A building with history

The project began with an on-site inspection in the spring, and it quickly became clear that this was no ordinary space. The Ioffice building, located in the old Sjöbefälsskolan, is an impressive structure with roots dating back to the 1800s, marked by maritime tradition. With its characteristic towers and two large rooftop terraces, the office enjoys a stunning view over Gothenburg’s harbor.

“The building has an incredible character and history, and I really wanted to preserve that rich, warm feeling in the room without compromising the functionality a modern office requires,” Kristina Jonsson explains.

Aesthetic and function in perfect harmony

Instead of choosing classic white office furniture, Kristina opted for a warm color palette that exudes Scandinavian minimalism with a twist.

“We wanted to maintain a warm and rich atmosphere without it becoming dark or gloomy,” Kristina explains.

The result is an inviting mix of earthy browns, soft pink hues and beige, combined with off-white details. The desks were covered in walnut linoleum – a bold choice that quickly became popular among employees.

Savo Spine used at Ioffice is available in several other variants.

Turning challenges into opportunities

No project is without challenges, and for Savo’s new office, the ceiling height was one of the biggest.

“There were two different ceiling heights in the room, which made the furniture layout tricky. We had to rethink our approach to find a solution that worked,” Kristina explains.

The final solution divided the room in a way that maximized both the high and low sections while keeping the space cohesive and airy.

To highlight and protect the room’s architectural details, curtains from Vescom and Ludvig Svensson became a key feature. The curtains were paired with fabrics from Kvadrat and Gabriel, creating a framing that added luxury and warmth.

“Curtains are a fantastic way to add texture and improve acoustics without touching the walls. They also gave us the opportunity to hide parts of the room that we didn’t want to emphasize,” she explains.

A space people want to be in

Since the office was completed, employees and visitors have flocked in – and they love what they see.

“We’ve received incredibly positive feedback. One thing that everyone has commented on is that it’s not just white and standard. Visitors are also impressed with how we managed to create an office that feels welcoming yet exclusive,” Kristina says with a smile.

The office has become a place that not only functions as a workspace but also as a showroom where Savo’s design philosophy is showcased in practice.

For Kristina, the interior design is about communicating Savo’s journey and progress. An example of this is the lacquered tables, which with their black edges and metallic surfaces show that Savo is not afraid to be exclusive.

“If we had done this five or ten years ago, it would have looked completely different. We are bolder now, and it shows!”

Ideas has created an office concept for Avensia, the Nordic region’s leading experts in modern commerce and e-commerce. Avensia has more than 350 employees worldwide, and has Swedish offices in Lund, Malmö, Helsingborg, Gothenburg, Karlstad, Stockholm and Umeå. The background to the project was a need identified by Avensia for a change in the office environment that involved reviewing the size of offices, their functions and designs. Also, 80 percent of Avensia employees wanted full flexible working, something they had become accustomed to during the pandemic. The project steering committee assumed that tomorrow’s workplace would be flexible and connected, and that as working life changed, so too must the workplace.

“Creating a work environment that supports the company’s development is a change process, and being an advisor in it was a natural choice for me,” says Patrik Haglund, Studio Manager and manager of the project at Ideas.

For us, people and their needs are at the centre. It would have been utterly wrong not to treat them as the most essential component in the office change process.

Åsa Afshari, Chief People Officer at Avensia.

The concept is based on open working environments and a social hub with a lounge, coffee bar, kitchenette and touch-down areas, as well as collab pods for focus and collaboration. The collab pods are intended for undisturbed work and collaboration. As well as meeting rooms in various sizes, there is a room designed for activities and training that can also be used for meetings and workshops. Calming beige and grey theme colours, natural features and light wood are contrasted by the furniture, drapes and details in accent colours.

Savo Soul with mesh back, 4D armrests and extra soft seat was chosen for the collab pods. The pods are also used for long phone calls and digital meetings, and as such they are intended to relieve the pressure on the larger meeting rooms, thus enabling a drastic reduction in the number of the latter.

“I chose Savo Soul because I appreciate the comfort, and the mesh back creates a lighter impression than a solid fabric back. The chair is much appreciated by participants in extended digital meetings and also programmers, who often sit and work in pairs at Avensia,” explains Patrik.

Ideas worked conceptually to define the updated functions at the office and how they should relate to each other. This allowed the optimisation of available space by merging different functions and creating a social arena for collaboration. Social areas occupy about 30 percent of the floor space, and are aimed at promoting commitment and pride. Avensia has been able to reduce its floor space by 25-30 percent, but still have room for additional employees. The concept has been implemented in Lund, Malmö, Helsingborg and Gothenburg, and will shortly be implemented in Stockholm.

You get the feeling you’ve stepped directly into someone’s living room; there’s a sense of peace as soon as you step inside. Working at Avensia does not mean sitting at a desk for eight hours every day.

Peter Öxgård, Office Manager and Director of Development at Avensia, Gothenburg.

Interior design and photography: IDEAS Interior Architects.

Ideas Interior Architects in Malmö have been around since 1989 creating settings with strong identities in what is known as space branding, where the focus is on designing an overall experience rather than just interiors.

“We reinterpret the customer’s business idea to a physical environment that supports their working methods and culture. A paradigm shift has been under way since the pandemic whereby work is an action and not necessarily a physical place to be visited every day. But some industries work more conventionally and need to meet face-to-face if innovation is to take place. These working methods collaborate and will probably continue to do so,” says Patrik Haglund, Studio Manager and Interior Designer at Ideas.

Ideas Interior Architects take care of the entire process with everything from workshops, managing change processes, creating design concepts, drafting and project management to final styling and the delivery of furniture. Many of the assignments concern optimizing workspaces to suit downsized premises, changed working methods and new functions.

“It’s all the more important to adapt floor space in downsized premises in the best way to help people enjoy being at work whenever they’re there. Flexibility at work has become a hygiene factor, and it also affects interior furnishings. For example, we’ve worked with multiple height-adjustable desks in meeting rooms so that those who wish to stand may do so while others remain seated at the same meeting.”

One of Ideas’ projects concerned an office hotel on the fifth floor of the WTC Business Center in Helsingborg where companies can rent spaces large or small, open-plan co-working areas, meeting rooms and break rooms. The choice of materials and the colour scheme for the project took their inspiration from Scandinavian archipelagos, and the use of wood, stone and steel in sober tones created an elegant, enjoyable setting.

“We used Savo Soul and Savo 360 for different purposes at the office hotel. The fixed workstations with desks needed a classic working chair, while Savo 360 with a fully upholstered back was a great hybrid chair for short periods of work and meetings in touchdown and co-working spaces.”

Savo 360 is very flexible, which makes it suitable for many different projects

Patrik Haglund, studio manager & interior designer at Ideas.

“Savo 360 is very flexible, which makes it suitable for many different projects. It’s a simple office chair that is intuitive, has an appealing look and is easy to locate. The combination of wood and fully upholstered back makes it easy to work with and imparts a softer impression; it’s not too ‘officey’. The round seat has a certain give, which means occupants can sit further out and lean forward, almost like they were on a stool. The back also has inbuilt give that allows micro movements that modify the comfort,” says Patrik Haglund.

Personally, Patrik prefers to stand, and while he feels more people should do so, he wants to make sitting comfortable when it’s needed. Allowing several different chairs to coexist in a project provides employees with freedom of choice when selecting chairs that suit them best

The fixed workstations with desks needed a classic working chair like Savo Soul

Patrik Haglund, studio manager & interior designer at Ideas.

UC is Sweden’s leading supplier of digital company and consumer information services. The company has around 220 employees and had previously rented a 4,000 sq m premises in Marievik. But after the pandemic and much working from home, the premises will no longer be suitable for their new working methods. Ferax was entrusted to take on the complete assignment with evaluating working methods, the size of the premises and how UC could best attract tomorrow’s employees. UC moved into around 1,150 sq m in the Waterfront Building on Klarabergsviadukten in central Stockholm.

“Enjoying one’s workplace is an important part of well-being. An office needs to offer something the home does not have, and that’s meeting with colleagues. At work, we should feel inspired by the input we get from others, and the office environment truly has to do its part here,” says Anette Ellsäter at Ferax.

Because UC’s wishes included working with natural materials such as wood, fabrics and textiles with sustainable profiles and furniture from Scandinavian designers, Ferax chose Savo 360 in oak with a layer-by-layer design from Olle Lundberg, with fabric made from 45 per cent recycled wool.

An office needs to offer something the home does not have.

Anette Ellsäter, Interior architect at Ferax

Ferax was also entrusted with overall responsibility for interior design, the choice of surface materials, colour schemes, furnishing, relocation logistics and project management for technology. In laying out the office, it was important to create smart environments with mobile, flexible furniture.
“The chairs are neat, stylish and ergonomic, and together with EFG’s HideAway meeting table with a foldable top and castors, it’s easy to roll away the table and chairs to change the setting quickly!”

Nunchi moved from offices in a nautical setting on Nya Varvet to new premises in a turn-of-the-century building in central Gothenburg with ceiling murals, stucco and herringbone parquet floors. According to legend, the magnificent apartment on Linnégatan 9 was the banqueting hall for none other than HRH King Oscar II.
The agency’s expansion, relocation and new recruitments required more than a little new furniture, but no new work chairs. They chose instead to keep their Savo Soul chairs with mesh backs and their Savo Joi stools with castors and foot rings.

A combination of creativity and innovation
without forgetting ergonomics.

Victor Johansson, interior designer at Krook & Tjäder

Except for meetings, travel and various assignments with customers, staff at Nunchi spend eight hours every day in the large studio working from their Savo Soul chairs. The chairs follow the body’s natural movements and adapt to their occupants. Because the ad agency works closely in teams whose members often provide each other with feedback, the mobile Savo Joi stool is ideal when they need to quickly roll across to a colleague’s desk.
“When you’ve worked more than 20 years in this industry like my partner and I, you get to sit on a lot of really uncomfortable chairs. So, when we discovered the Savo chairs, keeping them came naturally. The ergonomics and quality beat everything we’d ever tested. Our staff are also happy, which is important for both their productivity and well-being”, says Fredrik Malmborg, partner and copywriter at Nunchi.

Open office landscape and a new way of working

The biggest change was going from a cellular office with individual rooms to an open landscape and a different way of working. The concept is based on transparency, interlinking, peace and quiet, and development. The architect-in-charge was Ralf Lindberg at D2 Arkitektur. The office is divided into two floors with a training room, a lunch room and a meeting room on level 4 and a reception and work spaces on level 5. Special project teams allowed the employees to be involved to a great extent in the design of the offices.

“The assignment was very much about cultural change, where we conceptualised the working environment based on the switch from personal offices to work in open landscapes. The task was to integrate an open plan solution while maintaining the integrity, peace and quiet the staff were used to. Thus we designed one floor to consist solely of workspaces, while locating areas for social interaction and joint activities on the floor below”, says Ralf Lindberg from D2 Arkitektur.

I chose Savo because they do the business and meet ergonomic requirements.

Ralf Lindberg, architect at D2 Architecture

Savo Soul meets ergonomic requirements

“I chose Savo because they do the business and meet ergonomic requirements, which was very important for the project. Savo Soul provides style, function and value for money. There was such a wide range of mesh fabrics that I chose a green shade for the Savo Soul chair to serve as a modest accent in the otherwise neutral colour range.

Before choosing Savo, employees and occupational health representatives got to test the chairs, and Akademikernas also engaged an ergonomist to make sure the sample chairs were adequately ergonomic.

“Many of us at D2 have worked with offices since the 90s, so we know what works and what doesn’t. I’ve used Savo in major projects before, as the chair has such high quality, is very easy to adjust and has a long warranty. Savo was able to customise the chair for us with different seat sizes and gas spring heights, both much appreciated features. We’ve also had representants from Savo follow up on site,” says Hélena Syk, Project Manager at D2 Arkitektur.

The insurance fund’s office comprises different sections where floor space is divided into fixed workplaces, quiet rooms, staff meeting rooms and a reception on level 5. There are meeting rooms on level 4, a large lunch room with corner sofas, small tables, long tables and a library furnished with comfortable armchairs. Because there is an active art association and a general interest in art among staff at the office, they chose to grace many of the premises’ walls with their own art on painted wooden panels.

We want to create a Bravida Building where we can work together and showcase our production and efficiency across all disciplines and fields

Bravida’s vision for the conversion

Savo Soul and Savo Studio add colour

The colour scheme in the premises is based on beige carpeting and workstations in white, beige and brown. Groups of sofas and armchairs create splashes of yellow, blue and green combined with white storage furniture with pale wood features.

A Savo Soul group with upholstered metal armrests was taken from a different office as the staff were so pleased with the furniture and eager to reuse it, Lena Åberg tells us.

Sustainability was an important part of the renovation, and Bravida reused furnishings and also purchased second-hand. All other furnishings were replaced to suit the new interior decoration concept and working method. In the run-up to the renovation, the reference groups that tested various new chairs chose Savo. This time it was Savo Studio and Savo Soul with mesh backs.

Most people at Bravida appreciate robust chairs and the Savo chairs received an excellent response from men and women alike. Also, Savo Soul suits the new working method well as it’s so easy-to-use, says Lena Åberg.

The Savo Soul chairs with upholstered metal armrests were actually taken from another office as everyone was so pleased with them

Lena Åberg, project manager Hifab

The various departments were gathered at the head office

The head office premises are divided into focus zones and active zones with meeting rooms, workstations, a lounge and touchdown areas. A request from the employees sought to separate meeting rooms from the break room, which were previously located on the entrance level. This led to a brand-new break room where employees can eat and socialize away from outside visitors. There are also swings on the same floor to stimulate movement during chats and quick one-to-one updates.