With branding all around us in both the physical and digital world, corporate identity has seeped into nearly every aspect of daily life. In the 21st century, we have to ask ourselves: how can a brand establish a unique identity without getting lost in this information overload? How can a brand evoke industry values of technology, hard work, and innovation through the lived experience of its physical spaces? How can an office create a positive response from users through branding?
The answers lie in the rising fields of experiential and environmental design, which take the goal of embedding the built environment with brand identity as a foundational tenet in their philosophy. With thoughtful design choices based on the strategy, mission, and vision of a company, a workplace can evoke an on-brand sentiment that enhances the understanding of company aims. Such efforts integrate aspects of architecture, interior design, graphic design, and marketing to create a user-centered brand experience in the built environment.
To accomplish such a mission, a design team needs to first determine which colors and materials best represent the mood and tone of their corporate branding, now realized in the three-dimensional space of their corporate office. This year, we at Móz noticed a trend towards the use of metals in office design—whether industrial or refined—as a successful material strategy that is representative of core company values.
Incorporating Móz’s ability to mix and match solutions such as digital printing, machine and hand-etched grains, laser cutting, and a wide variety of colors and materials, we took a look at the ways in which the brand experience can be drawn into corporate environments without being overwhelming.
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Metal products are used to showcase corporate branding in office interiors, while also beautifully aligning with the office aesthetic. Here are three projects that illustrate metal’s value as a branding tool in the office place:
Moss Adams office in La Jolla, Ca., designed by ID Studios. Móz metal counter fronts in Khaki with a rectilinear pattern engraved on the surface to mimic tiles.
Moss Adams, the largest accounting firm headquartered in the western United States, aimed to redesign its corporate office by integrating burgundy brand colors and a serif typeface. This concept was realized by ID Studios in an office design that featured engraved metal counter fronts paired with burgundy accents and textiles. The engraved metal surface is from Móz’s Engravings collection, which utilizes laser cutting techniques to create machine-etched surface patterns to add dimensionality and texture.
The rectilinear Crossroads pattern mimics the brand’s clean typography, creating an overall feeling of warmth and modernity. Sustainability, natural light, and the integration of technology display a forward-looking and professional culture at Moss Adams.
Vying for Silicon Valley’s top talent, Sokon motor company required a world-class building with an innovative look and state-of-the-art technology. Based in China, Sokon’s newest U.S. home uses crisp white spaces with bold accents of blue and red, representative of the Sokon brand. The bold blue metallic gradient is a product of Móz, custom-blended from its Gradients collection. The surface is etched with a hand-crafted grain that adds a soft linear touch to the hard minimalism, evoking bold confidence in the environmental branding.
Metal Exchange Corporation was celebrating 40 years in business and had just transitioned to a new executive team under second-generation management. The executive team was ready to change the culture of the office in order to establish a new vision for the company. To support this goal, the team aimed to create an innovative, branded workspace that would address the strengths of the growing company. Being an integral part of the metal industry, applying metal as a material selection for the office design was an obvious on-brand choice. Featured as a show-stopping metal wall in Metal Exchange Corporation’s lobby, Móz Dimensional Walls were installed in an aluminum basket weave pattern.
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