With a presence on both coasts of Canada and a nearby office across the border in Seattle, Douglas fir international export trading company Coast Fraser was looking to establish a new office in downtown Vancouver that could facilitate their expected growth. That meant meeting multiple challenges in both design and practicality: as a timber trading company, they decided that an excess of wood accents in the design would be too on-the-nose, and the company’s need to balance open-concept space and the desire to give everyone an office would also take some ingenuity.

Meeting out-of-the-ordinary needs with unique solutions

With the mixed open-and-closed space put forth as a primary concept, Aura set up a hybrid cubicle-style approach and placed it central to the office. This allowed for both collaboration and privacy, while also cutting down on ambient noise and distractions. Phone booths provided further options for personal space, while custom storage spaces around the workstations provided additional versatility. Professionalism was the name of the game when it came to design, and while the presence of natural greenery brightened up the space, the usage of structured furniture, shiny copper finish design features, and bold, high-contrast flooring patterns gave it the urbane downtown feel that Coast Fraser was looking for.