MSPBJ: Cool Offices: Preston Spire moves to Minneapolis’ Mill District
This article originally appeared on bizjournals.com
When advertising agency Preston Spire’s lease for its office in northeast Minneapolis ended, it knew it needed something bigger.
The agency wanted to take advantage of a favorable real estate market due to Covid, but also wanted help the community and stay in the neighborhood as its team expanded. The firm’s new space, near the Mississippi River in the Crown Roller Mill building, grew its footprint by 20%, up to 12,000 square feet.
The entire design process of relocating the agency’s space was completed virtually, with a keen focus on creating more collaborative areas than the firm’s previous office.
CEO Jennifer Spire, who developed the strategy brief for the construction crew and Shea Design, wanted to celebrate the flaws that came with a historic building.
“When we give a tour, we wanted to create elegant surprises. We wanted to merge different materials and spaces together, we wanted an intersection of disciplines and teams, and we wanted to make sure it was a space that could evolve,” she said.
The relocation and renovation of Preston Spire’s new office does indeed merge materials and showcase evolution.
Upon entry to the new space, guests and staff are greeted by a reception area that features live moss hanging from the wall in lightning-shaped frames.
Exposed brick throughout the office offers a contrast of both color and material to modern ideas and technologies that fill the space.
One of the unusual aspects to the office? Dual kitchens. “When we are entertaining clients or partners, our largest conference room opens into the smaller kitchen,” Spire said.
The larger kitchen also offers entertainment value, but the most important aspect of the addition was giving staff a comfortable place to sit and rest, according to Spire.
The conference rooms have names like Gold Medal, Zenith and Galaxy, after former mills that are near the area.
Beyond adding amenities and making the space look modern, Spire wanted to find a home for her firm.
“It was very important to find a neighborhood, that felt like a neighborhood. The Mill District definitely has that energy,” she said.
From the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:
Business: Advertising agency
Top executive: Jennifer Spire, CEO
Employees in the office: 40 (hybrid)
Building name: Crown Roller Mill building
Address: 105 S 5th Avenue, Suite 200, Minneapolis MN 55401
Office opened: July 2021
Size: 12,000 square feet
Floors: 1
General contractor: Crawford Merz, LLC
Architect: Shea Design
Brokers: Tom Braman
See the original article here.