IN THE PIPELINE: SETTLING IN By Nicole Kow

It’s been about a month since we’ve moved out of 44 Siglap Drive to 53 Ubi Ave 1. While the initial packing was a ton of work, getting settled in to the new premises was quite a breeze. While we have moved in and operations are almost back to normal, we are not yet 100% complete. The minor details like organizing our new areas like the store on the 5^th floor, getting used to our new security systems reorganizing the furniture in the respective departments and buying the extra storage furniture for our workstations, the usual work day seems filled with a new variety of excitement to say the least.

This installment of the 2-part series we bring you through a virtual walkthrough of our office’s reveal. Unless you have visited us recently, this will be a delectable treat. So when you’re ready, make yourself comfortable and enjoy the ride!

 Located on the top floors of 53 Ubi Avenue 1 Paya Ubi Industrial Park, the new and improved Nic & Wes premises sits atop at levels 5, 6 and 7 overlooking the skyline with a glimpse of Marina Bay Sands in the horizon. While driving through the PIE, the Nic & Wes logo is hard to miss especially when it is lit at night illuminating the top floor of the industrial park.

While we have 3 floors within our premises, the main office is located at level 7. As the elevator door parts, a visual fusion of elements come together. At first sight, glimpses of the meeting room and reception area are quick spots as you step into the pre-meeting lounge area. Stepping up onto the decking, an in-house gazebo proudly stands to welcome clients.

The idea for our new office was not just to make it a place to get the work done, but a reflection of the design elements we work so enthusiastically for. The tropical theme – a theme we have become rather well-versed in becomes the focal point within the reception desk where admin manager, Eileen is situated at to greet clients and attend to her work. To recreate the tropical feel, water surrounds the most part of the decking with the calming flow of running water.

To the left of the reception area, the meeting room brings a new theme to the table. Mimicking the minimalist monochromatic feel of the house of Chanel, the meeting room oozes a classic minimalist. Chandeliers hand majestically from the ceiling above the table where clients will realize and conceive their home design dreams. With our recent workforce expansion, expanding the meeting room seemed the most logical. The new meeting room table sits a whooping 12 persons at one time. To illustrate our design concepts, a projector shoots across the adjacent wall during presentations.

To the other side of the reception area, the design studio too is another theme all on its own. Leaning toward the raw industrial look, the flooring is left cemented and desks in raw, natural wood. Our head designer, Jeffrey, came up with the concept which he envisioned from the start of the conceptualization process.

Across from the design studio, the realtor section becomes a visual spectacle of colors in its Moroccan theme. Like a sea of flying carpets, pieces of cloth suspend above desks loosely as glass lanterns cascade down from the middle. Sticking to an exotic palette of blue, purples and pinks the hues are further enhanced through its brightly exotic sea blue wall.

A key companion to any office is a pantry. While it lacked in our previous office, it made up with a kitchen in this one. While there will be no cooking in the kitchen, it is still a serves as a display to heat up a meal or wash up after eating in. It's use of space is functional yet stylish roping through a modern glam appeal. Bling mosaic walls alongside metallic gold accents just goes to show how fabulous a kitchen can be without looking tacky.

Also hidden from the main office area is the back-end of more workstations and an informal meeting room.

Making full use of the space available, the work area is designed in a very open-concept setting where the head-of-departments are accessible to one another. The workstations are aligned next to each other eliminating the old-school of office design that the boss gets his own room concept. While the men in the area were comfortable with the dark wood desks and uniformed walls, the women of the department on the other hand requested distinct styles. Brian, Roy, Randell and latest addition to the team, Wesley have their stations set to a modern tropical theme.   

Jude’s workstation works around an exotic glam feel. With deep turquoise walls and a black desk, it’s still got a few additions waiting to arrive. Similarly, Nicole’s workspace trends towards a blue, white and silver modern French theme. In the weeks to come, her chair currently being upholstered is to arrive along with Jude’s. And the desk is set to see a little more sparkle with some bling accents.

Just behind Nicole’s workspace, a photography studio is located. Set up especially for Wesley’s passion for photography, it has already shot the likes of a celeb. Basic and compact, the studio is an ideal room for studio shots of both people and things while still roomy enough to fit in the lighting equipment for an overall professional studio.    

Coming to a month, there is still a fresh feel and improvements to be made which will change in the weeks ahead. We look forward to seeing you soon at our new location whether it’d be an appointment to design your new home or an upcoming event.