Oktra crafts a multi-brand experience inside a former Victorian barn

With a vision to offer guests an insight into the technical and quality-driven process of their product, luxury watch specialist Chrono24 partnered with design and build company Oktra to create a new workplace, workshop and retail space in the heart of Hertfordshire.

The unique space utilises a grade II listed Victorian barn and adjoining cowshed – incorporating three brands under the Chrono24 banner to offer an impressive client experience and high-spec technical environment.

“A clear objective in the brief was to create a memorable experience that people wouldn’t associate with purchasing a watch,” comments Oktra‘s Martyna Skoczek. “As soon as you enter the building, there had to be a sense of quality and hospitality to help elevate the customer journey.”

The project can be seen as two parts, Skoczek explains. A cosy client lounge and office space is located inside the Victorian barn, designed as a refined but comfortable space with a warm and detail-driven language that incorporates the original beams and features of the building.

A staircase was added to transform it into a triple-height workspace, creating additional meeting rooms, private offices and desk space away from the main client suite, resulting in two distinct experiences in the same building.

The majority of the fixtures are bespoke and were individually procured from second-hand stores and auctions. Furniture pieces were acquired through a collaboration with Soho House, and the original artwork that lines the walls was privately commissioned.

“The front half of the barn has been carefully curated as it is all about experience,” says creative director Sean Espinasse. “This is where we really had to understand the customer journey to create a memorable experience. From the moment they enter the building to how they move through the space, to the time it takes while waiting for an appointment, everything had to complement the overall sense of theatre.”

In the old cowshed, the focus was on the Watch Atelier’s workshop – a more clinical environment that resembles a laboratory – and the back-of-house processes which relate to the servicing of the watches. A staff breakout space acts as a central hub, serving as a link between the different parts of the building.

By merging multiple operations and functions within two such unique buildings, the challenge was to ensure the different zones were coherent and didn’t feel siloed.

“The two different parts of the office look and feel very different but there is still harmony and movement between the two halves of the building which helps unite them,” says Skoczek. “The staff breakout areas allow for flow of staff between the two buildings and acts as a central meeting point. It improves circulation and movement as well as uniting people from different brands rather than people remaining in isolation in their respective parts of the building. Every part has been included with great intent and careful consideration.”