New (artiste) kids on the block
This post was written by Clifford Boobyer on Tuesday, June 20th, 2006 at 12:43 pm and is filed under The dog speaks.
Well, we’ve just completed our move to trendy art and design hub Hoxton Square and all went really well, all things considered. Office moves can be quite a nightmare as you may know. We only really had a few hiccups - I think the most embarrassing being the van we hired from Sixt which essentially had an absolutely knackered engine which spewed vast clouds of noxious fumes at the slightest provocation. Not good for a cyclist such as myself - poisoning my fellow kerb huggers and receiving understandable abuse…Why have we moved? Well for starters - daylight. We’ve been a bunch of design slugs for the past few years nesting under the soggy rock which was the Soho firedog office. Not that I’m dissing it at all, it’s just that we’ve come to realise how important natural sun and light can be in terms of the human spirit. Everyone is far chirpier these days and our skin promises to turn from grey to,.. well a warmer shade of grey.
The second reason for the move is square footage and we now have a bit more of it thanks to two stories of prime media space. Downstairs we have the suits one side and the creatives the other (even more of a partition so the sounds of phone calls and self scalpel mutilation are more drowned out, result) and upstairs both a boardroom and what we plan to be a chill out room for those more informal meetings. We also have a nice roof terrace with which we plan to herald the remaining summer this year. So next time you need an excuse to leave your air-conditioned, dry walled partitioned modern day office, take a trip to the dogs on Hoxton Square.
hoxton square, hoxton, studio, design agency
June 21st, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Looks like you guys are directly opposite Unit9 if they’re still there!
The park will make a big difference too
June 27th, 2006 at 1:22 pm
Thanks Gareth, the park will make a difference - Just hoping we can throw our wi-fi that far!
July 17th, 2006 at 1:54 pm
Hi. I’m doing some research into what kind of services graphic design agencies want from their office space. Apart from the obvious stuff, I’d like some tips on how you think one should market office space to graphics/branding etc agencies. What does Firedog enjoy about Hoxton as an area? Do you think graphic design agencies would be attracted to working in hackney?
July 18th, 2006 at 11:29 am
Well, I think our move is a valid case in point. The absolute first necessity is light and loads of it - Firstly to look at our glorious creations and secondly to inspire, feed and raise the spirit in the studio. Designers are like plants really - not that my team would warm to me likening them to vegetative matter that resides in compost, but I think it really does have an effect on the human spirit.
The other reason for a move to Hoxton was space - you just get so much more for your money and it’s not on top of itself too. Also, the areas on the fringe of central London have a lovely edginess about them. Oh and the tourists were starting to irritate too. I think it’s a good move for any agency to fly the roost of the corporate style location to somewhere a little different - we’re not city folk after all?