Yes, it’s that most magical time of year again! Time for our annual round up of trends we think are going to continue to be strong in the new year!

If you’ve not already begun to deck the halls, we thought we’d offer you a little inspiration in the way of office design, direct from our Ben Johnson Interiors team to your screens. Call it our Christmas gift to you! Are you as excited as we are? Let’s unwrap what 2023 has in store for office design…

Silent Night

Good acoustics have been becoming even more vital through 2022 and we know this will continue to be a priority for our clients and their businesses right through next year.

Working on soundproofing, buffering and toning down noise pollution in the office – either from general chit chat, meetings or phone calls travelling through the office – aids concentration and therefore reduces the impact of disruption on employees. This allows productivity and morale to remain at a high, as we discussed in a previous post all about office acoustics.

This is one of many ways we improved the acoustics in the KCOM offices earlier this year. These booths offer employees a place to escape their desks, take a phone call in peace or chat to colleagues, while the sound of both their conversations and the wider office are buffered by the high walls of this seating area.

The Holly and The Ivy

Plants and greenery are going nowhere for 2023! Biophilic design is perhaps one of our most requested design features. They’ve been a massive hit for the past year or two and something we’ve covered at length in our previous blog posts.

Plants are air-cleaning, mood-boosting, and an inexpensive way to add a little colour and vibrancy to an otherwise corporate, stuffy, indoor environment. The benefits plants have productivity is well documented and is a great way to make your office more sustainable to boot!

Of course we couldn’t just let our clients have all the fun – we added this biophilic (faux) plant design behind our logo for an impactful statement upon entering our own York-based offices.

Away in a Manger

Okay, so there likely won’t be any need for mangers in your office, but that home-from-home feel has certainly taken off! Nowadays it’s less about how corporate and business-like you can make your office feel, and more about how cosy, comfortable and homely the space can be!

As we discussed in , a cosier environment actually provides a productivity boost by making staff feel relaxed and valued, plus it draws in the WFH crowd like never before. You can achieve this vibe in your workplace by incorporating natural materials, soft furnishings, warm colours and even furnishings such as height adjustable desks for ultimate employee autonomy.

Home comforts often include a cosy sofa or two, like these ones in the Firmenich workplace, offering people somewhere to pause for a moment and relax as they might at home.

Here Comes Santa Claus

People like to know what to expect; whether it be a man popping down the chimney or directions to your reception area, signposted free refreshments or clearly labelled restroom facilities, it’s always nice to be prepared.

A big hit this year with our clients, signage in the workplace is worth its weight in gold (and frankincense and myrrh) and helps avoid people feeling lost, especially if your office is quite large. It’s also a great way to incorporate your branding and even your tone of voice, to really make the brand come alive. We foresee this becoming even bigger in the coming months.

It’s easy for staff in our Circus PPC offices to figure out where to go for a bit of peace, thanks to clear signage like this!

All I Want for Christmas Is You (or actually, a break-out space!)

Perhaps the most wanted design feature of 2022-23 is the break-out space! Almost every client this year has wanted to incorporate breakout spaces into their design, which makes us happy because we’ve been singing the praises of the breakout space for years.

Office break-out spaces are flexible, serving a multitude of purposes with no fixed use or defined appearance. We know that some of the very best ideas are born away from your usual desk space. Taking a break from monotony can inspire innovation, while a chance conversation often leads to new ideas. (Plus your break-out space can double as a great place to kick off the Christmas party!)

Break-out space can take many shapes and forms; it could be a couple of the aforementioned sound-proofed booths, a huddle of comfortable bean bags or some large shared desking away from an employee’s usual screen, like this one in the West Barn Co. offices – which also features a swing!

So which of these might you be able to incorporate into your office design in the new year? 

As always, there’s no ‘one size fits all’ approach but if you think jazzing up your workplace might be something you could use our help with, why not get in touch – once you’ve recovered from the festivities, of course.

Let’s see if, together, we can avoid those post-Christmas blues and make 2023 the best year yet for your company!