Going through the COVID-19 shutdown made remote working mandatory and now companies are reimagining how doing tasks in remote locations can remain compatible with working in a corporate office.

Making the office a destination spot is a strategy to create a positive office experience that will draw workers back is a trending strategy. But what are you bringing them back to?

Let’s look at flexible office spaces and their use as a competitive advantage.

Flexible Office for Deliberate Flexibility

Corporate offices today are adjusting their defined work areas. It’s not just a matter of placing the names of departments on different doors like accounting, marketing, or production. Instead, they’re doing what CBRE in their 30,000 square foot El Segundo office is doing: designing spaces as lounges, single-person work pods, and equipping outdoor areas with wi-fi, comfortable seating, and shade umbrellas.

In 2018, community design firm Stantec unveiled a re-design of its 60,000-square foot space in Irvine. It’s a diverse company of scientists, architects, and project managers. They have “Four non-traditional collaborative spaces take the shape of breakout rooms, lounges, and hubs.”

A training room has space for 50 people and a retractable wall that can separate the room into two if needed.

Personal interaction is planned and designed into the floor plan with a collaboration café that’s “purposefully located where office circulation paths meet to foster quick planning sessions and conversations.”

A central lounge with reclaimed barn wood paneling, a coffee bar, computer stations, television screens, and contemporary lounge furnishings, serves as the flexible office’s central meeting place and social focal point.


Photo: ERG International Tivoli Lounge

Flexible Office Productivity

Planning office spaces for flexibility that leads to greater productivity is important because different people have different ways in which they work best. Just like learning. Some people learn better with a hands-on approach while others may be more visual or more auditory.

Some work best from home and 2010 Office Furniture understands this so we equip the remote workers, too, with work-from-home flexible office suites and accessories.

Creating a flexible office space that allows your team to feel comfortable respects their individual needs while bringing them together in a unified mission of meeting corporate goals.


Photo: SitOnIt Seating Glove Chairs

Flexible office spaces let employees work in areas that suit them best.

Physical Flexibility

There’s another type of office flexibility that’s important for a person’s overall wellness. Sitting for long periods of time strains the elbows, wrists, knees, and lower back. If the height of a monitor or desk isn’t right then posture is off and sitting for long stretches is a gradual strain on the entire body.

Promote physical flexibility with quality ergonomic chairs and height-adjustable desks.


Photo: DeskMakers Hover Workstations

Common Needs

A headline from an agency recruiting remote workers in Los Angeles proclaimed on its website, Productivity doesn’t need an office.

That’s not 100% accurate.


Photo: DARRAN Chameleon Workspace

Everyone has different needs for a flexible office. Some people work best at one specific workstation with occasional meetings or chats in lounge areas.


Photo: OFS Tangent Lounge

Others prefer remote work over full-time in-office work.

However, there are common needs that everyone has despite personal preferences:

  • Social interactions
  • Natural lighting
  • Pleasing environment

Even the most ardent remote worker is best served with in-person meetings and not just all-virtual gatherings, all the time. We like interacting with others or we begin to feel alone, even if we’re digitally connected.

We have an abundant amount of sunshine in Southern California, so make sure your team has plenty of light filtering in. Sunshine boosts morale in the office and helps people maintain a circadian rhythm so they sleep well at night.

Colors matter, too. You don’t need bold, splashy colors in every room, but you also don’t want dull and drab. Plenty of cubicle solutions use attractive fabrics and come in easy-to-configure arrangements so you can plan for both privacy and personal conversations.

The 2010 Office Inspiration page gives options that show you how today’s flexible office can make the best use of color and space to reflect your brand and show your employees that you have their needs in mind.

Plan and design a space for minimalists or create a resimercial space that reflects both personal lives and professional pursuits.


Photo: Allermuir Mozaik Lounge Seating

The good news is you don’t have to sacrifice quality when designing a flexible office space. An array of durable options exists to help you get the most from your workspaces so your team is as productive as possible.

Find Flexible Office Solutions that Work Best

Turn to 2010 Office as your solution for space planning and office furnishings that help you create the modern flexible office. The team has more than 50 years of experience working with clients who rank among Southern California’s most distinguished corporations, universities, and small businesses.

Contact them with your potential needs.

Read Also: Your Guide to Office Feng Shui for the Best Office Environment
Main Photo: 9to5 Seating Aria Chairs
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: 9to5 Seating, Allermuir, DARRAN, DeskMakers, ERG International, OFS & SitOnIt Seating 

The Benefits of Touchdown Spaces in Office Space Planning and Design

Touchdown Spaces Global+ River Lounge

Your employees are more than workers—they’re consumers of the office experience you provide.  And for them in today’s professional climate, touchdown spaces have never been more important than now.  Let’s break it down.

Here are two factors impacting your office:

  • Hybrid work arrangements
  • Personalities who seem to have conflicting needs

Many companies in Southern California allow for a hybrid model of remote work where employees plan to work in the office a few days per week.

A range of different personalities expects the office to meet their needs like focused privacy and open meeting areas. Differing expectations can co-exist without competing against each other.

How do you make your office space a positive destination?

Plan flexible areas called touchdown spaces and use furnishings that support diverse needs and desires.


Photo: Global Drift Table

What are Touchdown Spaces?

Touchdown spaces are informal spaces where you can settle alone with a laptop, pad of paper, or smartphone. Or, where you can collaborate in a small group setting.

Plan a touchdown space that comes with fast internet access where your team can quickly answer emails, have a virtual meeting, or check in face-to-face before moving elsewhere to complete tasks.

The goal is to help your employees handle their tasks in a supportive and comfortable environment.

Benefits of Touchdown Spaces

Companies that depend on knowledgeable workers can benefit greatly from touchdown spaces.

Collaboration is needed to troubleshoot issues related to production and client management, while individual focus is essential for uninterrupted stretches to deliver actionable items. Touchdown spaces maximize the use of office space and give employees the opportunity to be as productive as possible.

In a hybrid work environment, defined space is as necessary as ever. In pre-Covid days prior to 2020, companies often assigned one desk or workstation per employee. You were assigned a seat and that was the end of the matter.

Special accommodations were made for employees who wanted flexibility and shared tasks. Employee A came in 15 to 20 hours a week to a specific workstation and shared it with Employee B who worked on the same task.

Now, people are coming and going on different days of the week, but they still expect defined spaces.

Touchdown spaces are community areas where you know you can either take a private phone call or meet with co-workers in an uninterrupted huddle.

Touchdown Spaces Encore Chirp Lounge Seating

Photo: Encore Chirp Lounge Seating

Practices and Furnishings that Support Space Needs

An article in the LA Business Journal states that the end goal for the office is a place to “provide an experience–much like hotels, restaurants, and shopping centers do–that not only helps in recruitment of new hires but also entices employees to gather and collaborate there.”

Here’s a key first step in providing positive touchdown spaces.

Managing the flow of employees who come in and out at different times. Develop an app that allows workers to reserve workstations, specific conference rooms, video conferencing rooms, or even lounge areas.

Take the next step and provide furnishings that work well for a flexible office touchdown space like:


Photo: Snowsound PLI Acoustic Panels

Plan to Furnish Spaces Wisely

In a flexible office setting, you need to direct sound and activity to keep group spaces separated from private spaces.

How does furniture help?

Acoustic furniture absorbs sound waves from distracting conversations, ringing phones, and other noises.

Look at the 2010 Furniture inspirational web page, Modern Conference Room. There’s an example of a small meeting area that doesn’t have a door. A clear architectural wall encloses one side, and the opposite side has a wall for writing and diagramming. An attractive covering encloses the top.


Photo: Trendy Volo Wall

Check the 2010 Office Furniture Inspiration page to get ideas for workstations and meeting areas and how they look in various office settings and designs.


Photo: Allermuir Haven Lounge Seating

Many lounge seating options are designed with privacy in mind, like the Allermuir Haven Lounge Seating where one person could stretch out and concentrate or two people could meet beneath the high backs.


Photo: ERG International Laguna Lounge Seating fr Touchdown Spaces

A similar look is available in the ERG International Laguna Lounge Seating arrangement. It has many customizable options using privacy panels and is highly functional in common areas like cafes and lobbies.

Touchdown Space Example

In the South Bay, commercial real estate brand CBRE opened a 30,000-square-foot office this summer and equipped it with 14 different types of workspaces because people work in different ways on different projects.

The El Segundo location is using a concept called neurodiversity.

They range from what the LA Business Journal describes as “acoustically enclosed, single-person focus pods for individual work to huddle rooms for small teams” to “residential-style living rooms for casual meetings, a library for quiet work, and an outdoor patio equipped with WiFi, seating and shade umbrellas.”

Spaces are equipped with interactive whiteboards and some project rooms have large horseshoe couches and large video screens.  These make for good touchdown spaces.


Photo: National Bio Conference Media Table

Plenty of options exist to design an office of any size that’s flexible and satisfies the users.

Get Pro Help on Touchdown Spaces

Contact 2010 Office Furniture and get input for your space planning and furnishing needs to create touchdown spaces or any office environment that’s right for your company.

The team at 2010 Office has a combined half-century of planning spaces and sourcing furniture for Southern California’s most distinguished companies, universities, and small businesses.

Share your questions and projects to get trustworthy advice.

Read Also: Using Resimercial Office Design as an Employee Retention Strategy
Main Photo: Global River+ Lounge Seating
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: Allermuir, Encore, ERG International, Global, National, Snowsound & Trendway

Designing for Comfort and Employee Well-Being with the Resimercial Office Trend

Resimercial Office Trend HON Westhill Lounge

Lines between our personal and professional lives have blurred with instant communication and cloud storage. Kids and colleagues can get in touch as needed. There are boundaries, of course. But the 2020 stay-at-home orders showed that many companies found a way to keep operating with nearly all of their employees at home.  Enter the Resimercial office trend.

Now that the focus is once again on the corporate setting, the Resimercial office trend is more popular than ever.

Create an inviting office where home-style comforts are mixed with commercial durability. The benefits of resimercial design include increased comfort with a boost in productivity.


Photo: Snowsound Perline Acoustic Panel

Why can’t a corporate office have the needed functionality plus personality?

This type of office bridges the settings of home and work—while being flexible enough to incorporate the best of both residential and commercial.

A well-planned resimercial office space following the resimercial office trend will have the furnishings that are needed with intangible elements that can make your office a welcome destination.  The addition of biophilic design (bringing elements of nature indoors) also is a huge benefits as it helps improve overall office wellbeing and positivity.

Resimercial Office Trend: Attitude and Atmosphere

Use as many large windows as possible to get rid of stuffy feelings inside. Southern California has a diverse landscape of beaches and mountains, plenty of sunshine, and some of the best weather in the U.S.

Office settings that incorporate natural elements create a pleasant atmosphere—especially when maximizing natural light and using colors that represent the surrounding environment.

Offices in Pasadena or Monrovia can use as much window space possible to capture the red and purple hues of the afternoon sun on the San Gabriel Mountains.

In Playa Vista or Culver City, an office can make use of ocean scenes and equip an outdoor space to experience the ocean breezes.

Use green on your walls strategically with the Nevins Bio Canvas Frame. Bark, moss, and stone panels are tastefully arranged in this no-maintenance option.

These touches make an office personable while getting rid of a sterile feeling.

Work is demanding, but these familiar connections can reduce stress and show employees that they don’t have to be separated from the soothing elements of the world.

Resimercial Office Trend: Furnishings and Fabrics

Office spaces that are planned effectively have a clear purpose. Visit 2010 Office Furniture’s resimercial office trend page to stir your own creativity.

Don’t wall people off from each other. Use furnishings that allow for a flow of open interaction yet provide private spaces. Placement, look, and feel are factors that the team at 2010 Office Furniture considers when assisting clients in planning their spaces.


Photo: Maverick Apex Desk Workstations

You’ve got many choices ranging from the inventive DARRAN Chameleon Workspace to the Maverick Apex Open Plan Desking and the Global Zira Desking Workstation.


Photo: Darran Chameleon Workspace

Each solution is unique with finishes that look pleasant, has comfortable seating, and can be incorporated into a soft, office design.

In a home office, you should have a dedicated workspace, but you’re free to move around and work on the sofa or at the kitchen table. Design that same freedom into your office setting.

Make your breakroom personally stylish using items like the Arcadia Betwixt Table.


Photo: Arcadia Betwixt Table

Consider the DARRAN Honey Lounge Seating. It’s a seating solution that incorporates nature, provides ergonomic comfort, and has been proven to help reduce stress, bolster productivity and enhance well-being.


Photo: Darran Honey Lounge

Storage space is important in both the residential and commercial worlds. Step away from gray metal with the OFS Hitch Shelf and Storage, a unique, modular storage system available in a range of wood veneer finishes.

Resimercial design has a range of ergonomic benefits when quality furnishings are used.

Expect durability. Commercial grade furniture is meant for heavy use, several hours a day, while a sofa in your home is meant for much lighter use. You can still have comfort with quality seating and workspaces.

People and Productivity

The Resimercial office trend isn’t just about furnishings. It’s about letting your employees work in comfort while maintaining high levels of productivity.

Promote well-being.

Quality office chairs are a good place to begin.

The OFS Pret Chair is the type of ergonomic seating solution that’s pleasant to look at while supporting an individual’s body weight and shape.


Photo: HON Solve Chair

Lighting matters, too. Forget big and bulky lamps. Sleek is in for corporate settings and home offices. The Workrite Fundamentals 2 Desktop Light focuses light as needed without getting in the way. It’s one of many ergonomic lighting options.

Channeling sound is another way to make the office pleasant and comfortable. Use acoustic panels of all shapes and colors to deflect and absorb potentially distracting conversations and clacking keyboards.


Photo: Nevins Bio Canvas Panels

As you make the office comfortable, employees will find it a desirable setting to work in. It could become their home away from home.

Rely on 2010 Office Furniture for Resimercial Office Trend

The team at 2010 Office Furniture has more than 50 years of combined experience working with clientele that are among Southern California’s most notable corporations, universities, and other not-for-profits, and small businesses in all industries.

Contact them with your office needs and questions.

Read Also: 6 Reasons to Use a Resimercial Design for Your Office
Main Photo: HON Westhill Lounge
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: Arcadia, Darran, HON, Maverick, Nevins & Snowsound

Using Resimercial Office Design as an Employee Retention Strategy

Resimercial Office Design OFS Edge Structures

Imagine if your employees left your office feeling refreshed and not burned out after a day or week on the job. Office design that supports overall health and well-being can have a positive impact on people. Resimercial office design holds that possibility.

A resimercial office design can lead to greater employee engagement, loyalty, and productivity.

Here’s why you need to bring quality into your workplace.

What Matters to Employees

Brand your office as a pleasant atmosphere and you’ll boost your chances of retaining top talent. Design a space that’s well-planned, equip it with quality furnishings, and use fabrics and colors that look like they could be in a tidy and productive home office.


Photo: HON Preside Table

Your office environment and remote-work policies are being quietly, or openly, evaluated by your employees.

Well-being, flexibility, and work-life balance are of utmost importance in today’s workforce, according to global consulting firm McKinsey. A recent study the firm conducted shows that employees with and without children want flexibility and that includes remote work up to three days per week.

Yet, people want the best of both worlds because the findings show they don’t want to be isolated by being at home. Your team wants connections in a supportive office environment.

Microsoft discovered this in an international survey, published in the article The Next Great Disruption is Hybrid Work: Are We Ready? Researchers found that over 70 percent of workers want flexible remote work options to continue. Yet, over 65 percent are craving more in-person time with their teams.

Turn to resimercial office design to satisfy the internal desire for the personal touches found at home while meeting professional needs and desires in the workplace. See examples on 2010 Office Furniture’s Resimercial page along with other office design styles on the Inspiration tab.

Photo: OFS Beck Table

Resimercial office design bridges the home-work divide by prioritizing personal comfort leading to professional productivity.

How?

By creating an atmosphere that lets employees work comfortably and become as productive as possible. It’s the concept of ergonomics—fit the surroundings to meet the needs of the workers.

Design for Personal Comfort and Professional Productivity

Let’s take a Big Picture look at resimercial design. It’s not a gimmick or fad. The style has proven popular and it will continue. It doesn’t have one particular look, but lends itself to a variety of colors, styles of furnishings, and fabrics.

A lesson learned comes from the Hana Bank headquarters in Korea. The building was designed during the COVID-19 shutdown and features an atrium and a 12-story “ribbon park” integrating green space and public pathways into the workplace. This combines with other elements like curved surfaces and the use of wood to create an atmosphere with the goal that “people will leave the workplace feeling better than when they arrived.”

Reduce stress in the workplace by offering soothing or soft designs. This achieves two key results:

  • Supports emotional well-being
  • Emphasizes physical comfort

Designs that incorporate elements of nature like natural light, plants, and accessories like indoor fountains are soothing and allow for a sense of order and harmony. Plan a sense of flow from one set of workstations and offices to another while at the same time setting boundaries for private places.

Physical comfort is emphasized so that workers feel welcomed and have a supportive environment to perform to the best of their abilities.


Photo: 9to5 Seating Aria Chairs

Modular systems give you freedom in configuration, like the Global Sidebar Desking Workstation with an aesthetically pleasing woodgrain finish and personal storage capabilities. Use quality ergonomic chairs and proper lighting to ensure a positive experience.


Photo: Global Sidebar Workstations

Breakrooms with a trendy kitchen table can double as informal conference and work tables.

Involve Your People

Show your team color options, styles of workstations, desks, chairs, and lounge furnishings. Modular units make it easy to add or reduce desk area depending on how many will be in the office or working remotely.

Set aside different areas. One for huddles and another as a multimedia space to bring people together with a unit like the OFS Obeya Architectural Structure, giving a ”warm, familiar feeling.”


Photo: OFS Obeya Structures

You might find that people will want to spend more time in the corporate office and less time in their home offices. And, if employees are pleased, then retaining top talent just got easier.

Refresh with Resimercial Office Design

Building an intricate indoor-outdoor 12-story strolling ramp may not be in your budget like it was for Hana Bank. But you can take small steps to refresh your space whether you’re a tech start-up in Orange County or an established corporation in the Los Angeles area.

Re-do the break room and conference rooms in a resimercial office design. Get a feel for color schemes, tables, and chairs. Consider modular lounge seating and see how your office begins to come together.


Photo: Darran Bota Tablet Table

Larger companies can refresh a specific floor before doing an entire building. As you see it unfold, you can get an idea for what will work and enhance your office experience and environment.

Get a Resimercial Office Design that’s Right for You

Choose the designs and plan the spaces that are right for your organization. The team at 2010 Office Furniture has more than 50 years’ experience assisting clients from Southern California’s most distinguished corporations, universities, and nonprofits with space planning and furnishings.

Contact 2010 Office Furniture with your questions and needs.

Read Also: Designing Your Office Space from Top-Down to Bottom-Up
Main Photo: OFS The Edge Architectural Structures
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: 9to5 Seating, Darran, Global, HON & OFS 

Design and Plan Your Office for Collaboration and Inspiration

Design and Plan Your Office for Collaboration and Inspiration AIS Calibrate Table

Elevate your office from the mundane to a setting that generates collaboration and inspires your team to do their best. The thought invested in planning spaces, choosing the right furnishings, and using color schemes that matter keep morale high and your employees working at peak efficiency. 

Tech companies around Los Angeles are known for breaking out of the traditional gray and brown industrial colors to use shades that represent the sun and surf.

Companies that have a break-the-mold business model such as The Honest Company, founded by actress Jessica Alba, maximize light and use sleek-looking architectural walls to frame meeting areas. 

Symbols also create unique experiences. At Red Bull’s headquarters in Santa Monica, a 420-foot skate ramp flows over storage spaces down the center of the office.

Read on for ideas that will perk up your office’s design, make the best use of your existing space, and boost goodwill among your employees.

Getting Started

Look at your goals and budget, then choose the need that best describes your situation:

  • freshening up your office
  • overhauling an existing space
  • planning a brand-new interior 

Consider what you want the end result to achieve, like creating more common spaces for office collaboration or deciding how to get the most from your current floor plan.

Look at your overall use of space, color, and light. Set the tone for the atmosphere or vibe by considering your company’s brand. Are the promises you make to customers carried into your office setting?

Plenty of options exist to give both small businesses and corporations vibrant settings that become valuable places for employees.


Photo: Arcadia Domo Lounge Chairs

You may want a minimalist design with clean lines and plenty of natural interiors, also called the Scandinavian office.


Photo: Stylex NYC Loose Lounge Sofa

A minimalist interior can also come in an industrial flair like the Modern Industrial Office using a brick- and-mortar approach. Or try a modern look with bold colors and eye-catching designs.


Photo: Source International Scape Lounge Sofa

Get Smart with Ergonomics 

Make your environment and equipment work in support of your team and their overall office collaboration – so they are more efficient while staying as healthy as possible both physically and mentally. 

Ergonomics is more than having a height-adjustable desk so a keyboard and laptop monitor are at the right height.


Photo: OFS Aptos Private Office Desk

Accessories are important but investing in furniture, lighting, and colors helps the overall environment by assisting the workers and boosting morale. You promote productivity, profitability, and goodwill among your team members.

Seating

Select chairs that are designed for long-term comfort and well-being so that team members can fully engage in their tasks. A quality ergonomic chair is sensitive to the user’s body weight and shifts effortlessly as the person moves.

Look into the 9 to 5 Seating Agent Chair for durability; the mesh technology in the Humanscale Diffrient World Chair; and the OFS InSync chair that’s customizable. 

Sitting for long periods of time stresses the body so use chairs that support different body shapes.

Desks and Workstations

Desks that aren’t chosen properly can make a room feel crowded and make the user uncomfortable. Decide how much surface space is needed and how the person likes to do their work, such as spreading out and then gathering things when finished with tasks.

Some desks will convey authority or fit in with the surrounding décor regardless of title and position.

Open plan benching and modular workstations accommodate teams performing similar tasks while creating personal boundaries. Use configurations that work the best for your area. 


Photo: Friant System 2 Workstation

Need face-to-face with privacy screens and mobile storage? 

How about clustering people in a group for easy sharing of ideas?

Your options are highly customizable. You can shape your setting in numerous ways and choose from colors that complement your office surroundings.

Movement

Allow for as much movement as possible in the office.  This is important especially to promote office collaboration and office wellness. Encourage stretch breaks every couple of hours. Provide lounge furniture and break areas inside or outside where your employees can sit comfortably to work away from their desks, have a focused discussion, or just take a quiet moment.

Moving keeps blood circulating and eases pressure on the lower back, wrists, and knees.

Design and Plan Your Office for Collaboration and Inspiration Arcadia Domo Bench
Photo: Arcadia Domo Bench Seating

Colors and Light

There is a science to choosing colors that inspire or soothe to create a pleasant background. Just for kicks, here’s a fun experiment from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Cal Tech in Pasadena showing how beads seem to change colors under different shades of cellophane. Different shades affect moods and emotions.

Aristotle believed all color was either black or white and related them to the elements of water, air, earth, and fire as described by the Smithsonian Libraries. His views were held for 2000 years until Isaac Newton studied how light changed when passing through a prism.

Now, let’s hear it for sunshine. Bringing in as much natural light as possible keeps people upbeat and emotionally sound.

Knowing the result you want from your office environment, using the right equipment, and planning for an overall pleasing atmosphere will help your place of work become a desirable destination.  If done correctly, you will see obvious improvement in quality of work, team camaraderie, office collaborations and overall employee wellness. 

Koncept Splitty Lamp for Office Collaboration
Photo: Koncept Lighting Splitty Lamps

Call on 2010 Office Furniture

Planning an office that works for your firm requires a custom approach. Do you need a hybrid model with work-at-home solutions? How will your plan support flow of information and tasks?  Is it conducive to good office collaboration?

The team at 2010 Office Furniture has more than 50 years of combined experience working with clientele that are among Southern California’s most notable corporations, leading universities, and small businesses in all industries. 

Contact them with your office needs and questions.

Read Also: 3 Popular Office Layouts to Meet Your Office Culture
Main Photo: AIS Conference Table
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: AIS, Arcadia, Friant, Koncept, OFS Brands, Stylex and Source International

6 Types of Spaces Every Office Needs

6 Types of Spaces Every Office Needs Trendway Standing Height Table

Keep those cubicles up and the office lights on. Why? If you’re thinking work-from-home isn’t working for you and your company, you may be right.  Studies show that there are essential, different types of spaces that make for a productive and positive workplace, that working from home just doesn’t accommodate.

The corporate office remains important because we think more clearly and benefit from collaboration. 

The return to offices after COVID-19 showed that the office setting provides social interaction that individual remote offices can’t.

Researchers also learned that employees were productive in the home setting. 

In conclusion: the two environments don’t need to be mutually exclusive. 

Instead, plan to utilize spaces effectively so team members feel comfortable in the corporate office or the home office. Think through the types of spaces your office needs to help your team function productively.

Offer Welcoming Spaces

Home offices are often pleasurable because you feel welcome and comfortable in a space that you know well. It’s yours. 

Well-planned corporate offices can integrate the elements of home yet maintain an atmosphere where tasks are accomplished. 

Welcoming spaces include colors and furnishings like break areas that have a living room feel. Use bright colors or pleasant earth tones throughout the office space. Fabrics and accessories like throw pillows can give a down-home, be-yourself feel.


Photo: Encore Seating Chance Guest Chairs

Being at home is as comfortable as wearing a pair of old shoes while an office has more rigid expectations and requires equipment that gets the job done. Bring the personal and professional together with a variety of ergonomic chairs like the Friant Amenity Chair or the Humanscale Diffrient Smart Chair. Both have lower back support and adjust to the user’s weight and movements. 


Photo: Humanscale Diffrient Smart Chairs

Provide accessories that give workers support while using keyboards and well-lit desks.

Check our Inspiration Center’s Resimercial page to see how tables, lounge furniture, and specially designed chairs lend to collaborative conversations.

Bridge Distant Spaces 

We’ve been convening from long distances long before the pandemic hit, but with quarantine, media rooms have become even more of a necessity.

Provide a setting where your team can access the latest technologies needed for teleconferences and other forms of distance communication by using architectural walls that have character, yet maintain a clean, professional atmosphere.

Different Type of Spaces with Trendway Volo Wall
Photo: Trendway Volo Wall

Enhance Group Spaces

Trends show a continuing reduction in the individual workspace, but an increase in spaces for group work. How should you approach planning your space for either individuals or groups, like ad hoc groups?

Are informal meetings an important part of your company’s culture? If so, remote work can undermine it according to a 2021 article in the Harvard Business Review, Do You Really Need All that Office Space?

Managers “need to think carefully about what role informal interaction plays in their team and how working from home will affect it.”


OFS  Beck Table

Group workspaces can, and should, be welcoming spaces, too. Plenty of quality benching solutions are available. Keep it sleek and simple with the ODS Artiv Open Plan Benching, or create a group setting for personal privacy using acoustic panels with the DARRAN Honey Workspace. 

Different Type of Spaces with DARRAN Honey Workspace
Photo: Darran Honey Workspace

You can have a traditional meeting room or in an open office plan, designate an area for group discussion with the use of specific chairs and modular furniture. 

Mobile whiteboards, plants, and bookcases with artfully placed pillows and books help muffle the sound.

Use Clustered Spaces

An open office design can have a cluster of workstations with privacy screens and mobile or stationary filing cabinets. 

Use office plants to serve as boundaries between other workstations while helping filter the air and deflect sound waves.

Allow for Empty Spaces

Try reading a web page or printed page with huge blocks of text and no white space. 

Sound intriguing? Hardly. You’ll gloss over the page or skip reading it entirely. 

Think of office design like text and images on a web page or in a magazine. Layouts should attract the users and empty or open space has tremendous appeal if used correctly.

Desks and accessories that are simply squeezed together or scattered with no thought to flow or organization create an unappealing space. Concentrating is tough and so is finding personal space to reflect.


Photo: Darran Chameleon Workspace

Empty space can be a strategically designed space to give the office a clean look.

Personal Space

In an atmosphere with daily or weekly deadlines, it’s necessary to have spaces where employees can move away from their desks to work, take calls, or simply sit and refresh. Break rooms or lounge areas can fulfill this purpose for a change of pace.

Different Type of Spaces with OFS Tangent Lounge
Photo: OFS Tangent Lounge

Partner with 2010 Office Furniture – Create Different Type of Spaces

There are many ways to make the office a desirable destination for employees.  Creating different type of spaces is one important one.

The team at 2010 Office has over 50 years of experience advising and supplying the most distinguished corporations, nonprofit organizations, and small businesses in Southern California.

The team will show you how to create a pleasant and productive atmosphere. 

Contact them with your space planning and furnishing needs.

Read Also: NeoCon 2022 Trends: The Future of Office Furniture
Main Photo: Trendway Standing Height Table
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: Darran, Encore Seating, Humanscale, OFS Brands and Trendway

 

Editor’s Choice: NeoCon 2022 Winners

NeoCon 2022 Winners

What’s in store for the future of office furniture? NeoCon 2022 dazzled the world this month with game-changing innovations and revolutionary new products unveiled by more than 400 leading companies.  As the single most important event in the commercial design industry, this annual show drew nearly 40,000 attendants to Chicago to celebrate upcoming trends in furniture, textiles, building materials, lighting, wall coverings, accessories, outdoor products and more. Every year a selected panel of industry professionals announces the “Best of NeoCon” winners,  honoring outstanding new products in 54 product categories.  Below are some of ourfavorite NeoCon 2022 winners and standouts, capturing our imaginations with their thoughtful designs, unique features, and the promise of better, exciting times ahead.

Amobi by AMQ

INNOVATION WINNER / FURNITURE SYSTEMS – AMQ has long since been a reliable company that regularly produces modern products on quick timelines for a great budget. At NeoCon 2022, AMQ’s Amobi won the Innovation Award for the Furniture Systems category. Amobi gives us a glimpse of the future of work; it exemplifies a more collaborative and fluid style of working and recognizes the need for rapid configuration for a more flexible workflow. The Amobi Desk is a mobile workstation with easy transport and storage design, as well as additional privacy options. Amobi Team pairs well with the desk, featuring a family of mobile carts and walls that double as collaboration hubs or privacy walls.


Photo: AMQ Amobi Agile Workspaces

Focaccia by Koncept

GOLD WINNER / LIGHTING: TASK – The Focaccia Desk Lamp is another leading product that showcases the recent trends of the workplace: flexibility. With its sleek metal frame and slim base, Focaccia is an unobtrusive addition to your desk. Focaccia also offers an adjustable soft, diffused light from 2700k to 5000k, making it perfect for professionals that need minimal shadows and maximum luminescence.


Photo: Koncept Focaccia Desk Lamp

Fleet by OFS

SILVER WINNER / COLLECTIONS FOR COLLABORATION – OFS strikes again with the Silver Award winner Fleet Collection. Made to adapt to the everchanging flow of work and life, Fleet is made through “Soft Architecture,” architectural furniture designed to never make you feel like you’re boxed into a cubicle. Fleet’s tables are oval-shaped and come with optional casters for easy mobility. Their conference tables can be personalized with a canopy and media screen. Fleet seating complement their tables with their three different stool models to fit the user’s needs. Fleet planters add a pop of green in a variety of shapes to energize the office.


Photo: OFS Fleet Series

Kaleid by OFS

GOLD WINNER / WORKPLACE ACCESSORIES – In line with the philosophies of the Fleet Collection, Kaleid  was made to match increasingly dynamic offices. The Kaleid Collaborative Division Shelves are crafted with warm wood and come in multiple configurations and options for media units. Whether you want to use it as a board, self-watering planters, or shelving unit, Kaleid can adapt itself to fit your needs.


Photo: OFS Brands Kaleid Collection

Plot Twist by OM Seating

GOLD WINNER / SEATING: STOOLS – Whimsical, playful and lightweight, Plot Twist by OM Seating brings people together in a creative and collaborative way.  Featuring the fun, warm comfort of a pouf and robust optional adjustable height tablet surfaces, the collection reimagines casual brainstorming sessions, impromptu meanings and sharing of ideas – all the while being easily mobile.  They can also be configured with or without a backrest, and are available in multiple vibrant colors.

Photo: OM Seating Plot Twist

Adapt Wall by Senator

GOLD WINNER / COLLECTIONS FOR COLLABORATION – The Adapt Wall Partitions are Senator’s solution to the change of the individual’s daily work routine. Crowned the Gold Award for NeoCon’s collaboration collection category, Adapt serves as a mobile partition with additional functions such as a drawing board, shelf, coat hanger, and more. With four configurations in mind, Adapt enables a more agile, fluid, and flexible dynamic within the office.


Photo: Senator Adapt Wall Partitions

CellPod by Senator

2010 EDITOR’S HONORABLE MENTION – Innovation meets collaboration with Senator’s CellPod series. Senator gives a nod to the importance of collaboration with CellPod, a fully demountable room that still provides all the architectural qualities and services you would expect from a traditionally built environment. The CellPod has four configurations: Cabana, Focus, Meeting, and Round Personal. Cabana features a more open setting with its three-sided walls for larger meetings, while Focus and Round Personal were created to help the user immerse themselves in their work with no interruptions. The Meeting CellPod offers a more intimate meeting and collaboration space for smaller groups of people.


Photo: Senator CellPod

Reya by SitOnIt

SILVER WINNER / WORK FROM HOME SOLUTIONS – Reya is the desk for everyone, whether this means official or family business. Marketed as a work-from-home piece, Reya provides a dedicated place to escape the clutter with customizable options. This desk features rounded corners and a slim, modern design, capable of fitting into almost any room. Reya also boasts a patent-pending, lightning-fast assembly, meaning users don’t have to break a sweat putting this desk together.


Photo: SitOnIt Seating Reya Desk

Umo by Stylex

SILVER WINNER / TABLES: OCCASIONAL – Turn heads with the Stylex Umo Table. With its unique base and wood materials, Umo serves multiple functions, from adding visual warmth to any space to its efficient utility as an accent table. Featuring 4 wood finishes, the Umo Table is perfect for spaces that blur the lines between residential and commercial.


Photo: Stylex Umo Table

Jeté by Via Seating

SUSTAINABILITY WINNER / SEATING: CONFERENCE – The Via Seating Jete Chair is a conversation-starter with its distinctive European aesthetic and multitude of features. Jete is a combination of Via Seating’s signature comfort, unmatched design, and sustainable innovation. Available in high and mid back forms, as well as a variety of customizable upholstery and arms options, Jete creates an uncompromising standard for all executive-conference chairs.


Photo: Via Seating Jeté Chair

All NeoCon 2022 Winners

For a complete list of Best of NeoCon winners, please visit the official NeoCon website here.

Interested More in NeoCon 2022?

Looking for more info or inspiration?  Explore all the latest office furniture possibilities with the specialists at 2010 Office Furniture. Our team has nearly 50 years of combined experience working with Southern California’s most distinguished corporations, universities, and small business from Los Angeles and Orange Counties to the Inland Empire.

Contact us and let us know about your potential project needs.  We can help you create the modern office that fits perfectly for you and your employees.

Read Also: NeoCon 2022 Trends: The Future of Office Furniture
Main Photo: OM Seating Plot Twist, OFS Fleet and Senator CellPod
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: NeoCon, AMQ, Koncept, OFS Brands, OM Seating, Senator, SitOnIt Seating, Stylex, Trendway and Via Seating

NeoCon 2022 Trends: The Future of Office Furniture

NeoCon 2022 Trends

Every year, NeoCon takes our breath away with the unveiling of new and revolutionary designs in commercial office furniture. This year is no exception as the largest event of the industry introduced all the long awaited NeoCon 2022 trends earlier this month. Since 1990, NeoCon has been the leading hub of the commercial design community, giving designers, architects, end-users, manufacturers, dealers, service providers, associations, educators, students and media the chance to educate and, at equal turns, learn about game-changing products and services from more than 400 leading companies and emerging competitors. Countless products are entered for the chance of recognition at the world’s leading platform.

With 10 categories ranging from Best of Competition to Textiles, NeoCon is pivotal to setting trends. So what’s new in the world of commercial design?

Trend 1: Micro Spaces

Micro spaces—such as pods, dens or booths—are receiving an upgrade as one of the biggest NeoCon 2022 trends. It was the solution to the issues of the open office, a floor plan meant to foster collaboration, but instead can result in very distracting, noisy environments where employees find it challenging for concentrated work. Micro spaces on the other hand create a comfortable workspace that allow people to focus. They provide a quiet, less exposed environment for individual work, but glass doors and open doorways also ensure people aren’t completely cut off from the pulse of the company. Even better, in light of the pandemic, micro spaces can reduce the spread of diseases by preventing too many people from inhabiting a crowded area.

Groupe Lacasse PanGram Social Distancing Office Design and Nevins Phone Booth provide excellent micro spaces that tastefully transforms otherwise unused spaces to functional private work environments.


Photo: Groupe Lacasse PanGram and Nevins Phone Booth

Trend 2: Flexible Furniture

If there is anything office interior designers observed from the past three years, it’s that we no longer need X desks for Y people. We are no longer in the era of cubicle farms. How we work has changed and the office has changed with us. The office can now be rearranged to support different ways of working. Areas like open-plan benching, micro spaces, and breakrooms will give your team more chances to personalize their work experiences and boost productivity.

The OFS Fleet personifies adaptability. The Fleet table can be reconfigured for individual, group, and organizational needs.


Photo: OFS Fleet

Trend 3: Resimercial Inspiration

The resimercial aesthetic has been a popular trend in recent years and continues to be seen as one of the NeoCon 2022 trends. It’s a furnishing style meant to bring the relaxed feel of home into the formal office environment. Since quarantine, workers have been enjoying the ability to work from the comforts of home. To draw them back to the office, designers have taken inspiration from where they’ve been working in, bringing in furniture that emphasizes comfortable seating, ambient lighting, durable upholstery, and accessories like rugs and lamps.

Check out the National Collette Seating, a product that inspires employees to work in a space that exemplifies comfort and is reminiscent of home.


Photo: National Collette Seating

Trend 4: Bold Colors

Bold colors are making a comeback after years of using calm, neutral colors. Adding a beautiful pop of color can liven the office up. How organizations use colors often set the tone for the company’s culture, from calm to cheerful.

NeoCon 2022 showcases flexible ways to bring color into your space through accessories. For instance, this Stylex Trim Table setup features different brightly colored privacy walls and accessories that add an air of playfulness to the setting. ERG’s International Parma Table has accents of vivid colors that liven up offices.


Photo: Stylex Trim Table and ERG International Parma Table

Trend 5: Acoustic Materials

We’ve learned from past office trends that the cubicle farm made workers feel isolated and dehumanized. In an effort to find a more flexible solution for privacy and quiet, designers had to look away from hard surfaces because they cause sounds to echo and magnify. Soft surfaces like acoustic walls are the perfect sweet spot for the office because it not only reduces noise but have the mobility to be set up and rearranged at any time.  It’s no wonder that it’s one of this year’s top NeoCon 2022 trends.

Snowsound’s Botanica is a modern, lightweight acoustic screen made with high-quality sound absorbing elements that reduces ambient noise.


Photo: Snowsound Botanic Acoustic Panel

Trend 6: Touch Down Spaces

Throughout the years, we’ve been seeing more and more rigid work structures in our offices change and evolve with the people. No longer are meeting rooms only for large groups of people doing formal presentations. Employees are looking for more personal meeting spaces that are more informal and can easily be set up or reconfigured and separated in a flash.

This HON Preside Table and Flock Seating setup, as well as the OFS Obeya Architectural Structures, provide two perfect examples of touch down spaces. Whether you’re there for a group project or “me time,” these support your needs to get work done.


Photo: HON Preside Table and Flock Seating and OFS Obeya Architectural Structure

Trend 7: Retro Influence

We’re seeing a resurgence of old trends. The 70’s design style is usually touted as an ugly mistake with shag carpets and strange color combinations, but in a time when color can represent optimism and play, we’re glad to see it back as part of NeoCon 2022 trends.

National’s Hobsen Chair exhibits obvious 70s influence with its earthy, warm color scheme, psychedelic patterns, and wood accents.


Photo: National Hobsen Chair

NeoCon 2022 Trends Showcases Innovation at Every Turn

NeoCon has been a trendsetter for commercial design since 1990 and continues to be so to this day. From new trends such as touchdown spaces and callbacks to retro inspiration, NeoCon gives the stage to leading competitors to stun the world with new office products and solutions.

Interested More in NeoCon 2022 Trends?

Looking for more info or inspiration?  Explore all the latest office furniture possibilities with the specialists at 2010 Office Furniture. Our team has nearly 50 years of combined experience working with Southern California’s most distinguished corporations, universities, and small business from Los Angeles and Orange Counties to the Inland Empire.

Contact us and let us know about your potential project needs.  We can help you create the modern office that fits perfectly for you and your employees.

Read Also: Office Furniture Trends 2022: What’s New in Commercial Office Furniture
Main Photo: Senator Adapt Wall
Resources & Special Thanks to Respective Product Manufacturers: ERG International, Groupe Lacasse, HON, National, Nevins, OFS Brands, Snowsound & Stylex