The ‘theatre of shopping’ inspires Fora’s latest workspace

Photography: Jack Hobhouse

A minute’s stroll from Bond Street, flexible workspace provider Fora‘s new flagship workspace The Parcels Building is situated beside the Western Parcels Office station, which gives the building its name. Originally built as an office in the 1950s and now owned by Duke Street Property, the Parcels Building has been extensively redeveloped in partnership with Fora, built with a pronounced focus on wellbeing and productivity.

Duke Street Property appointed Grafton Architects to lead the top-to-toe retrofit, which first stripped the structure back to basics, then gave the Parcels Building a brand new clean-lined classic façade that gestures to the Selfridges building opposite, added an extra floor, and introduced a new skyline-view terrace.

Fora worked with renowned interior architects and long-time collaborators Piercy & Company to cultivate a tranquil and inspiring atmosphere inside the building, taking cues from ‘the theatre of shopping’ from its Oxford Street locale.  A neutral, gallery-like palette forms the base of the interiors, with tactile natural materials, pops of colour and bold furniture choices. Walls are adorned with monochrome photography by Andrew Meredith, depicting the architecture of the building and those of the surrounding area.

Graphic-patterned custom feature rugs inspired by the Parcels Building’s façade are juxtaposed with armchairs and sofa upholstered with recycled Kvadrat fabrics. Tables and chairs have been sourced from UK furniture manufacturer Very Good & Proper, with side tables made exclusively from recycled household and industrial plastic by Normann Copenhagen.

Biophilic principles underpin the interior spaces, with an abundance of greenery spread across every floor. Natural light pours in through full height-windows and, outside, a terrace overlooking Duke Street offers residents an opportunity to spend time alfresco, surrounded by olive trees and plants.

With sustainability a priority, reused and recycled materials are featured heavily in the interiors, including Huguet terrazzo made from recycled cement and aggregate. All suppliers involved in the interior fit-out were appraised by specialist design-procurement firm Dodds & Shute, to guarantee sustainability credentials and ethical practice – Fora has calculated that interrogating the supply chain in this way has protected the equivalent of 1,339 trees.